Bodies of 12 Pakistani migrants who died in boat sinking have been repatriated

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PARACHINAR, Pakistan (AP) — The bodies of 12 out of at least 16 Pakistanis who died this month when a boat carrying dozens of Europe-bound migrants sank off Libya’s coast have been repatriated to Pakistan, officials said Friday.

Most of the victims who died in the capsizing were from Kurram, a district in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The boat was carrying more than 60 Pakistani nationals — 37 of them were rescued, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Ten people remain unaccounted for.

Ashfaq Ahmed, a government administrator, said that nine of the 12 bodies were sent to Kurram on Thursday and Friday. He said that the bodies of the other four victims will be repatriated soon.

People unloaded coffins from helicopters. Families held portraits of the deceased at funerals.

Relatives of the victims said that their loved ones left behind their homes and families to make the long and dangerous journey to Europe because of unemployment and insecurity. One of the men who died was 20 and had two daughters.

Two of Sabir Hussain’s cousins died in the capsizing.

“The situation in Parachinar is terrible,” Hussain said, referring to a city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. “People prefer death instead of living in Parachinar. They try to go anywhere, to go somewhere they can find some work and live a peaceful life. But, unfortunately, we are receiving bodies.”

Libya, which shares borders with six nations and has a long coastline along the Mediterranean, is a main transit point for migrants escaping war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East to seek better lives in Europe.

Every year, hundreds of Pakistanis die while attempting to reach Europe via perilous land and sea routes, often facilitated by human smugglers.

In January, authorities said dozens of Pakistanis died when a boat capsized off West Africa.