ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said on Thursday it had arrested a human trafficker suspected of illegally sending Pakistanis to Spain on a migrant boat that capsized off the coast of Morocco last week.
The boat capsized near Morocco’s coast on Jan. 15 while carrying 86 migrants, including 66 Pakistanis, according to migrant rights group Walking Borders. Moroccan authorities said a day later 36 people were rescued from the vessel which left Mauritania on Jan. 2, while the Pakistani Foreign Office has said the survivors include 22 Pakistanis.
The tragedy has once again underscored the perilous journeys many migrants, including Pakistanis, embark on due to conflict and economic instability in their home countries.
“Human smuggler involved in Moroccan boat accident arrested,” the FIA said in a statement, identifying the suspect as Muhammad Aslam and saying he was arrested after a raid in the small town of Sambrial in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
Ahsan Shahzad, father of Suffian Ali, one of the victims of a migrant boat that capsized in West Africa’s Atlantic coastline, is consoled by relatives at his home in the village of Dhola, Lalamusa district, Pakistan on January 17, 2024. (AP)
The statement said Aslam and his accomplices had taken Rs5.35 million from the family of Aamir Ali, who died in the boat accident, and had tried to smuggle him to Spain via Mauritania.
“A case has been registered against the accused and an investigation has been launched. More arrests are expected after the accused are identified,” the FIA said.
Ahsan Shahzad, shows a picture of his son, Suffian Ali, one of the victims of a migrant boat that capsized in West Africa’s Atlantic coastline, on his cell phone at his home in the village of Dhola, Lalamusa district, Pakistan on January 17, 2024. (AP)
A record 10,457 migrants, or 30 people a day, died trying to reach Spain in 2024, most while attempting to cross the Atlantic route from West African countries such as Mauritania and Senegal to the Canary islands, according to Walking Borders.
In 2023, hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek town of Pylos, marking one of the deadliest boat disasters ever recorded in the Mediterranean Sea. More recently, five Pakistani nationals died in a shipwreck off the southern Greek island of Gavdos on Dec. 14.
Mohammad Akram, left, father of Abu Bakar, one of the victims of a migrant boat that capsized in West Africa’s Atlantic coastline, is consoled by relatives at his home, in Jura village, in the Lalamusa district in Pakistan on January 17, 2024. (AP)
The Pakistani government has ramped up efforts in recent months to combat human smugglers facilitating dangerous journeys for illegal immigrants to Europe, resulting in several arrests.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has also urged increased collaboration with international agencies like Interpol to ensure swift action against human trafficking networks.
Mohammad Akram shows a picture of his son Abu Bakar, one of the victims of a migrant boat that capsized in West Africa’s Atlantic coastline, on his cell phone at his home, in Jura village, in the Lalamusa district in Pakistan on January 17, 2024. (AP)
