ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Monday arrested the main suspect behind a 2023 boat capsize off Greece, which claimed lives of over 250 Pakistanis, the agency said.
Hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned, when an overcrowded vessel traveling from Libya capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos in June 2023. This disaster became one of the deadliest boat tragedies ever recorded in the Mediterranean Sea.
It highlighted the perilous journeys many migrants undertake, often driven by economic hardship, as young individuals seek better financial opportunities by attempting dangerous crossings to Europe, prompting the Pakistani government to order “intensified” measures against human traffickers.
The FIA said the suspect, Mohammad Iqbal, who had been living in Libya since 2013, was arrested by FIA immigration officials upon arrival at the Lahore airport.
“The suspect was running a human trafficking network from Libya,” the FIA said in a statement. “The suspect illegally sent several Pakistani citizens to Europe from Libya via boats.”
The FIA said it had traced illegal transactions amounting to Rs80 million ($287,356) from Iqbal’s bank account, adding that he was booked in multiple cases registered with the FIA Lahore zone.
FIA Lahore Director Sarfraz Virk said a crackdown on human trafficking networks was ongoing, vowing to bring human traffickers to justice.
“Strict punishment will be meted out to human traffickers responsible for boat incidents,” he was quoted as saying by the FIA. “FIA teams are in constant contact with the affected families.”
Last month, the FIA issued red notices for 20 foreign-based human traffickers involved in the 2023 Greek boat tragedy. A red notice is a request from a member country of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to other member states to locate and arrest a person to extradite them to face criminal charges.
Several Pakistanis, in a bid to escape economic hardships at home, often undertake these illegal and dangerous journeys to enter Europe.
Last year, five Pakistani nationals died in a shipwreck off the southern Greek island of Gavdos on Dec. 14. More recently, a boat capsized near Morocco’s coast on Jan. 15 while carrying 86 migrants, including 66 Pakistanis, according to migrant rights group Walking Borders. Pakistan’s Foreign Office has confirmed 22 survivors of the incident.
Pakistan arrests main suspect behind 2023 Greek boat tragedy that killed over 250 nationals
https://arab.news/mv9k2
Pakistan arrests main suspect behind 2023 Greek boat tragedy that killed over 250 nationals
- Around 262 Pakistanis drowned when overcrowded vessel sank off Greece coastal town of Pylos
- Illegal transactions amounting to $287,356 have been traced in Mohammad Iqbal’s bank account
Pakistan’s Mahnoor Omer named among TIME’s ‘Women of the Year’ for 2026
- Omer moved a Pakistani court against the so-called ‘period tax’ in Sept. 2025 which has since sparked a national debate
- Taxes on sanitary pads in Pakistan can add up to 40 percent to retail price, UNICEF says only around 12 percent women use such products
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani women’s rights activist Mahnoor Omer, who fought against taxes on menstrual products, has been named among the TIME magazine’s ‘Women of the Year’ for 2026.
Omer’s efforts have been recognized alongside 16 activists, artists, athletes and businesswomen in the TIME’s Women of the Year 2026 list, including Olympic gold medalist Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Chloe Zhao.
Dissatisfied with the efforts to educate Pakistani girls about sexual violence, Omer founded the Noor Foundation at the age of 14 and held her own workshops with village girls about everything from climate change to menstruation, according to the TIME magazine.
Two years later, a conversation with a domestic worker about the price of pads made her realize that not everyone could afford these essentials. She moved a court against the so-called “period tax” in Sept. 2025 and the case has sparked a national debate on the subject, considered a taboo by many in Pakistan, since its first hearing late last year.
“A decade and one law degree after her interest in activism was sparked, Omer, now 25, is putting her passion and expertise to work in the name of gender equity,” TIME wrote about Omer on its website.
Taxes imposed on sanitary products in Pakistan can add up to 40 percent to the retail price. UNICEF estimates just 12 percent of women in the country use commercially produced pads or tampons. The alternative, using cloth, risks health impacts including rashes and infections, and can make it impossible for girls to attend school while menstruating.
Omer’s suit, which awaits the government response, has sparked a national discussion. She says she spoke about menstruation to her father and male cousins, who thanked her for standing up for their daughters.
The 25-year-old, who is currently enrolled in a master’s degree in gender, peace, and security at the London School of Economics, sees this case as just the first of many.
“I’m not free until every woman is free,” she was quoted as saying by TIME. “I want to leave no stones unturned in terms of what I can do with the next few decades, as a lawyer for the women in my country and gender minorities in general.”
