Islamabad: Following last week's sinking of an overloaded smuggling vessel off the coast of Greece, which left more than 500 migrants—including Pakistanis—missing, Pakistani authorities announced on Wednesday that they had detained seven alleged key figures in a human trafficking ring.
As part of a government crackdown on traffickers, police said the ring was involved in smuggling Pakistanis into Europe. They added that the arrests happened over the past two days.
In the recent days, thirty additional suspects were detained in Pakistan and were being investigated for their possible involvement in smuggling operations. On Wednesday, police conducted more raids across the nation in an effort to apprehend everyone connected to the tragedy involving the migrant ship. Local police are receiving assistance from Pakistan's intelligence services in locating smugglers who have disappeared.
Also Read: Ukraine's allies promise to hold Russia accountable for its invasion
According to Pakistani authorities, each person who attempted the dangerous journey to Europe in search of a better life paid the smugglers $5,000 to $8,000 each.
One of the worst migrant shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea occurred on June 14 when a boat carrying up to 750 people capsized off the coast of Greece. Only 104 men, all men, survived—Egyptians, Pakistanis, Syrians, and Palestinians—and 82 bodies were found.
Shahbaz Sharif, the prime minister of Pakistan, declared on Wednesday that more would be done to break up trafficking networks. In an effort to stop further maritime tragedies, he declared that Pakistan would enlist the assistance of Interpol and other countries in tracking down and apprehending traffickers.
How many Pakistanis were on board the ship and remain missing is not immediately known. 150 relatives of Pakistanis who are thought to have been on the ship have so far provided DNA samples for comparison with the bodies found.
Also Read: UN rapporteur urges Indonesia to take the initiative in resolving the crisis in Myanmar
The relatives of the dead and missing Pakistanis were angry and frustrated after reports claimed that Greek authorities had delayed acting to save the migrants.
According to officials in Athens, the passengers refused assistance and insisted on sailing to Italy, and it would have been too risky to attempt to evacuate hundreds of these people from an overloaded ship.
During the weekend, survivors gave sworn testimony that was obtained by the AP. They described horrifying circumstances on the five-day trip. The majority of the passengers were denied food and water, and anyone who attempted to reach deck level without being able to pay the crew to let them out of the hold was severely beaten.
Also Read: H-1B Visa Reboot: US Unveils Game-Changing Plan During PM Visit
Some Pakistani survivors telephoned their families and related similar stories. The migrant ship went down close to the Mediterranean's deepest point, where efforts to find a sunken ship could be hampered by depths of up to 5,200 metres. Over the past week, there has been less optimism for finding survivors. According to human rights organisations, people have had to travel farther and riskier routes to reach safe countries as a result of the European Union's crackdown on smuggling.