LONDON: While waiting for an explanation from French and UK authorities, the brother of an Iraqi teen who disappeared in last year's Channel tragedy said his heart was breaking.
On 24 November, 18-year-old Twana Mamand Mohammed was on board a boat which capsized and 31 people lost their lives. It was the worst Channel disaster in 30 years as only two people managed to survive.
According to the Metro newspaper, the young Iraqi left Ranya in northern Iraq 15 weeks ago. He was an aspiring footballer who wanted to play for Manchester City in the Premier League. His father used his home as security to pay the smugglers around £20,000 in return for their safe arrival.
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His brother Zana has been in Paris for seven days in search of answers. My heart is breaking as we continue to search for Twana a year after she went missing. I traveled from Iraq to France in the hope that we might learn what happened, but I haven't heard anything yet," he told Metro.
"Words alone cannot capture my family's grief; it only deepens with each passing day. While we wait and hope that one day we will get some news, our hearts are in pain. Twana K We were a very content family before the disappearance completely changed the way we lived.
We are currently depressed all the time; My parents cry every day. Many of Twana's friends are also heartbroken and unsure how to move forward without her.
Any news will at least provide some solace and joy to us. The French and British rescue services were contacted by the passengers on the overturned canoe, but each side insisted that the other should respond.
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The French coast guard did not appear until the afternoon after a fisherman discovered the bodies in the country's waters, according to refugee aid organization Care4Calais.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch is in charge of the British investigation, while the French government revealed last week that it is conducting an internal inquiry into the catastrophe.
In a joint statement, Care4Calais, Stand Against Racism, and the British Trade Union Congress criticized the government's failure to rescue the passengers and the slow investigation into what happened.
"Repeated calls for help were made to both the UK and French emergency services, both of which, instead of sending a crew to rescue the people on the ship, spent significant hours arguing over who should get a stricken sloop." must be saved." Logs of emergency calls made by people on the boat to French authorities.
The families of the victims are still waiting for an explanation as to how the authorities could have let them down so badly after a year.
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British authorities are awaiting the results of an ongoing Marine Accidents Investigation Branch inquiry before making any further inquiries. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch is yet to contact the families of the victims.