Vessel carrying 65, mostly Pakistanis, capsizes in Libya

Islamabad(The Uttam Hindu): In yet another boat tragedy, a vessel carrying at least 65 passengers, mostly Pakistanis, capsized off the coast of Libya, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) confirmed in Islamabad on Monday. "Our Embassy in Tripoli has informed us that a vessel carrying approximately 65 passengers capsized near the port of Marsa Dela, North West of Zawiya city, Libya. The Pakistan Embassy in Tripoli has immediately dispatched a team to Zawiya hospital to assist the local authorities in identification of the deceased," read a statement issued by the Pakistan Foreign Office.

"The Embassy is also trying to ascertain further details of the Pakistani affectees," the statement added. The foreign office did not confirm the total number of Pakistani nationals among the 65 passengers, adding that it was working with the authorities in Libya to ascertain the nationalities of the passengers. The latest incident has brought back traumatic memories of a similar incident from January 2025 when a boat carrying at least 86 passengers, 66 of them Pakistani citizens, capsized near Morocco. The Moroccan authorities were able to rescue only 36 people and 50 passengers died in the incident.

Following the incident, Pakistan government launched a major crackdown against human traffickers and their facilitators as the government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed authorities to take immediate and strict action against the culprits involved and the officials who are facilitating illegal migration of people from the country. During February 2025, the authorities in Pakistan have suspended at least 35 officials of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for their involvement in facilitating human smuggling operations from the Pakistani airports.