ROME: Forty-five people, including some children, were killed when a wooden boat carrying migrants ran aground on rocks off the southern Italian coast early Sunday, officials said.
The ship had left Turkey several days ago with migrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and several other countries and crashed in stormy weather near Steccato di Cutro, a seaside resort on Calabria’s east coast.
Provincial government official Manuela Carrara told JEE News that the death toll was provisionally at 45. Eighty-one people survived, out of which 22 were taken to hospital, he said.
Guardia di Finanza customs police said one survivor was arrested on charges of migrant smuggling.
The mayor of Cutro, Antonio Serraso, said that the dead included women and children. The exact number of children who died is not yet available.
His voice rising, Ceraso told JEE News that he had seen “a spectacle that you would never want to see in your life… a horrible sight… that will stay with you for the rest of your life.” “.
The wreck of a wooden gilt, a Turkish boat, was spread over a large part of the beach.
Karra said the ship had left Izmir in eastern Turkey three or four days earlier, adding that survivors said there were about 140 to 150 people on board.
Most of the survivors were from Afghanistan, along with some from Pakistan and a couple from Somalia, he said, adding that it was difficult to identify the nationalities of the dead.
“Many of these migrants came from Afghanistan and Iran, fleeing extremely difficult conditions,” Italian President Sergio Mattarella said.
Initial reports by ANSA and other Italian news agencies said 27 bodies had washed ashore and more were found in the water.
Ignazio Mangione, an official with the Italian Red Cross, told JEE News that very few children on board survived.
‘Illusory mirage’
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed “deep sorrow” at the deaths. Blaming human traffickers, he vowed to stop the sea departure of migrants to prevent such tragedies.
His right-wing administration has taken a tough stance on migration since taking office in October, mostly by restricting the activities of migrant rescue charities with tough new laws that won final parliamentary approval on Thursday. of
Meloni accused charities of encouraging migrants to make the perilous sea journey to Italy, acting as so-called “pull factors”.
Charities denied this, saying the migrants had left regardless of whether rescue boats were nearby.
“Stopping, halting and obstructing the work of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) will have only one effect: the death of vulnerable people who are left without help,” Spanish refugee rescue charity Open Arms said in a statement on Sunday. Tweeted in response to the destruction of
In a separate statement, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantidossi said it was important to block the sea crossings, which he said offered migrants “the illusion of a better life” in Europe, enriching smugglers and such tragedies. lead to
Pope Francis, the son of Italian immigrants to Argentina and a longtime advocate for migrant rights, said he was praying for all those trapped in the wreckage.
Italy is one of the main landing points for migrants trying to enter Europe by sea, many seeking to travel to wealthy northern European countries. The so-called Central Mediterranean Sea route is said to be one of the most dangerous routes in the world.
The UN Missing Migrants Project has recorded more than 17,000 deaths and disappearances in the Central Mediterranean since 2014. He estimates that more than 220 have died or gone missing this year.
