FO confirms Pakistani migrants' boat capsizes off Moroccan coast

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office (FO) of Pakistan has confirmed the incident of Pakistani migrants’ boat capsizing off Moroccan coast.

The Foreign Office said on Thursday that a boat carrying 80 passengers, including several Pakistani nationals, setting off from Mauritania, has capsized near the Moroccan port of Dakhla.

MoFA said in a press release that the Pakistan Embassy in Rabat (Morocco) has informed that several survivors, including Pakistanis, are lodged in a camp near Dakhla.

“Our Embassy in Rabat is in touch with local authorities. Additionally, a team from the Embassy has been dispatched to Dakhla to facilitate the Pakistani nationals and provide necessary assistance,” the statement said.

Migrant rights group Walking Borders said on Thursday that 44 of those presumed to have drowned were from Pakistan.

“They spent 13 days of anguish on the crossing without anyone coming to rescue them,” Walking Borders CEO Helena Maleno said on X.

Asked about what warnings it had received from NGOs regarding a missing boat, Spain’s maritime rescue service said it had learned on Jan. 10 about a vessel that had left Nouakchott in Mauritania and was experiencing problems but it could not confirm if it was the same boat.

The service said it had carried out air searches without success and had warned nearby ships.

Walking Borders said it had alerted authorities from all countries involved six days ago about the missing boat.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Thursday expressed grief over the accident of a boat sailing from West Africa to Spain.

He sought a report from the relevant officials about the incident and warned of strict action against the persons involved in the repulsive act of human smuggling.

He said no negligence on the matter would be tolerated, adding, “We are taking strong measures against human smuggling.”

The Crisis Management Unit (CMU) in the Foreign Ministry has been activated and the Deputy Prime Minister / Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has instructed the relevant Government agencies to extend all possible facilitation to the affected Pakistanis.

MoFA also provided the contact details of Ministry’s Crisis Management Unit (CMU) and our focal persons in Rabat.

24/7 Crisis Response Center Telephone: 051-9207887, Email: [email protected]

Contact Details of Embassy of Pakistan, Rabat:

Ms. ⁠Rabia Kasuri (Acting Ambassador): +212 689 52 23 65 (WhatsApp)

⁠ Mr. Noman Ali, Consular Assistant:+92 310 2204672 (WhatsApp)