Islamabad, January 18, 2025: Investigations are underway into the tragic Morocco boat accident, with 20 officials of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) facing scrutiny. According to the FIA, these officials allegedly facilitated the clearance of victims at various airports in Pakistan. Initial inquiries have been launched against eight officers stationed at Faisalabad Airport, while six from Karachi Airport and six from Lahore Airport are also under investigation.
The FIA has identified Mauritania as a new hotspot for human trafficking, following previous routes through Turkey and Libya. The agency reported that trafficking networks began establishing operations in Mauritania in March 2024. Safe houses were set up in the country, and by June, the smuggling of individuals was actively underway. Victims were transported from Pakistan to Senegal via air routes, followed by overland travel to Mauritania. From there, they were sent by sea to Morocco, with the final destination being a Spanish island.
Among those linked to these networks is Qamar Zaman, a key suspect in the Greece boat tragedy. He has reportedly reached Mauritania. Meanwhile, Afzal Jajja, involved in a previous case, fled Libya after the Greece incident. Several smugglers implicated in a July 2023 trafficking operation are also believed to have relocated to Mauritania.
The FIA disclosed that many Pakistani nationals remain in Mauritania’s safe houses, seeking to reach Spain via the Morocco route.
On January 16, a boat carrying migrants along the western African route to Spain capsized off the coast of Morocco. The disaster claimed 50 lives, including 44 Pakistanis. Moroccan authorities reported that the boat, carrying 86 migrants, departed from Mauritania on January 2. Only 36 passengers were rescued.
Families of the victims have accused human smugglers of murder, citing their ruthless practices. Among the deceased were 12 young men from Gujrat, Pakistan, who had embarked on their journey to Europe four months earlier. The families revealed that the smugglers, after initially setting sail on January 2, abandoned the boat at sea and demanded additional payments from the migrants, leaving them stranded in perilous conditions.
