Greece boat tragedy: FO says Crisis Management Unit operational to facilitate Pakistanis

The Foreign Office (FO) said Sunday that it has created a Crisis Management Unit to help Pakistanis who suffered in yesterday’s incidents of capsized boats in the southern part of the Greek island of Crete.

The foreign office stated that one Pakistani has been confirmed to be among the dead and that 47 Pakistanis are among those rescued after the accident, according to preliminary information.

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“At this stage we are unable to confirm the number of deceased or missing Pakistani nationals,” added the statement.

According to the statement, the Pakistani Embassy in Athens is in communication with the Coast Guard of Chania and the Hellenic Coast Guard, both of which are actively involved in the search and rescue effort.

“The Embassy officials have reached the Crete to meet with the rescued Pakistanis and provide them with any assistance required,” stated the statement.

The overseas office staff can be contacted using the following details to gain further information.

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Pakistani nationals living in Greece and their families are urged to get in touch with the CMU by phone or email at the following number:

Telephone number: 051-9207887

Email address: [email protected]

Families of the missing Pakistanis can offer information by calling the Pakistani Embassy at: +30-6943850188

Earlier on Saturday, Reuters reported that a wooden boat carrying migrants capsized off the island of Gavdos in southern Greece, killing at least five of them.

Witnesses reported that numerous more were still missing as search operations continued.

According to the statement, coastguard boats, merchant ships, an Italian frigate, and naval aircraft have scoured the area since Greek officials were alerted to the incident on Friday evening.

In separate incidents on Saturday, a Malta-flagged cargo vessel rescued 47 migrants from a boat sailing about 40 nautical miles off Gavdos, while a tanker rescued another 88 migrants some 28 nautical miles off the tiny island in Greece’s south.

According to initial information, coastguard officials believe the boats left together from Libya.

Greece was a favoured gateway to the European Union for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia in 2015-2016, when nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, mostly via inflatable dinghies.

Incidents with migrant boats and shipwrecks off Crete and its tiny neighbour Gavdos, which are relatively isolated in the central Mediterranean, have increased over the past year.

In 2023, hundreds of migrants drowned when an overcrowded vessel capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos. It was one of the deadliest boat disasters ever in the Mediterranean Sea.