The Italian coast guard recovered three more bodies from the shipwreck off the coast of Calabria that occurred on Monday, June 17th 2024. This brings the total number of bodies recovered to six. According to survivors, around 60 people are still missing, including 26 children.
The shipwreck involved a sailing yacht believed to have departed from Turkey, which sank after an explosion approximately 120 miles off the coast of Calabria. Survivors reported that some migrants attempted to cling to pieces of wreckage as the ship went down. The nationalities of those on board included Iraqis, Syrians, and Iranians.
Shakilla Mohammadi, a cultural mediator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF), recounted speaking with a survivor who lost his girlfriend in the disaster. Mohammadi stated, “The survivors told me that at least 66 people are missing, among them at least 26 children, some just a few months old. Entire families from Afghanistan are thought to have died.” The scenes witnessed by MSF workers were described as “heartbreaking,” with many survivors visibly traumatized.
The leader of Italy’s opposition party, PD (Partito Democratico), Elly Schlein, criticized the government’s silence on the incident. Conversely, Roberto Occhiuto, President of the Calabria region and a member of the ruling coalition party Forza Italia, expressed his sorrow, comparing it to the tragic shipwreck off Cutro just over a year ago. Occhiuto called for increased attention to the Turkish migration route, highlighting the need for European-level scrutiny.
On the same day as the Calabria shipwreck, the private rescue ship Nadir, operated by the NGO Resqship, rescued 55 migrants from another boat but found ten bodies onboard. These men, suspected to be from South Asia, likely suffocated from fuel fumes or drowned after losing consciousness.
Despite these tragic events, migrant arrivals in Italy continue. On June 18, 19, and 20 2024, a total of 312 migrants arrived on the island of Lampedusa. As of June 20 2024, 24,290 migrants had reached the Italian coast by boat this year, with the majority coming from Bangladesh.
These incidents underscore the ongoing humanitarian crisis and the perilous journeys undertaken by migrants seeking safety in Europe. They also highlight the need for comprehensive international responses and improved safety measures for migrants.