At least 350 Pakistanis were on an overloaded boat that capsized and sank in open seas off Greece last week, Pakistan's Interior Minister has said, promising to arrest and prosecute the human smugglers responsible.
The fishing boat with a capacity of 400 people had over 700 people on board when it sank on 14 June, Rana Sanaullah told the country's parliament, adding that a total of 281 Pakistani families had contacted the government to seek help.
Another 193 Pakistani families have taken DNA tests to try to identify those who died in one of Europe's deadliest shipping disasters in recent years, he said.
Hundreds of people from countries including Egypt, Syria and Pakistan were crammed on the 20- to 30-metre-long fishing boat when it sank about 80 km from the southern Greek town of Pylos.
Pakistan's economic meltdown in recent months has spurred more people to risk their lives to reach Europe in search of a better future.
Pakistan said it has arrested several human traffickers and their agents who told authorities that their ring leader was based in Libya.
These human smugglers had charged around $8,000 a person to take them to Europe illegally through the sea route after flying legally to Dubai, Egypt and Libya, authorities said.
A high level inquiry is underway to identify and arrest those involved in the human smuggling, Mr Sanaullah said, adding that Pakistan is also working to recommend amendments to the law to plug loopholes and ensure conviction in such cases.
Not a single human trafficker has been convicted for over five years, he said, citing data, adding that this was mostly due to victims' families agreeing pardons in exchange for money.
The death toll from the tragedy stands at 82, with 104 survivors pulled from the water, but witness accounts suggest many hundreds more went down with the ship, with their remains still missing at sea.
"We should at least get the dead bodies so that the parents and relatives can get peace of mind," said Zafar Iqbal, 55, who reported losing two nephews in the incident.
"The government should at least complete the investigation as soon as possible," he said from Bandli village in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Punjab and Pakistan-administered Kashmir host a thriving black market of what locals call "agents", human smugglers who arrange illegal migration to Europe for a large fee.
An official from Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency in Islamabad said that "so far 25 agents have been arrested".
"Raids are being conducted against the human traffickers and the investigation is ongoing," the official said.
