IOM’s Missing Migrants Project found that 3,041 migrants were dead or went missing in the Mediterranean last year — a significant increase over the 2,411 toll in 2022…reports Asian Lite News
Nearly 100 migrants have died or disappeared in the central and eastern Mediterranean since the beginning of 2024, more than double the toll recorded last year during the same period, the UN migration agency said on Monday.
The comment was made during an Italy-Africa Conference in Rome attended by more than two dozen African leaders and European Union officials to discuss economic ties and ways to curb undocumented migration to Europe.
“The latest record of deaths and disappearances is a stark reminder that a comprehensive approach that includes safe and regular pathways… is the only solution that will benefit migrants and states alike,” said Amy Pope, director general of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
IOM’s Missing Migrants Project found that 3,041 migrants were dead or went missing in the Mediterranean last year — a significant increase over the 2,411 toll in 2022.
Earlier this month, some 40 Tunisian migrants went missing after setting off in a boat toward the Italian coast.
Tunisia has replaced Libya as a main departure point for Mediterranean crossings for people fleeing poverty and conflict.
The recent Greek boat tragedy shocked Pakistan. People are asking why the government isn’t conducting in-depth investigations into illegal migrations from the past. Human trafficking involves not just the agents but government and military officials at various levels that allow for it to happen. Why does the Pak government not want to get to the base of the pyramid? There must be a reason why they don’t want to stir the pot too much lest it involves key government and military personalities … writes Dr Sakariya Kareem
The chapter on the Greek boat tragedy has almost come to an end as local news channels have moved back to the tussle between political parties and Pakistan’s economic crisis. The ones who boarded the ill-fated boat on that day imagining a new lease of life in Europe are at the bottom of the sea. Today, life around them goes on.
The overloaded fishing trawler that carried Palestinians, Afghans, and Egyptians on the upper deck, had Pakistanis squashed together like animals below the deck, the most dangerous part of the boat. They were mistreated “when they appeared in search of freshwater or tried to escape”, so much so that “there were already six deaths before the boat sank”.
Pak PMO declared the lowering of the mast of the national flag to mourn the 400-something youth of the country. Further dramatized were the stories of FIA arresting a dozen suspects involved in the case, and posting their pictures in handcuffs while acting rough and tough. When the Eid food coma wears down, more essential businesses will take precedence and the investigation files for the justice of these people will secure a place on the back of the shelves.
In the last couple of days, Pak media has remained focused and emphasized how its nationals received the worst treatment among all the travelers. And that “people didn’t drown but were deliberately made to drown by the Greek coastguards”. While it may be true that had the help been sent early there would be more survivors, but Pak’s effort to shift the blame entirely on the EU’s “strategic neglect and abandonment” has not gone unnoticed by the public.
A national daily carried the story of a retired civil servant who tried his best to persuade his son to not take this life-threatening route to a supposedly better life. The travel agent promised his 25-year-old son greener pastures and a job in Europe, totally brainwashing him. Even after his son’s death, the anguished father refused to name the agent. Why is an esteemed ex-civil servant afraid to give out this information? Whose involvement in the government is being covered up?
Youngsters are paying $10,000 for this arduous journey. They emotionally blackmail their parents. And since the security systems are so corrupt and poor, paying a couple of hundred dollars here and there could get them out of the country.
People are asking why the government isn’t conducting in-depth investigations into illegal migrations from the past. Human trafficking involves not just the agents but government and military officials at various levels that allow for it to happen. Why does the Pak government not want to get to the base of the pyramid? There must be a reason why they don’t want to stir the pot too much lest it involves key government and military personalities.
Parallelly is the story of the other Pakistan trying to be saved by the world. A British-Pakistani father-son duo along with two others paid $250,000 per person to travel in a submersible vessel for an adventure that later went missing. A joint rescue team from US, Canada, and France went on a mission to find them and the Pak media displayed the minute-by-minute coverage. The life of the ordinary Pakistani was already forgotten.
Pakistan’s interior minister confirmed that there are many loopholes in the trafficking laws and thanks to them, individuals in the human trade are scarcely convicted. Even when charges are filed, suspects are released on bail, and families ultimately make settlements, if any.
The event has left torn families, widowed newlywed brides, and infants behind. In a society where schooling means memorization and indoctrination, no questions asked, it is easy to influence the youth. And by playing on their vulnerabilities during the time of crisis, it is equally wicked to play the hero with no intention of bringing them justice.
As global media forgot the boat tragedy, Pak media has also shifted attention to its political theatricals. PTI is trying to keep it alive, using the event as a weapon against the “imported government” that has brought the country to a standstill “forcing people to take off to alien lands”. It’s a competition on who can hit a new low when 400 (short of 12) Pakistani youth have met a painful end.
He also admitted that the previous German government had made a mistake by becoming so dependent on Russian gas supplies…reports Asian Lite News
As the war in Ukraine rages on, leaders of European countries, notably Germany, have come to realize that they made a serious mistake by becoming so dependent on Russian energy. Currently, Europe depends on Russia for roughly 40 percent of its natural gas needs, and European leaders have vowed to reduce their dependence by two-thirds.
So, European countries are feverishly trying to secure supplies from the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Energy security has become one of Europe’s top priorities, putting on the back burner the fight to contain climate change and global warming.
Of course, the gas and oil-rich Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members were the first countries which European leaders requested to cover the energy shortfall to be created by a future removal of Russian gas and oil from the scene.
However, GCC countries say that they are unable to significantly increase their hydrocarbon exports to Europe, due to production constraints and the fact that most of their future production is locked in long-term contracts with their clients in Asia.
In the past few weeks, Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom sent senior representatives to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which are major hydrocarbon producers, asking them to increase energy supplies, but their requests fell on deaf ears.
Qatar was the only country that offered some help when it diverted to Britain and Belgium six LNG tankers that were originally destined for Asia and indicated that it would increase its gas production to cover part of the shortage.
The emirate of Qatar currently supplies about 30 per cent of its liquefied gas to the European Union, but none of this goes to Germany, because it does not have LNG terminals. To correct this situation, Germany is fast-tracking the construction of two LNG terminals, but these will become operational in three years’ time.
Last month, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck during a visit to Doha said that a long-term gas supply deal has been reached between his country and Qatar and added: “We might still need Russian gas this year, but not in the future.”
He also admitted that the previous German government had made a mistake by becoming so dependent on Russian gas supplies.
It’s worth noting that US President Joseph Biden last month tried to call Mohammed Bin Salman (known as MBS) to ask Saudi Arabia to increase its oil supply, after the US formally banned Russian oil imports, but as relations between the two countries remain frosty, MBS didn’t accept the call.
Another reason for ignoring Biden is that both Saudi Arabia and the UAE believe that they are no longer supported by the US against the Houthis in Yemen and their missile attacks against oil installations in the two countries. They are also angry because Biden had delisted the Houthis as a terrorist organization.
On March 21, after three drone attacks on Saudi Aramco installations, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia declared that it will not be held responsible for shortages in the global energy market because Houthi missile attacks will disrupt supply.
Saudi Arabia does not want to alienate Russia because it considers Moscow as a potential arms supplier, and it no longer wants to be viewed by the US (as former President Donald Trump described the Kingdom) as “a cash cow for the US defense industry.” Furthermore, it sees Russia as a major country that can exert pressure on its archenemy Iran.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia understands that it must supply oil to some European countries because it does not want to encourage Europe to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy.
It should be noted that Saudi Arabia already covers a large part of Poland’s energy needs and last January Aramco -the Saudi state oil giant- said it had agreed to buy a 30 per cent stake in Poland’s second-largest refinery and to increase oil supplies to the state’s top energy firm PKN Orlen to 200,000-337,000 barrels per day.
Apparently, the reluctance of Gulf energy producers to substantially increase production to replace Russian gas and oil in European markets made the US and European leaders turn their attention to other possible sources of supply and particularly to the Eastern Mediterranean.
Moreover, both the EU and the US are currently re-examining the feasibility of the building of pipelines that will carry natural gas from the Eastern Mediterranean to Europe, the EastMed Pipeline, or a pipeline transporting Israeli gas to Turkey and from there to Europe.
Israeli Energy Minister Karine Elharar has recently stated that the EU requested the Israeli government to supply it with natural gas. Israel could provide Europe with 10 per cent of the gas it currently buys from Russia.
Last Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid travelled to Athens to meet with his Greek and Cypriot counterparts, Nikos Dendias and Ioannis Kasoulides, in one of their frequent trilateral meetings focusing on energy and security matters taking place every year.
Lapid said that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will “change the structure of the European and Middle Eastern energy markets,” adding that there are risks but the crisis also offers “opportunities which we must examine together.”
In July 2021, the Israeli government approved the 6 billion Euro EastMed project which would have created a new gas pipeline from Israel and Cyprus to Europe to lower dependency on Russian fuel.
However, it is doubtful if this pipeline will be built, as Turkey which is the largest gas consumer in the region has strong objections and the United States decided in January to rescind its support, citing economic and environmental reasons.
At least 247 people have been rescued within the last 48 hours from the Mediterranean Sea, the International Federation of Red Cross Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said…reports Asian Lite News
The Geneva-based IFRC said that among the 247 survivors were 52 unaccompanied minors and a five-month-old baby, reports Xinhua news agency.
Most of those rescued came from Egypt, Bangladesh, Syria, Ethiopia, Tunisia and Ivory Coast.
Five search and rescue missions were carried out over the weekend by the ship Ocean Viking, which is operated by SOS MEDITERRANEE and IFRC.
The survivors are now being cared for onboard the ship, and have received food, dry clothes and blankets.
The incident happened at 10:00 GMT over international waters and hostile action is not thought to have been involved, it added…reports Asian Lite News.
A British F-35 fighter jet has crashed into the sea during a routine operation in the Mediterranean, the country’s Ministry of Defence has said.
The pilot ejected and returned safely to the royal navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Ministry said on Wednesday.
The incident happened at 10:00 GMT over international waters and hostile action is not thought to have been involved, it added.
An investigation has begun and would likely focus on potential technical or human error, reported the BBC.
There are eight British F-35 jets on the carrier and 12 from the US Marine Corps, Xinhua news agency reported.
The supersonic fighters, which cost 92 million pounds (about $124 million) each and are built by the US firm Lockheed Martin, are based at RAF Marham in Norfolk, according to the BBC.
