7 Bangladeshi migrants who died on the boat to Lampedusa identified
A two-member embassy representative team led by Md Erfanul Haque, councillor of Labour Welfare, identified the deceased Bangladeshis after speaking with those that were rescued from the boat
Seven Bangladeshis who died of extreme cold while on their way to Italy from Libya on 25 January have been identified.
A two-member embassy representative team led by Md Erfanul Haque, councillor of Labour Welfare, identified the deceased Bangladeshis after speaking with those that were rescued from the boat.
The deceased were identified as Imran Hossain fromMadaripur, Roton alias Joy Talukdar from Madaripur, Safayet from Madaripur, Jahirul from Madaripur, Bappi from Madaripur, Sajjad from Sunamganj, and Saifulfrom Kishoreganj, according to a press release by the Bangladesh Embassy in Italy.
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The cost of sending the bodies to Bangladesh will be borne by the government for which the identities of the deceased have to be ascertained.
Seven Bangladeshi migrants who were on a boat from Libya heading for the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa died of hypothermia on 25 January.
Italian coastguards saw the boat overnight some 18miles (29 kilometers) off the coast of Lampione, an uninhabited island near Lampedusa, and rescue operations were conducted, AgrigentoProsecutor Luigi Patronaggio.
His office has opened an inquiry into alleged abetting of illegal migration and manslaughter, he added.
Lampedusa Mayor Salvatore Martello confirmed the death toll, adding the vessel was carrying 280 migrants, mainly from Bangladesh and Egypt. Italy, a major route into Europe for hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers and other migrants, has seen an increase in migrant boats in recent months. As of 24 January, 1,751migrants have disembarked in Italy's ports so far this year, according to government data.
