GUJRAT: The bodies of at least five illegal immigrants, who had been killed in a road crash in Libya last month, have been brought to their native areas ofGujrat and Sambrial, during the last couple of days.

Two of the bodies were brought on Sunday and another on Saturday the last in Sambrial, whereas one of the bodies, arrived around a week ago in Gujrat.

Sources in Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the families of the victims told Dawn here on Sunday that the deceased had left their native areas in the start of November.

The victims wanted to reach Italy in a boat by crossing the sea off the Libyan Coast, but they died in a road accident on November 16.

They sources said the families of each victim had paid a Rs3.8 million to 4 million in advance to local agents of a human trafficking network operating from a European country.

The bodies of Ameer Hamza (22) of Chokar Khurd village, near Lalamusa, and a youth belonging to a village of Sambrial tehsil of Sialkot district, reached Lahore airport early on Sunday, from where they were sent to their native areas.

Both victims were buried in the graveyards of their respective villages in the afternoon.

The body of another victim, Umar Daraz, also of Sambrial, also arrived at the Lahore airport on Saturday the last and was later sent to his native area, where he was buried after offering of funeral prayers.

The body of Qamar Shahzad of Chakori Dhalbnagash village on Gujrat-Dinga road had arrived at Sialkot airport from Libya through Qatar Airways on November 30 the last.

As per their families, the local agents had received the amounts in cash, promising to send them to their destinations within a couple of weeks.

They added that the youths had been first taken to Saudi Arabia, where they perform Umrah and then they proceed further to reach Libya by air and lad routes through some Gulf states.

The heirs of the victims declined to share the names of the human traffickers, saying they concealed their identities.

Meanwhile, FIA Gujranwala Zone Director Abdul Qadir Qamar has issued directions to the Gujrat and Sialkot circles to gather details of the human trafficking network involved in the incident. More details of the victims and their heirs were also being gathered by the concerned authorities in the region, he added.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2024