Refugee boat sinking mother and 5 children drown off Greek Coast

20 October 2015  

Refugee boat sinking mother and 5 children drown off Greek Coast

Muhammad Ahmad Father of the children told IFIR by phone”I fled from Kirkuk-North of Iraq on 10 of October with my family my wife and five children. We paid 12 thousand dollar and from Turkey Bodrum.  We were placed on a small boat with 19 others on the16 of October at 10PM’

Father also said ”The Man who drove the boat, stopped the boat when we came close to Kos Island.  As he stopped the boat water flooded in.  We were 600 meter from the Island the boat sank and my family were swept into the sea.  They haven’t yet found the bodies of my wife and one child.  The Greek police are still looking for their bodies” 

Ari Jalal representative of IFIR the Sulaimanya branch Said” We  have contacted the Iraqi embassy in Greece, KRG Government and  Shadan Abdelkarim  from the Department of Migration and displaced people from Kurdish region with full details of the victims to request the return of their bodies to Kurdistan”

 

Dashty Jamal Secretary of the IFIR said” This tragedy is a direct result of the policy of closing the borders by EU countries.  This has forced many frightened people fleeing war to risk their lives.  This family are victims of a Brutal war.

Dashty also said” We believe that all EU Countries must  deal with the humanitarian catastrophe facing Syria and Iraq. This phenomenon depends primarily on putting an end to the fighting and military involvement of all forces including the US, Russia and China.  European countries must give up the policy of supporting the repressive regimes which result in social unrest and insecurity”

Name of the victims:

1.       Harbea Muhammad Ahmad     DOB:11-11-1980

2.       Vana Muhammad Ahmad        DOB:19-05-2009

3.       Xanda Muhammad Ahmad       DOB:30-12-2000

4.       Helen  Muhammad Ahmad        DOB:25-04-2005

5.       Amein Muhammad Ahmad        DOB:06-06-2012

6.       Abdul Razaq Muhammad Ahmad   DOB:09-05-2006