The number of asylum seekers who died in the sinking of a boat off the Syrian coast of Tartus rose to 86, while the Lebanese army announced the arrest of the person responsible for smuggling migrants.

And Syrian TV quoted the Ministry of Transport as saying that the authorities rescued 19 people who were on the boat, noting that the search for possible survivors was continuing.

For his part, a source in Tartus Governorate confirmed to the German News Agency, "The rescue teams of the Syrian army, the Russian forces, the Ports Directorate, the people of Arwad Island, and a number of fishermen are trying to search for bodies in the depths of the sea. There were reports that 3 more bodies were recovered, bringing the number to 80 drowned."

Russian forces are stationed on the Syrian coast, especially at the Russian military base in Hmeimim, Latakia Governorate, since Moscow intervened militarily to support the Bashar al-Assad regime in 2015.

The Syrian Minister of Health, Hassan Al-Ghubash, said that work is underway to identify the victims at Al-Basel Hospital, before transporting them in the cars of the Health Directorate and the Syrian Red Crescent to the Arida border crossing with Lebanon to be handed over to the Lebanese Red Cross.

The boat had set off a few days ago from the coasts of northern Lebanon, with asylum seekers of Lebanese, Palestinian and Syrian nationalities on board, and their destination was one of the European countries.

According to Syrian television, the boat was carrying at least 150 people, before it sank on Thursday, which means that dozens are still missing.


smuggler arrested

For its part, the Lebanese army announced the arrest of the person responsible for smuggling irregular migrants via the boat that sank off the Syrian coast.

The army confirmed in a statement that the detainee (unnamed) admitted his responsibility for the smuggling operation and for running a network to smuggle irregular migrants.

In a statement, the Presidency of the Lebanese Council of Ministers said that Prime Minister Najib Mikati is following up on developments related to the issue of the drowning of dozens of people off the Syrian coast of Tartus.

Mikati contacted the Armed Forces Commander General Joseph Aoun, asking him to be strict in monitoring the Lebanese shores, to combat what he called the issue of irregular migration trips.

On 9/21/2022, the Intelligence Directorate arrested the citizen (BD.) on suspicion of his involvement in smuggling illegal immigrants across the sea.

It has been proven…

Posted by Lebanese Army - Lebanese Army on Saturday, September 24, 2022

corpse transport

Mikati also assigned Transport Minister Ali Hamiyah, in coordination with the Syrian authorities, regarding the Lebanese victims who were on board the boat, and to take appropriate measures to return their bodies to Lebanon.

The bodies of 9 victims of the shipwreck arrived at the Arida border crossing in northern Lebanon. Syrian ambulances transported the bodies from the city of Tartous and handed them over to the Lebanese authorities at the border crossing.

The Lebanese Minister of Transport, Ali Hamiyah, told Al Jazeera that the victims who are looking for livelihoods are not guilty, and that illegal immigration activity in Lebanon has become organized on a daily basis.

For his part, the Lebanese Minister of Environment, Nasser Yassin, said that the reluctance of the northern countries to receive immigrants legally is one of the main reasons that push the poor to migrate illegally.

In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Yassin added that security solutions to the issue of illegal immigration are not the best, calling for an approach to the issue from developmental, economic and political aspects.

Lebanon witnessed a jump in immigration rates, driven by one of the deepest economic crises that the country has experienced.

Besides the Lebanese immigrants, there are also refugees from Syria and Palestine venturing into the perilous journey on the immigration boats.


family tragedy

The tragedy of the sinking of the emigration boat is still unfolding hour after hour, including the story of the Lebanese Mustafa Misto, who drowned with his three daughters while his wife is in hospital in a critical condition.

The bodies of Mustafa Mesto and his three daughters arrived in the city of Tripoli (Northern Lebanon), where they were buried by the people of the city, in an atmosphere of sadness and anger.

In an interview with Anadolu Agency, Ghassan Mesto, the victim's brother, said that it was the country's conditions that prompted his brother to try to emigrate.

Ghassan could not hold back his tears, but indicated that his brother wanted to escape from poverty and the suffering of living in Lebanon.

In turn, Fadi Al-Wazi, one of the victims' neighbors, told Anadolu Agency that Mustafa chose the sea route because he dreamed of a better future for his daughters, but fate wanted the opposite, while his wife was in the hospital in a dangerous condition.

Al-Wazi added, "He tried to emigrate, like many who dream of a decent life in light of the difficult economic conditions in the country," noting that this is Mustafa's second attempt to get out of Lebanon, "but God's destiny and what he wanted he did."