SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Bodies of five migrants were repatriated to the Kurdistan Region on Tuesday, Esta Media Network reporter said.
A migrant boat sank off the island of Folegandros in Greece on December 21 last year. Greek coastguard said 12 people, all believed to be from Iraq, had been rescued, but dozens were feared missing.
Most survivors said there were originally 32 people on the boat, but one told authorities there were about 50.
Lutka Foundation for Refugees and Displaced Affairs said last week that bodies of five Kurdish migrants, aged between 2 and 22 years old, were found by Greek police following the incident.
Esta Media Network reporter said the bodies were repatriated to the Region on Tuesday evening and they would be buried in their hometown.
Bakr Ali, head of the returned refugee association, said two of the migrants were from Raparin administration and two others were from Koya city
The other migrant was from Bazyan sub-district, he added.
“So far, 52 people who were onboard the boat that sank off in the Greek coasts are still missing,” he told Esta Media Network.
In December, Lutka said 32 people from the Kurdistan Region who had taken the sea route to reach Europe had died or gone missing near Greek coasts in the month.
Greece is one of the main routes into the European Union for migrants and refugees from Africa, the Middle East and beyond, though the flow has tapered off since 2015-2016, when more than a million people traversed the country to other EU states.
