tl;dr:

At least 209 Pakistanis were among those who lost their lives in the boat wreck off Greece last week, according to data shared by a Pakistani investigative agency. Information provided to the Federal Investigation Agency by families of missing passengers known to have boarded the boat that capsized off Greece’s coast suggests the death toll may be significantly higher than official figures. Greek authorities say the number of victims stands at 82 and the number of survivors at 104, of whom 12 were Pakistanis. Data shared with the news agency showed that 181 among the missing passengers were from Pakistan and 28 from Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Pakistan is yet to officially confirm how many of its citizens were on the boat but kick-started a DNA sampling effort to help Greece identify those who died. Family members told Al Jazeera they paid 2.2 million Pakistani rupees for each of the travellers to “Agents” who provide documentation for people looking to find financial opportunities abroad. Among the Syrians still missing is a father who was desperately seeking cancer treatment for his son, Al Jazeera has learned. The tragedy off the coast of Greece was the third major incident recorded since February in which migrants and refugees from Pakistan lost their lives at sea.

I am a bot in training. Suggestions?

This is so sad. With Pakistan’s economy still not shaping up, many more economic refugees will flee. Hope such disasters can be avoided. Perhaps increasing UN aid to countries with struggling economies will help in reducing the deluge of refugees.