Bodies of 16 killed in Channel Boat disaster sent back to Iraq

IRBIL: 16 people who were deported to Iraqi Kurdistan, where their families were waiting for them, were deported to Iraqi Kurdistan early on Sunday after a boat sank in the Channel while trying to reach England, an AFP photographer observed.
The plane carrying them arrived in Erbil, the capital of the autonomous region in northern Iraq, at around 2:00.
The remains were shifted to an ambulance to be taken to their hometowns of Darbandikhan, Ranaya, Soran and Kadrava.
At least 27 people died in the November 24 tragedy, the deadliest disaster since the Channel became the center of a secret migrant crossing from France to England.
At the Irbil airport terminal, sentimental families waited for the remains of their loved ones to arrive, some embracing each other or showing pictures of their departed relatives.
Originally scheduled for Friday, the repatriation was postponed twice.
Most of the dead were men, but they included seven women, a 16-year-old and a seven-year-old child.
In addition to the 16 Iraqi Kurds, 26 identified include one Iranian Kurd, four Afghan men, three Ethiopians, one Somali and one Egyptian.
According to the French Interior Ministry, only two people were rescued, an Iraqi Kurd and a Sudanese national, after their inflatable boat capsized.
According to an Iraqi survivor, a total of 33 people were on board.
French investigators are still trying to establish a clear picture of what happened during the disaster.
They are investigating reports that passengers called emergency services, both French and British, to appeal for help when the ship began to sink.
The disaster also caused major diplomatic tensions between London and Paris.
Within 48 hours of the crash, French President Emmanuel Macron accused British Prime Minister Boris Johnson of “not being serious” in his approach to stopping the crossing.
Paris was irritated by Johnson’s initial reaction, which was seen as shifting the blame to France.