SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region – A family from Sulaimani’s Bazyan area is feared missing after the news of several boats having sank in Greek waters made headlines last week.
Ahmed Qamishy anxiously awaits word from his son and his family who left Bazyan last month.
The news of several boats capsizing in the Aegean Sea worried Qamishy.
“Either alive or dead, I would like to see my children. I don’t want anything else. I ask from the authorities to give an attempt, as a charity instead of duty. I don’t sleep at night and pray until the morning. I often cry and pray. That’s my only power, I have nothing else,” the father said.
A video footage shows the last moments before the boat carrying over 60 migrants, including Ahmed and his family, capsized.
His elder brother, Salih Ahmed, always keeps his phone within reach hoping he hears from him.
“We’ve sent him a voice message. There is a video that shows my brother with a bucket while draining water from the boat and asking for the police's help. We have a witness named Mr. Fryad saying that a helicopter flew over them. We don't know whether it rescued them or if they drowned. But Mr. Fryad says they sank,” the brother said.
Seeking treatment for his two children, Ahmed attempted to migrate to Europe. The nine-year-old Aros and Amez, 10, are kids of special needs.
The family could not afford treating them in the Kurdistan Region.
Kurdish migrants have suffered a catastrophic fate this year.
A boat carrying 33 migrants, most of them Kurds, capsized in the English Channel on November 24. Only two known migrants survived the incident.
The bodies of 16 Kurdish migrants were repatriated to the Kurdistan Region on Sunday.
At least three boats carrying migrants have drowned in Greek waters since Wednesday, leaving behind around 30 people dead, including Kurds.
Dozens of people remain missing.
Translation and video editing by Sarkawt Mohammed
