the victims of the shipwreck are 76

The bodies of two children and an adult resurfaced today from the waters in front of Steccato di Cutro and were brought ashore. With them, the victims of the terrible shipwreck on Sunday 26 February reached 76, including 21 infants and children under 12 years of age.

This is how yesterday’s pain is renewed, when the little body of a child was returned from the sea and placed on the beach. A 4 or 5 year old. For the open sea crossing, his parents had dressed him in a black overalls with a puppet on his chest. Now his body is awaiting transfer to the funeral home for attempted recognition. Of the 180 occupants of the boat, 81 were saved and around thirty may still be missing.

Salme to Kabul with private flights. Outside the PalaMilone, the protests of the families of the victims have decreased in intensity. “The requests of the relatives have been fully met, the bureaucratic issues relating to the transfer of the bodies have all been resolved,” say two officials of the Viminale, who have been busy for days resolving the knots of the files. The family members had carried out an all-out sit-in against the transfer (decided without their consent) of the coffins to the Islamic cemetery of Borgo Panigale (Bologna). “But with the arrival of the Interior Ministry officials we felt reassured – considers Alauddin Mohibzada, a 23-year-old Afghan who has lost his aunt, Munika, 35, and two cousins ​​aged 12 and 8, while a 15-year-old cousin is missing. At the moment, officials say, it is impossible to get the bodies to Kabul on a state flight. But we will try with private flights: “The bodies will be taken by car to Germany and then to Turkey, to reach Kabul with a private flight and the journey will be paid for by the state”.

A complaint to the Catanzaro prosecutor’s office. In terms of investigations, the file opened by the Prosecutor of Crotone to ascertain the procedures adopted by the Guardia di Finanza and Coast Guard remains unsuspected and without hypotheses of a crime, after the report by Frontex, between 11.03 pm on Saturday 25 February and 4.10 am on Sunday 26, time of the shipwreck. While, in the line of inquiry into the 4 alleged smugglers arrested (including a minor), the first hearing of the probative incident of the proceeding against the minor, accused of murder and negligent bodily harm and aiding and abetting immigration has been set for 17 March clandestine. In front of the investigating judge of the Catanzaro Juvenile Court. his statements will be compared with those of the survivors. For the others arrested, there is still no certain date.

Meanwhile – according to what he learns to come – the retired magistrate Russian Rosaryformer deputy general prosecutor of the Cassation, filed a complaint, addressed to “the prosecutor of the Republic of Catanzaro” Nicola Gratteri, in which he asks to dispel doubts about the conduct of the rescue chain of command, which sees the ministers of Transport at the top Salvini and dell’Interno Piantedosi, in the light of article 96 of the Charter and the constitutional law of 1989 (which regulate the competence of the court of ministers on crimes committed during the exercise of ministerial functions).

Today’s demonstration. Preparations are in full swing for the national demonstration called by a cartel of associations. Today on the beach of Steccato di Cutro, trade unions, NGOs, humanitarian organizations and citizens will gather to demonstrate solidarity and commitment to the victims, their families and survivors and to ask for a concrete commitment from the government and Europe for the protection of migrants.

Sport in mourning, stop message Meloni. On Monday the football teams of Crotone and Catanzaro will play the Serie C derby with mourning on the arm. But already yesterday, the Minister of Sport Andrea Abodi invited CONI to plan for the weekend “a minute of silence, reflection and prayer on the Italian playing fields and competitions, of all sports disciplines”, accompanied by the reading of a message ” shared» by Abodi with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in which – after having said that «Italy honors the memory of the victims» – he affirms that «the government is renewing its utmost commitment to fight human trafficking, protect dignity of people and saving lives”. The text angered the Democratic Party, with Mauro Berruto, deputy and former coach of the men’s national volleyball team: «I’m amazed. Italian sport lends itself to acting as the government’s press office. An indecorous pro-government propaganda ». At 20.25 yesterday, the CONI counter-order started: no reading of the message. A stop on the edge of the minutes, before kick-off, but proved ineffective for Spezia-Inter and Cagliari-Ascoli, where the speakers declaimed it.