FIA disciplines over 100 officials over human smuggling links since Greece boat tragedy

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has taken action against over 100 officials for collusion with human smugglers since the 2023 Greece boat tragedy, the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control was informed on Tuesday. At least 209 people drowned and hundreds more were feared dead or missing after their overloaded boat capsized and sank in the open seas off Greece, in one of Europe’s deadliest shipping disasters in June 2023. Briefing the committee today, FIA Director General Dr Usman Anwar said 132 enquiries were initiated, leading to 68 major and 36 minor penalties for officials who failed to follow the standard profiling mechanism and facilitated illegal migration. He said 22,136 passengers were offloaded in 2026 after a strict assessment based on risk profiles. Deportations have also declined, with cases involving fake or forged documents dropping from 281 in 2024 to 13 so far in 2026. “In 2024, a total of 35,459 passengers were offloaded, whereas deportations neared 68,877. In 2025, 39,786 were offloaded and deportations fell to 57,560,” Dr Anwar said. “Due to strict profiling, deportation on fake documents has declined sharply.” International concerns The DG cited multiple concerns raised by international partners, including boat tragedies in the Mediterranean during smuggling attempts, illegal border crossings into the EU, and abuse of study visas in the UK and Cyprus. “Pakistan is the 3rd largest student visa-receiving country of the UK, but around 10,000 misuse visas through asylum claims,” Dr Anwar said. Eight UK universities have reportedly restricted student visa sponsorships for Bangladeshi students, while the UK has imposed restrictions on visa issuance for Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan, citing study visa abuse. High-level EU delegations had also raised concerns over illegal migration, including crossings from Belarus into Poland. “Five hundred and eighty Pakistanis have not returned from Belar