The number of asylum seekers believed killed when their boat smashed into rocky cliffs along an Australian island has risen to 48.
Thirty bodies have been recovered since a rickety boat packed with Iraqi, Iranian and Kurdish asylum seekers smashed into the rocks on Christmas Island last week.
Forty-two people were rescued from the churning surf. Officials have been interviewing survivors in attempts to determine how many people were on board so they can clarify how many are still missing.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Monday it appears about 90 asyum seekers were on the boat, which means 18 people remain unaccounted for.
She says it's likely that the bodies of some of those people will never be recovered.
No comments:
Post a Comment