Aircraft carrying bodies of la Manche shipwreck incident lands in Erbil's Airport

Shafaq News/ The aircraft carrying the bodies of the victims who perished in the shipwreck incident in the English Channel (la Manche) arrived in the capital of the Kurdistan Region, Erbil, on Sunday morning.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) pledged on Monday to repatriate the bodies of the Kurdistani victims who died while attempting to cross into England from France.

Shafaq News Agency correspondent said that hundreds of the families have flocked into Erbil's International Airport ahead of the plane's arrival two hours after midnight.

A convoy of ambulances was ready to receive the bodies as soon as they arrived.

An advisor of the KRG's Foreign Relations Department said that the bodies were identified by the DNA testing.

A group from the victims' families said they will organize a vigil near the French Consul-General in Erbil. They intend to deliver a statement that denounces the indifference of the French government who did nothing to rescue the victims when their boat capsized.

On December 24, at least 26 migrants drowned in la Manche as their boat sank on their way to England.