Indonesia/Afghanistan

Seventy-four Afghan migrants lost at sea

Article published on the 2009-07-09 Latest update 2009-07-09 15:19 TU

The Indonesian navy has failed to find any trace of 74 Afghan migrants who went missing after their boat sunk, despite earlier reports that they had been rescued.

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said that assurances from Indonesian officials on Wednesday that they had found the vessel with all safe on board were incorrect.

The Indonesian navy’s Eastern Fleet had initiated the search after Indonesian authorities were told the boat had gone missing by Australian police.

“We've been searching for it since yesterday and we haven't found it yet, so we can't say that the boat has sunk or that we've located it," said Eastern Fleet spokesperson Toni Syaiful. "The search will continue."