Authorities struggle to identify dead in migrant tragedies
MILAN (AP) — Adal Neguse, an Eritrean immigrant whose brother drowned in a smuggler's boat while trying to reach Italy in 2013, knows all too well what might be in store for the relatives of those dying now in similar accidents in the Mediterranean.
Months of anguish over whether their loved one's body will be found.
The emotional pain of looking at photos of badly disfigured corpses.
Red tape and wasted time with bureaucrats who "just talk and talk" but don't keep their promises.
As record numbers of desperate people from the Middle East, Africa and Asia flood into Europe, hundreds are also dying in risky journeys arranged by unscrupulous smugglers, and authorities are struggling to identify those victims.