Ex Pakistan Woman Hockey Player Killed In Migrant Shipwreck Off Italy

According to officials in her home province, Shahida Raza, a former player for Pakistan's women's hockey team, was one of at least 67 migrants who perished in a shipwreck over the weekend off the coast of Italy. Authorities estimate that up to 200 migrants were aboard the ship when it drowned in choppy waters early on Sunday morning close to Steccato di Cutro, a beach town in southern Italy. There were 16 kids among the fatalities. The majority of persons on board, according to Italian police, were from Afghanistan, but there were also passengers from Pakistan, Syria, the Palestinian Territories, Iran, and Somalia. A politician from the Balochistan province named Qadir Ali Nayel told Reuters late on Wednesday that Pakistani officials had notified Raza's family that the hockey player for the Pakistani national team had killed in the watercraft accident off the coast of Italy. Raza, who was 27, was from the province in the southwest. She participated in domestic soccer tournaments as well. Raza has brought honour to the province and the nation, the chief minister of Balochistan said in a statement as he expressed sorrow over her passing.