The death toll from the sinking of a migrant boat off the Syrian coast after it sailed from Lebanon rose to 94 on Saturday, Syrian state media reported.
It is the deadliest such incident after attempts to reach Europe illegally by sea became more common with the onset of Lebanon's severe economic crisis in 2019, which has left most of the population impoverished.
The Lebanese Army said on Saturday that the Intelligence Directorate had arrested a smuggler, identified as “BD”, who admitted to being involved in sending out the boat.
It said the vessel set sail for Italy on Wednesday and sank the following day.
The suspect was part of a gang smuggling migrants from northern Lebanon and the other members were being tracked down, the army said.
The boat departed from Miniyeh, a town just north of Lebanon's second city of Tripoli with a reputation for people smuggling.
At least 120 Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians were believed to have been on board, including elderly people and children.
Bodies began appearing on the shores of the Syrian city of Tartus and its surrounds on Thursday afternoon. It is not clear why the vessel sank.
Syria's Sana news agency said 14 of the 20 survivors admitted to a hospital in Tartus remained in hospital on Saturday, including two in intensive care.
The survivors included 12 Syrians, five Lebanese and three Palestinians, Lebanese Transport Minister Ali Hamie said.
Lebanon has become a launching pad for illegal migration attempts since 2019.
Syrian and Palestinian refugees seeking asylum in Europe typically make up most of the people setting sail from the Mediterranean country, although the number of Lebanese attempting the journey has increased as the economic situation worsened.
The smuggler-operated boats are usually overcrowded, and often get lost at sea for days after trying to evade or escape patrols.
About one million Syrians live in Lebanon as refugees, while the UN estimates there are nearly 500,000 registered Palestinian refugees.
On Friday, the families of the victims began crossing from Lebanon into Syria to identify their loved ones and collect their bodies.
Relatives and friends of the boat's occupants, including dozens of residents from the Palestinian camp of Nahr Al Bared near Tripoli, gathered at the Arida border crossing to await the bodies.
About 20 people aboard the boat came from the camp, said a resident who identified himself as Abu Hajjal.
A procession of cars and motorcycles followed the ambulances as they streamed through the border from Syria on Friday night.
Taxi driver Mustafa Misto and his three children, from the Bab Al Ramel neighbourhood of Tripoli, were among those who drowned.
His relatives held a wake for them in his family home.
“My heart is burning,” his sister Donia said. “They're all gone.”
“He wanted to go for the sake of his children and now look what's happened — they're all gone. May God burn the hearts of those who smuggled them just like my own heart is burning.”
Ghassan Dandashi, a taxi driver who was one of those who attended a prayer for Misto and his children at the local mosque, said he understood why people would undertake such a trip.
“Our leaders don't do anything for us and the situation here is so bad,” he said. “I would do it too if I could afford the trip. Anyone in their right mind would leave.”
In April, a migrant boat that set off from near Tripoli sank during an incident with the Lebanese Navy off the country's coast.
About 80 Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian migrants were on board, of whom about 40 were rescued, seven were confirmed dead and about 30 are still officially listed as missing.
Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
Jawbone Press
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
