BAGHDAD, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's High Commission for Human Rights (IHCHR) on Friday announced the reasons behind the sinking of a ferry that killed 93 people in Tigris River in the city of Mosul, capital of Iraq's northern province of Nineveh.
IHCHR attributed the sinking to the fact that the crossing on the river is old, which was established in 1979, and the old ferry is made of iron plates, Ali al-Baiyati, member of IHCHR, said in a statement.
The capacity of the ferry was 75 people, but there were around 200 people when the incident occurred, according to the ticketing report, al-Baiyati said.
"The ferry is moving with ropes or wires bound to the other side of the river bank," al-Baiyati added.
He also said that IHCHR will file a complaint against the governor of Nineveh province, Nawfal al-Akoub, as he is the head of the provincial government who is responsible for the safety of the people.
The incident took place on Thursday afternoon when a ferryboat carrying dozens of people capsized while crossing from the bank of the river to a small tourist island called Um al Rabeein in northern Mosul, some 400 km north of the capital Baghdad.
A civil defense source said that the ferryboat owned by a tourism office was overloaded with more than 100 people, while the ferryboat is originally designed to carry some 30 people.
An Interior Ministry source said that some 93 people, mostly women and children, drowned in the river and their bodies were recovered, while 55 others were rescued, including 19 children.
The search operation is expected to continue in the coming days.
Meanwhile, a statement by the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council, said Mosul investigation court has decided to arrest nine workers responsible for the ferry.
"The court also issued an arrest warrant for the owner of the ferry and the owner of the island," the statement added.
