A fundraiser established to repatriate the Kurdish family of three tragically killed in a Galway car crash has raised over €70,000 at time of writing.
Karzan Sabah, his wife Shahen Qasm and their eight-month-old daughter Lina died in a collision involving three vehicles last Thursday on the M6 near Ballinasloe.
They had moved to Ireland in 2017.
On Monday friends of the family set up a fundraiser to raise money towards returning the family to Iraq.
It took just 90 minutes for the GoFundMe to hit its initial target of €10,000.
"A light was extinguished from so many lives," said John Carey, who set up the fundraiser. "Their lives were only just beginning, with Karzan having just submitted his PhD thesis, secured a new job, and of course the unbridled joy of Lina being born. They were so happy. We now desperately want to repatriate them back to their families in Erbil in the Kurdish region of Iraq so that they can be close to their loved ones. It would have meant a great deal to Karzan and Shahen."
Karzen had been planning to move his family to Carlow for work and was returning from viewing a property when the crash occurred.
Also killed in the crash was Jonasz Lach, who was driving in the opposite direction. A third driver suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Gardaí are asking for witnesses to the incident to come forward, particularly if they have relevant dash-cam footage.
Donations can be made at gofundme.com/f/ue8hrt-bring-karzan-shahen-and-baby-lina-home
Harris elected new Taoiseach
Garth Brooks Responds To Galway Gig Rumours