Egypt moves to tighten borders after ship tragedy

Egypt moves to tighten borders after ship tragedy

September 26, 2016
Abdel Fatah El-Sisi
Abdel Fatah El-Sisi




CAIRO — Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ordered the tightening of border security after more than 160 mainly Egyptian migrants died when their Europe-bound boat sank in the Mediterranean, a tragedy that highlighted the extent of Egypt’s economic woes.

Presidential spokesman Alaa Youssef, in a statement issued late Saturday, said Sisi had also ordered during a meeting with top aides that those behind the tragedy be brought to justice.

Authorities last week arrested four members of the doomed boat’s crew and said they had issued arrest warrants for five more people. However, there have been no known arrests of members of the organized crime rings behind the human trafficking rife on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast.

Sisi has also urged parliament and the government to work together to issue legislation combating illegal migration. He also directed his aides to accelerate a government program offering assistance to small businesses and young entrepreneurs in areas where illegal migration is rampant.

The boat sank Wednesday off the Egyptian coastal town of Rosetta. At least 162 bodies were later recovered and another 160 migrants rescued. The EU border agency, Frontex, recently said more than 12,000 migrants arrived in Italy from Egypt between January and September this year, compared to 7,000 in the same period last year. — AP


September 26, 2016
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