{"id":12284,"date":"2016-09-24T09:59:08","date_gmt":"2016-09-24T09:59:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=12284"},"modified":"2016-09-24T09:59:08","modified_gmt":"2016-09-24T09:59:08","slug":"egypt-recovers-over-160-bodies-from-sunken-migrant-boat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/world-news\/egypt-recovers-over-160-bodies-from-sunken-migrant-boat.html","title":{"rendered":"Egypt Recovers Over 160 Bodies From Sunken Migrant Boat"},"content":{"rendered":"

Egypt Recovers Over 160 Bodies From Sunken Migrant Boat<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Egypt Recovers Over 160 Bodies From Sunken Migrant Boat<\/strong> : CAIRO \u2014 The Egyptian authorities said Friday that they had recovered 162 bodies after the sinking of a ship full of mostly Egyptian migrants in the Mediterranean this week.<\/span><\/p>\n

The death toll, which is expected to rise to nearly 300, reflects the mounting economic pressure on Egyptians as well as a possible shift away from Libya as a point of departure for migrants headed to Europe, migrant aid workers said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The boat capsized Wednesday off the coast of Rosetta, the Nile Delta port city east of Alexandria. Witnesses estimate that the boat was carrying 450 people.<\/span><\/p>\n

The police said most were young Egyptian men in their late teens and their early to mid-20s. The military said it had rescued 163 survivors.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why this is a disaster,\u201d said a police spokesman, Tarek Attiya. \u201cThey are just kids who wanted to work.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Four men have been arrested in connection with the smuggling operation, Mr. Attiya said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The number of Egyptians who are risking their lives to cross to Europe has risen sharply over the last two years, according to the International Organization for Migration, an intergovernmental agency.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere has been an uptick,\u201d said Joel Millman, a spokesman for the agency. \u201cEgypt is busier now than it has been in a while.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Among young people in Egypt, a third are unemployed and half live under the poverty line, according to official statistics.<\/span><\/p>\n

The country\u2019s economy has suffered a series of disruptions since the uprising in 2011 that ended the presidency of Hosni Mubarak. Egypt\u2019s vital tourism industry has all but disappeared.<\/span><\/p>\n

In June, residents of the coastal town of Burg Migheizil, known for smuggling migrants, said that pictures of European cities posted on social media sites by migrants who have made it to the Continent are also fueling the drive of young men in their town, and elsewhere, to cross the Mediterranean.<\/span><\/p>\n

The country\u2019s economic woes may also be pushing African migrants already in Egypt to risk the passage to Europe.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some migrants may also be seeking transit from Egypt because smugglers using the shorter route from Libya are already transporting as many passengers as they can, clogging the route, Mr. Milliman said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe really do believe Libya is at full capacity,\u201d he added, noting that Libyan smugglers appear to be on track to match last year\u2019s level of about 150,000 departures even though a shortage of boats is forcing them to rely on smaller and less seaworthy crafts. \u201cThis could just be a tipping point from Libya to Egypt,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Egyptian authorities have arrested more than 4,600 foreigners \u2014 mostly from nearby African countries \u2014 for trying to depart across the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the United Nations refugee agency.<\/span><\/p>\n

That is a 28 percent increase compared with the number of people who were arrested in 2015.<\/span><\/p>\n

More than 300,000 people have tried to cross the Mediterranean this year from various countries. About 3,500 have died or are listed as missing, the refugee agency said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source<\/strong> : http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/09\/24\/world\/middleeast\/egypt-migrants-boat.html<\/span><\/p>\n

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