29 migrants dead as boat capsizes off Egypt

A boat carrying migrants capsized Wednesday (September 21st) off the coast of Egypt, killing at least 29 people and sparking an operation in which another 150 were rescued, AFP reported.

Egypt's health ministry said 29 people had died and five had been injured in the incident, which took place off the Mediterranean port city of Rosetta.

The total number of people who were on board the boat was not immediately clear.

A health ministry official said the dead included Egyptians, Sudanese and "other African nationalities".

Search and rescue teams were looking for more survivors, police officials said.

The incident comes months after the EU's border agency Frontex warned that growing numbers of migrants bound for Europe were turning to Egypt as a departure point for the perilous sea journey.

Smugglers often overload the boats, some of them scarcely seaworthy, with passengers who have paid for the journey.

More than 10,000 people have died crossing the Mediterranean to Europe since 2014, according to the UN.

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