CAIRO (Reuters) - An illegal migrant boat carrying 83 Egyptians headed for Europe has gone missing off the coast of Greece after leaving Egypt three days ago, Egypt's foreign ministry said on Sunday.
"The foreign ministry has learned that the boat left Damietta (on the northern coast) three days ago and that communications were cut off, and there has been nothing to suggest it reached the Greek shore," the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said it had been alerted to the disappearance by Egypt's embassy in Athens, and that Egypt was coordinating with the Greek rescue authorities to locate the vessel.
Greek authorities said they were unaware of any such incident off the Greek coast.
Egyptian authorities have warned citizens of the dangers of trying to cross the Mediterranean illegally, saying many of the boats are overcrowded and unseaworthy. At least 21 Egyptians drowned in two incidents off the Italian coast in October 2007.
But people are willing to pay around $2,000 (1,100 pounds) for the chance of a new life, and authorities in Egypt and other Mediterranean countries have had to rescue survivors or locate the bodies of illegal migrants after several failed attempts.
(Writing by Aziz El-Kaissouni, additional reporting by Renee Maltezou in Athens)
posted
Fishing Boat Carrying 50 Egyptian Migrants Found
By Gomaa Hamdallah, Mohamed Talaat el-Hawari, Adel Durah and Ali el-Masri 22/9/2008
A sovereign body yesterday rescued fishing boat Hamamat As-Salam 80 miles to the east of Matrouh. The boat was carrying 50 Egyptian illegal migrants, al-Masry al-Youm has learnt.
The daily reported yesterday the missing of the boat which left Abu Qir shore last Saturday evening, without raising a flag and registering its departure.
Some of the men aboard the vessel, whom al-Masry al-Youm contacted, said they have run out of fuel and food. The boat's transmission devices broke down and the boat was tossed about by waves until it anchored in western Matrouh.
The boat was said to have sent an S.O.S. signal to maritime ports in Egypt at about 11:00 pm.
In Gharbia, security has intensified efforts to rescue 80 young people who were illegally sailing toward Italy. They were found on another vessel and shored in western Marsa Matrouh City.
In his report to rescue police, villager Attiya Abdel Qader Abdullah from Bani Yazid village, Santa region, said he had received a phone call from his son, Abdel Qader Attiya Abdel Qader, a Sharia and Law student.
His son said that he was aboard a vessel with dozens of Egyptians heading for Italy when, before their arrival, they were taken back to Egypt and shored on another boat in western Matrouh.
Moreover, the Foreign Ministry said it is following up on reports coming from Egypt's embassy in Athens about the 83 Egyptian boat people reported missing aboard a vessel near Greek shores.
A ministry statement said the boat left Damietta port three days ago and that communications with it had been severed and that reports about its arrival in Greece had been released.
Some people connected with traffickers told al-Masry al-Youm that the past few days have itnessed several fishing boats' departure toward Europe carrying hundreds of Egyptians.
They said, for example, that five boats left Abu Qir, Rashid, Alamein and Damietta toward Europe; the locations of three of the boats remain unknown.
Truly Egypt has a huge problem regarding this issue!! Posts: 30135 | From: The owner of this website killed ES....... | Registered: Feb 2004
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