CAIRO (Sputnik) — The Egyptian Coast Guard managed to rescue 127 undocumented migrants in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of the country's northern Kafr el-Sheikh province on Thursday although four people died when the vessel they were traveling on sank, local media reported.
According to the Egyptian Youm7 newspaper, the province's security forces detained all those rescued. During questioning, the migrants said they were trying to reach Europe.
Europe has been beset by a massive refugee crisis, with hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants fleeing their home countries in the Middle East and North Africa to escape violence and poverty.
According to the International Organization for Migration, since the beginning of 2016, almost 165,000 migrants and refugees have arrived in Europe via the Mediterranean Sea, while 531 have died or gone missing while making the journey.
