Twenty-eight undocumented Egyptian migrants who had been deported from Italy have arrived back home in Egypt, sources said.
The migrants allegedly tried to sneak into the southern European country as stowaways on board a fishing boat setting sail from Egypt’s coastal province, Alexandria.
Official sources at Cairo International Airport revealed the deportees arrived on a private plane from Catania, guarded by 22 security agents.
Investigations found the detainees were helped by a smuggling gang whose members were paid LE45,000 for each migrant in transit.
Illegal migration has increased in recent years around the Mediterranean region.
Young people, desperate for work and better living conditions abroad, have died attempting to make the Mediterranean crossing before.
Edited translation from DPA
