Egyptian police found the bodies of 15 African migrants on Sunday who appeared to have been shot dead in the turbulent area of northern Sinai near the border with Israel, security sources said.
They said another eight migrants had been wounded in the attack. Ambulances rushed to the scene south of the town of Rafah on the border between Egypt and the Palestinian Gaza Strip. It was not clear who had attacked the migrants or which countries they originated from.
However security and hospital officials were quoted by AP as saying that the Sudanese migrants were shot when Egyptian security forces shot at Beduin smugglers as they were about to enter Israel.
Israel has largely stopped the illegal crossings from Sinai with a high tech fence and military action in the area.
More than 45,000 African migrants are currently living in Israel. |