Image / (AFP).
From Thursday to Saturday, Algeria’s coast guard has intercepted almost 286 Algerians off the North African nation’s coast as they tried to reach Europe on several boats, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Media reports said 200 of the Algerians were stopped at sea off the western coastal city of Oran.
According to press reports, the Italian coast guard stopped 165 Algerian migrants to the south of Sardinia in late September.
Apart from the migrant crisis, the country is also facing a growing threat from radical elements in the region.
On Wednesday, Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel said that North Africa is under threat from foreign fighters escaping Daesh’s defeats in Iraq and Syria.
A 2009 law provides for up to six months in jail for those who attempt to leave the Algerian territory illegally. People smugglers can face up to 20 years in jail, according to the law. But the law has done little to deter would-be migrants.
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