35 migrants die crossing Niger

AFP | Niamey

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At least 35 migrants have died attempting the dangerous crossing of the Niger desert to Libya or Algeria on their way to Europe, a campaigning group said yesterday.

“Based on our own information, 35 to 40 migrants have died between January and August while crossing the desert,” Aziz Chehou of the Niger NGO Alarme Phone Sahara told AFP.

Among the tens of thousands of people hoping to reach the North Africa coast for smuggling boats to Europe, many die after being abandoned by smugglers or after their vehicles break down en route.

Thousands of others are stranded in the desert after being turned back by border police in Libya or Algeria.