Tunis, Dec 28 In just 24 hours, Tunisia foiled 11 attempts by illegal migrants to cross the Mediterranean towards the Italian coast, a National Guard spokesman said in a statement.
A total of 216 illegal migrants, including 127 migrants of different nationalities, were intercepted by the coast guard units off Tunisian coasts, Xinhua news agency quoted the statement as syaing.
More than 37,188 Tunisian illegal migrants have been intercepted this year, according to figures released by the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights on Tuesday.
"This year has been the most tragic and the heaviest in terms of deaths among illegal migrants of all nationalities off the Tunisian coast," the statement said.
Located in the central Mediterranean, Tunisia is one of the most popular transit points for illegal immigration to Europe.
Although Tunisian authorities have adopted rigorous measures to tackle the problem, illegal immigration attempts from Tunisia to Italy have been on the rise.
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