Ten migrants drowned off Algeria

ALGIERS: Algeria said on Tuesday coast guard officers had collected the bodies of 10 people drowned while seeking to cross from the North African nation to Europe, also stopping 485 migrants.

Thousands regularly risk the dangerous crossing crammed onto small boats heading north across the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe. Coast guard patrols picked up the migrants during 42 separate operations between September 15 and 19, the defence ministry said in a statement. Algeria, Africa´s largest nation and home to 43 million people, is currently battling high unemployment and political instability.