Egyptian border policeman was shot dead by smugglers

Egyptian border policeman was shot dead by smugglers on Monday as he tried to stop a group of African migrants from crossing the border illegally into Israel, a security official said. Mohammed Ahmed Hassanein, 21, was shot in the chest by smugglers who were trying to sneak a group of African migrants into Israel from an area south of the border town of Rafah, the official told AFP. "He was taken to El-Arish hospital (in north Sinai) but died of his wounds," the official said, adding that the smugglers and migrants had escaped.In a similar incident, border policeman Mahmoud al-Esnawi Ahmed, 21, was shot in the leg as he tried to stop smugglers from helping another group of African migrants from reaching Israel, also south of Rafah, the official said.The 250-kilometre (155-mile) Egyptian-Israeli frontier has become a major transit route for migrants, asylum-seekers and drug smugglers. The Egyptian authorities have arrested 587 illegal immigrants since January trying to sneak across the border into Israel, a security official said earlier this month. At least 19 people have been shot dead by police on the border this year.