RAFAH: An Egyptian security official says border guards fatally shot an African migrant and arrested five others trying to cross illegally into Israel.
The Eritrean man, 42, had ignored calls to stop as well as warning shots before being hit by a bullet in the head, an official told AFP.
The migrant was brought dead to the Rafah Hospital, an official told AP.
He says the other five migrants were detained in an area further south in the desert. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
The incident comes just weeks after Egyptian border police killed three Eritrean migrants within as many days as they attempted to slip across the frontier with the Jewish state.
Egypt has stepped up controls on the 250-kilometre (150-mile) border, a major trafficking route for migrants from Africa.
Many migrants seeking political asylum and jobs try to cross into Israel with the help of Bedouin traffickers. Egypt has killed dozens of migrants at the border in the past two years, drawing criticism from rights groups.
The United Nations has urged Egyptian forces to stop shooting African migrants trying to enter Israel. Some 60 have been killed in such incidents in the past two and half years. -Agencies
