Five Sudanese footballers drown in the Nile

Five Sudanese footballers died on Sunday when their boat sank in the Nile, north of the capital Khartoum, official news agency, Sudanese News Agency reported.

It said the players, members of the third division team Navigation,  were on their way to play a match when their boat sank.

The agency did not state how the vessel sank but said the entire team was on board.

The players were travelling from the city of Shendi in the River Nile state in northern Sudan to the city of Al Matama to play against El-Jiref, in the third division league

Boat accidents are not new on the Nile. Passenger ferries are often old and not safe.

Incidents are particularly frequent when the river tends to flood in the summer when water levels rise.