US Coastguard rescues Haitians, reporters

The United States coastguard has rescued forty-four Haitians and two American journalists found on board a sinking ship off the northern coast of Haiti.

The group was taken to a nearby island in the Bahamas.

The reporters were working on assignment for the New York Times, on a story about the plight of the thousands of Haitian immigrants who try to reach the United States every year.

Sailing on small and overcrowded boats which often run into difficulties on the journey, the immigrants are usually returned to Haiti if they are intercepted.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service