170 refugees who drowned off Egypt coast 'do not deserve sympathy', Egyptian MP says

He previously said women must undergo female genital mutilation to help curb male 'sexual weakness'

Egyptians stand on the shore as they wait for the recovery of bodies, during a search operation after a boat carrying migrants capsized in the Mediterranean, along the shore in the Egyptian port city of Rosetta on 22 September, 2016 (AFP/Getty Images)

An Egyptian MP has said that hundreds of refugees who drowned off the coast of Egypt "do not deserve sympathy" and suggested they deserved to die.

Elhamy Agina, who has previously said women must undergo female genital mutilation (FGM) to help curb male "sexual weakness", also blamed the parents of refugees for not bringing them up right and suggested they should be punished.

"If young people travel behind their parents' backs or without their permission it is their own fault what happens and they do not deserve sympathy," Mr Agina told local media, according to a translation by The New Arab.

"The parents of young people who migrate illegally, get caught trying to do so or die [in the process] should be punished, because these young people are reckless and have not found anyone to tell them right from wrong," he added.

"If the government, which has eased travel procedures, had been the one who told these young people to flee on that boat and drown then we would immediately hold the government accountable."

A boat carrying rescue teams returns to the shore at the port city of Rosetta, Egypt (EPA)

On Monday, an Egyptian Health Ministry official said a total of 170 bodies had been pulled from the waters in the five days since the boat sank.

The death toll is expected to rise, as many bodies are thought to be trapped inside the boat's refrigerator, the official said.

Survivors said the boat was carrying up to 450 migrants to Italy from Egypt.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said Egyptians must join hands with his government to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.

In his first public comments on the disaster, Mr el-Sisi said the government could not safeguard the country's porous land and sea borders alone.

"As a state, along with its institutions, we are concerned and committed to safeguarding our borders and prevent this, but society must contribute to the effort so this is never repeated."

Many of the Egyptians on board the boat were unescorted minors or single men in their early 20s looking for work in western Europe.

The fact that they were willing to risk their lives to reach Europe has brought into focus Egypt's harsh economic realities, with many of the country's 91 million people struggling to cope with double digit unemployment and rising inflation among a host of economic woes.

Mr el-Sisi also used his televised address to reassure Egyptians that everything was being done to revitalise the country's ailing economy.

"There is hope, but we will not be able to overcome all the challenges in one, two or four years.

"No, it will take time," he added. "We have not forgotten about you, but it takes times to achieve results."