SOFIA: Two female migrants found dead in a mountainous rural region of Bulgaria died due to freezing conditions, authorities said on Sunday, as asylum seekers continue to try to reach the EU despite harsh winter weather.

The women were part of a group of 19 migrants, including 11 children, found on Saturday by border police near the southeastern town of Malko Tarnovo. Their nationality was still unclear.

“Two women have died — one younger and another middle-aged. Our border guards made every effort to help them, carrying them in their arms to try to warm them up, but it happened because of the cold,” Interior Minister Rumyana Bachvarova announced on Sunday.

The area was under harsh winter conditions with high winds, some 30 centimetres of snow and freezing temperatures.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2016