COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, July 30 (AP/UNB) - Sri Lanka's navy says a tanker has rescued 28 people who were drifting at sea for 11 days after their boat's engine failed on the way to Australia.
     
The navy said in a statement Monday that the fishing trawler's engine failed on July 15, about 300 nautical miles off Sri Lanka's eastern coast.  A French tanker located the boat and rescued the passengers last week, before handing them over to the Sri Lankan navy.
     
The 23 men, four women and one child aboard, all Sri Lankans, are being held by police pending an investigation.
     
Police say 620 people from several nations have been arrested in Sri Lanka so far this year for trying to migrate to Australia illegally.