Tunis, Nov 11 (IANS): Tunisian security units have arrested six illegal immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa for manufacturing steel boats used in illegal immigration at a house in the northern province of Ariana, private radio station Mosaique FM reported on Monday.

According to the report, authorities received information about a boat hidden in a house in the Raoued region, intended for illegal crossings to Italy.

Upon conducting a search, officers from the Ariana North judicial police brigade discovered that the house had been converted into a workshop for building steel boats.

A modified car engine, designed to be installed on one of the boats, along with a quantity of fuel, was also seized during the operation, Xinhua news agency reported.

Investigations are ongoing to identify other individuals involved in the illegal operation. Tunisia, situated in the central Mediterranean, is a common launch point for migrants attempting to reach Italy, with the Italian island of Lampedusa only about 80 km from Tunisia's coast.