31 die in deadliest migrant boat tragedy between France, UK
President Emmanuel Macron said France would not allow the Channel to become a 'cemetery' (AFP/FRANCOIS LO PRESTI)
Bernard BARRON with Sylvie MALIGORNE and Stuart WILLIAMS in Paris
Wed, November 24, 2021
At least 31 migrants died Wednesday crossing from France to England when their boat sank off the port of Calais, French authorities said, the deadliest disaster since the Channel became a major part of the migrant route.
President Emmanuel Macron, saying France would not allow the Channel to become a "cemetery", vowed to find out who was responsible for the tragedy as prosecutors opened a manslaughter probe.
"It is Europe's deepest values -- humanism, respect for the dignity of each person -- that are in mourning," Macron said.
The French leader also called for an emergency meeting of "European ministers faced with the migration challenge", with his Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin urging a "tough international response".
Darmanin announced that four people suspected of being "directly linked" to the accident have been arrested.
Prime Minister Jean Castex is to convene several of his ministers for a crisis meeting early on Thursday, his office said.
French officials said earlier three helicopters and three boats had searched the area, uncovering corpses and people unconscious in the water, after a fisherman sounded the alarm.
The victims were among around 50 people aboard a vessel that had set out from Dunkirk east of Calais, according to the police.
On the other side of the Channel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "shocked, appalled and deeply saddened by the loss of life at sea", following a crisis meeting with senior officials.
The disaster, the worst single loss of life since at least 2018 when migrants began using boats en masse to cross the Channel, comes as tensions grow between London and Paris over the record numbers of people crossing.
Britain has urged tougher action from France to stop migrants from making the voyage.
- Winter warning -
Pierre Roques, coordinator of the Auberge des Migrants NGO in Calais, said the Channel risked becoming as deadly for migrants as the Mediterranean which has seen a much heavier toll over the last years of migrants crossing.
"People are dying in the Channel, which is becoming a cemetery. And as England is right opposite, people will continue to cross."
According to the French authorities, 31,500 people attempted to leave for Britain since the start of the year and 7,800 people have been rescued at sea, figures which doubled since August.
In Britain, Johnson's government is coming under intense pressure, including from its own supporters, to reduce the numbers crossing.
Natalie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for the British Channel port of Dover called the sinking "an absolute tragedy" and demonstrated the need to stop the crossings at source.
"As winter is approaching the seas will get rougher, the water colder, the risk of even more lives tragically being lost greater," she said.
- 'A business' -
France's top maritime official for the northern coast Philippe Dutrieux told AFP in an interview last week that the numbers trying to cross had doubled in the last three months.
He blamed the "cynicism" of the traffickers "who throw migrants into the water as it is a business that makes money".
"It has been years that we have been warning about the dangers of the situation", said Charlotte Kwantes, head of Utopia56, an association that works with migrants in Calais.
She put at "more than 300" the number of migrants who have died since 1999 in the area.
"As long as safe passages are not put in place between England and France, or as long as these people cannot be regularised in France... there will be deaths at the border," she told AFP.
In Britain, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, Enver Solomon, said the deaths were "heartbreaking" and safe routes were needed for those "in desperate need of protection".
According to British authorities, more than 25,000 people have now arrived illegally so far this year, already triple the figure recorded in 2020.
The issue has added to growing post-Brexit tensions between Britain and France, with a row on fishing rights also still unresolved.
sm-gd/jxb
President Emmanuel Macron said France would not allow the Channel to become a 'cemetery' (AFP/FRANCOIS LO PRESTI)
Bernard BARRON with Sylvie MALIGORNE and Stuart WILLIAMS in Paris
Wed, November 24, 2021
At least 31 migrants died Wednesday crossing from France to England when their boat sank off the port of Calais, French authorities said, the deadliest disaster since the Channel became a major part of the migrant route.
President Emmanuel Macron, saying France would not allow the Channel to become a "cemetery", vowed to find out who was responsible for the tragedy as prosecutors opened a manslaughter probe.
"It is Europe's deepest values -- humanism, respect for the dignity of each person -- that are in mourning," Macron said.
The French leader also called for an emergency meeting of "European ministers faced with the migration challenge", with his Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin urging a "tough international response".
Darmanin announced that four people suspected of being "directly linked" to the accident have been arrested.
Prime Minister Jean Castex is to convene several of his ministers for a crisis meeting early on Thursday, his office said.
French officials said earlier three helicopters and three boats had searched the area, uncovering corpses and people unconscious in the water, after a fisherman sounded the alarm.
The victims were among around 50 people aboard a vessel that had set out from Dunkirk east of Calais, according to the police.
On the other side of the Channel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "shocked, appalled and deeply saddened by the loss of life at sea", following a crisis meeting with senior officials.
The disaster, the worst single loss of life since at least 2018 when migrants began using boats en masse to cross the Channel, comes as tensions grow between London and Paris over the record numbers of people crossing.
Britain has urged tougher action from France to stop migrants from making the voyage.
- Winter warning -
Pierre Roques, coordinator of the Auberge des Migrants NGO in Calais, said the Channel risked becoming as deadly for migrants as the Mediterranean which has seen a much heavier toll over the last years of migrants crossing.
"People are dying in the Channel, which is becoming a cemetery. And as England is right opposite, people will continue to cross."
According to the French authorities, 31,500 people attempted to leave for Britain since the start of the year and 7,800 people have been rescued at sea, figures which doubled since August.
In Britain, Johnson's government is coming under intense pressure, including from its own supporters, to reduce the numbers crossing.
Natalie Elphicke, the Conservative MP for the British Channel port of Dover called the sinking "an absolute tragedy" and demonstrated the need to stop the crossings at source.
"As winter is approaching the seas will get rougher, the water colder, the risk of even more lives tragically being lost greater," she said.
- 'A business' -
France's top maritime official for the northern coast Philippe Dutrieux told AFP in an interview last week that the numbers trying to cross had doubled in the last three months.
He blamed the "cynicism" of the traffickers "who throw migrants into the water as it is a business that makes money".
"It has been years that we have been warning about the dangers of the situation", said Charlotte Kwantes, head of Utopia56, an association that works with migrants in Calais.
She put at "more than 300" the number of migrants who have died since 1999 in the area.
"As long as safe passages are not put in place between England and France, or as long as these people cannot be regularised in France... there will be deaths at the border," she told AFP.
In Britain, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, Enver Solomon, said the deaths were "heartbreaking" and safe routes were needed for those "in desperate need of protection".
According to British authorities, more than 25,000 people have now arrived illegally so far this year, already triple the figure recorded in 2020.
The issue has added to growing post-Brexit tensions between Britain and France, with a row on fishing rights also still unresolved.
sm-gd/jxb
By Alex Therrien
BBC News
Published10 minutes ago
Thirty-one people headed for the UK have drowned in the English Channel near Calais after their boat sank.
The International Organization for Migration said it was the biggest single loss of life in the Channel since it began collecting data in 2014.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "appalled" by what happened, adding the UK would leave "no stone unturned" to stop human trafficking gangs.
Five women and a girl were among the dead, France's interior minister said.
Gerald Darmanin also said two people were rescued and one was missing.
Four people had been arrested near to the Belgian border, he added, saying: "We suspect that they were directly linked to this particular crossing."
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A fishing boat sounded the alarm on Wednesday afternoon after spotting several people at sea off the coast of France.
French and British authorities are conducting a rescue operation by air and sea to see if they can find anyone.
A French volunteer sea rescue organisation boat carrying bodies of migrants arrived at Calais harbour
Mr Johnson said the deaths were a "disaster", adding that it was vital to "break" the people trafficking gangs which, he said, were "literally getting away with murder".
Speaking after chairing an emergency Cobra meeting, the prime minister said more needed to be done to stop criminals organising crossings.
"It also shows how vital it is that we now step up our efforts to break the business model of the gangsters who are sending people to sea in this way," he said.
He also admitted efforts so far to stem the flow of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats "haven't been enough" and that the UK would offer to increase its support to France.
The UK has pledged to give France €62.7m (£54m) during 2021-22 to help increase police patrols along its coastline, boost aerial surveillance and increase security infrastructure at ports.
Home Secretary Priti Patel tweeted that the deaths were "starkest possible reminder" of the dangers migrants face attempting to cross the Channel.
Mr Johnson said the deaths were a "disaster", adding that it was vital to "break" the people trafficking gangs which, he said, were "literally getting away with murder".
Speaking after chairing an emergency Cobra meeting, the prime minister said more needed to be done to stop criminals organising crossings.
"It also shows how vital it is that we now step up our efforts to break the business model of the gangsters who are sending people to sea in this way," he said.
He also admitted efforts so far to stem the flow of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats "haven't been enough" and that the UK would offer to increase its support to France.
The UK has pledged to give France €62.7m (£54m) during 2021-22 to help increase police patrols along its coastline, boost aerial surveillance and increase security infrastructure at ports.
Home Secretary Priti Patel tweeted that the deaths were "starkest possible reminder" of the dangers migrants face attempting to cross the Channel.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said five women and a girl were among those who died
French President Emmanuel Macron said: "France will not let the Channel become a cemetery."
He promised to "find and condemn those responsible" for the tragedy.
Mr Macron also called for an "emergency meeting of European ministers concerned by the migration challenge".
He said since the start of this year 1,552 smugglers had been arrested in Northern France and 44 smuggler networks dismantled.
Despite this, 47,000 attempted Channel crossings to the UK had taken place this year and 7,800 migrants have been rescued, Mr Macron added.
French President Emmanuel Macron said: "France will not let the Channel become a cemetery."
He promised to "find and condemn those responsible" for the tragedy.
Mr Macron also called for an "emergency meeting of European ministers concerned by the migration challenge".
He said since the start of this year 1,552 smugglers had been arrested in Northern France and 44 smuggler networks dismantled.
Despite this, 47,000 attempted Channel crossings to the UK had taken place this year and 7,800 migrants have been rescued, Mr Macron added.
Emergency services are taking part in the rescue operation at Calais harbour
A number of people are believed to have reached the UK in small boats on Wednesday, with people seen being brought ashore in Dover by immigration officials.
BBC Newsnight's policy editor, Lewis Goodall, said he understood about 25 boats had attempted the crossing so far during the day.
It comes amid record numbers of migrants making the crossing from France to the UK. More than 25,700 people have made the dangerous journey to the UK in small boats this year - more than three times the 2020 total.
The Dover Strait is the busiest shipping lane in the world and has claimed many lives of people trying to cross to Britain in inflatable dinghies.
It is thought at least 10 other people had died in the past few weeks while attempting to make the crossing.
A number of people are believed to have reached the UK in small boats on Wednesday, with people seen being brought ashore in Dover by immigration officials.
BBC Newsnight's policy editor, Lewis Goodall, said he understood about 25 boats had attempted the crossing so far during the day.
It comes amid record numbers of migrants making the crossing from France to the UK. More than 25,700 people have made the dangerous journey to the UK in small boats this year - more than three times the 2020 total.
The Dover Strait is the busiest shipping lane in the world and has claimed many lives of people trying to cross to Britain in inflatable dinghies.
It is thought at least 10 other people had died in the past few weeks while attempting to make the crossing.
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