LILLE (AFP) — A migrant has died aboard an overcrowded boat attempting to cross the Channel from France to Britain, with many on board refusing rescue and continuing the dangerous journey. This marks the seventh migrant death in the Channel since July 12.
The small boat, first spotted off the coast of Calais early on Sunday, carried 75 people. Despite the efforts of Coast Guard and Maritime Gendarmerie vessels, several individuals on the boat cried out for help around dawn. Rescue teams saved 35 people, including one who was initially unconscious and later confirmed dead at a hospital in Boulogne-sur-Mer. The prefecture has not disclosed the deceased’s gender.
The remaining passengers refused to return to France, opting to continue their perilous voyage. French maritime authorities noted a troubling trend: deaths occurring not from drowning but from being squeezed in overcrowded boats.
Previously, four men died on July 12, an Eritrean woman on July 17, and another man two days later. The July 19 incident involved a boat with 86 people, five of whom fell into the sea. The 2024 death toll in the Channel has already reached 23, surpassing the 12 recorded in 2023.
Flore Judet from the charity Auberge des Migrants criticized government policies, claiming there is no “safe passage” for asylum seekers and accusing authorities of “repression” along France’s coasts. Claire Millot from the NGO Salam described the current conditions on migrant boats as “horrifying” and called for better opportunities for migrants rather than destructive measures.
Following the Labour Party’s victory in the UK general election in July, Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron have pledged increased cooperation to address illegal immigration. Starmer has reversed plans to send illegal immigrants to detention camps in Rwanda, promising enhanced law enforcement against smuggling gangs and expedited processing of migrants.
