French authorities have reported that at least 12 people have died and two are missing following a capsizing incident off the Gris-Nez cape in the English Channel. More than 50 people were rescued, two of whom remain in critical condition. This marks the deadliest loss of life in the Channel in 2022.
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin visited the site, calling on the UK and EU to agree to a “treaty on migration” as a means of reducing small boat crossings. French authorities have prevented 60% of small vessel departures; however, people smugglers have begun fitting up to 70 people onto boats meant for 30 to 40 people, resulting in more deadly shipwrecks.
The incident brings the number of people who have lost their lives on attempted crossings of the English Channel this year to more than 30, out of over 21,000 people who have made the journey. Most of the victims were women, with some being minors, many from the Horn of Africa region.
UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has described the tragedy as “horrifying and deeply tragic”, stating that the individuals behind the “appalling and callous trade in human lives” have been congesting an increasing number of individuals onto unseaworthy dinghies and sending them out into the Channel, even in very poor weather.
The charity Care4Calais has urged political leaders on both sides of the Channel to take action, asking, “How many lives will be lost before they end these avoidable tragedies?” The French coastguard carried out the rescue operation, aided by Navy boats, helicopters, and fishing ships.
The number of individuals making dangerous crossings of the English Channel via small boats has risen, with over 135,000 individuals having arrived in the UK by this means since 2018. Despite the reduction in crossers relative to 2022, the number of individuals crossing the channel in 2022, 45,755, was the highest recorded since figures began to be collected. The Labour and previous Conservative governments have committed to finding a solution to the issue, with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer cancelling the previous government’s plan to transport refugees to Rwanda and pledging to crack down harder on the people-smuggling gangs. Despite this, critics argue that the UK government should be doing more to make safe passage for asylum-seekers. Amnesty International UK noted that without addressing the needs of individuals exploited by the gangs, no amount of “smash the gangs” policing or rhetoric would prevent tragedies from recurrently unfolding
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