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French authorities have carried out their first waterborne interception under a newly implemented strategy aimed at curbing the movement of illegal migrants traveling by small boats to the UK. On Saturday, French officers boarded a “taxi-boat” on the Aa canal in Gravelines, located along the Channel coastline near Calais.
This development follows a tactical shift agreed upon last November, responding to increasing pressure from the UK government to intensify enforcement efforts. A BBC-acquired photograph captures the aftermath of the operation, showing several individuals, believed to be people-smugglers, aboard an inflatable dinghy with a police launch alongside. The inflatable was subsequently towed to the dock.
The change in approach was decided during a summit held in the UK the previous July between President Emmanuel Macron and Sir Keir Starmer. Before this, French police had primarily intervened only before boats were launched from the beaches, citing safety concerns about carrying out operations at sea. However, smuggling networks adapted by employing “taxi-boats,” which would launch from farther inland, navigating along the coast to pick up migrants who would enter the water to board these vessels.
Official French documents indicate that this method was highly effective, boasting an 81% success rate in 2025. Despite a decrease from the peak in 2022, the number of migrants reaching the UK from France increased last year, climbing from 36,566 in 2024 to 41,472. Following the July 2025 agreement for on-water interventions, implementation faced delays due to concerns over potential risks to life and the legal liability of officers in the event of fatalities. These issues appear to have been resolved with new engagement guidelines stipulating that gendarmes will only act to stop taxi-boats before passengers start boarding. This protocol was reportedly followed during Saturday’s intervention when police suspected the inflatable moving down the canal was preparing for a migrant pickup and proceeded to detain those on board
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