Tragedy has once again unfolded in the English Channel. On the night of Sunday to Monday, a boat carrying migrants capsized off the coast of Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais), while attempting to reach the British coast. One person was killed and several others were injured, according to maritime authorities.
The shipwreck occurred in a context of high migratory activity. According to the maritime prefecture quoted by here North, a major rescue operation was deployed. Around forty people were taken into care by the border police, and the associations Utopia 56 and Osmose 62 also observed the arrival of numerous injured people. The precise causes of the sinking have not yet been communicated.
Crossing attempts on the rise
The night was marked by several other attempted crossings, some of which were still underway this Monday morning. This tragedy is part of a series of increasingly frequent shipwrecks, amid the tightening of immigration policies in the United Kingdom. In 2024, the number of illegal Channel crossings had already seen a sharp rise, according to official data.
This new incident once again raises the question of Franco-British cooperation in the fight against people smuggling networks, as well as that of the reception and security of migrants on French coasts.
