At least 12 migrants died on Tuesday in the sinking of a boat when They were trying to reach the coasts of England from the north of FranceThis incident is considered the deadliest in the English Channel in 2024.
“Terrible shipwreck (…) off the coast of Wimereux,” wrote the French Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, on his X account after announcing a “provisional” assessment of 12 dead and two missing.
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The British government, for its part, expressed its regret at the “horrible and deeply tragic” deaths of these migrants.
According to reports, a state-chartered ship, the Minck, spotted the vessel in distress. with more than 60 people on board and when it broke, he came to the rescue.
Military vessels, fishing boats and helicopters from the fire brigade and the Navy, among others, were mobilized to rescue the migrants in the operation that is still ongoing, Baggio said.
Migrant crossings in precarious boats are usually numerous at this time of year, when summer is coming to an end in Europe. Their goal is to reach the United Kingdombut sometimes they don’t succeed.
Prior to this shipwreck, the deadliest of 2024, 25 people have lost their lives since the beginning of the year, far exceeding the death toll of 12 in 2023.
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After coming to power in July, the new British Prime Minister, the Labour Party Keir Starmer has promised to speed up the processing of asylum applications and strengthen borders, as well as the fight against migrant traffickers.
Last week, the British government promised to significantly increase the expulsion of applicants to their countries of origin asylum seekers whose applications are rejected and people who have remained illegally.
(With information from AFP)
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2024-09-05 16:02:27