Five people, including a child, have died in an attempt to cross the English Channel from France, hours after Britain passed a bill to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda to try to deter the dangerous crossings.

Wimereux

In a tragic incident in the English Channel, five individuals, including a child, lost their lives while attempting to cross from France to the United Kingdom. This event occurred shortly after the UK passed legislation aimed at deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda, a move intended to deter such perilous journeys. The victims were part of a group attempting the crossing in several small boats that launched from the coast of Pas-de-Calais in northern France.

The incident unravelled when one of the dinghies, significantly overcrowded, encountered difficulty a few hundred metres offshore. The engine ceased operating, causing several passengers to fall into the water. The French prefecture dispatched the Abbey Normandie patrol boat to conduct a rescue operation. Despite efforts to resuscitate them, five passengers, comprising a seven-year-old child, a woman, and three men, were pronounced dead.

Following the incident, over 50 of the initial 112 passengers resumed their journey towards the UK after managing to restart the boat's engine. This occurrence highlights the desperate measures migrants are willing to take for a chance at a better life, despite the increasing dangers of the crossing. The coastline from which attempts to reach the UK are made has broadened significantly, with individuals setting out from as far as Ardelo, Le Touquet, and Baie de Somme, further elevating the risks involved.

In a related development, the British Border Force was reported to have conducted a rescue operation for individuals from another boat in UK waters. The British Interior Ministry revealed that more than 5,000 migrants were processed after landing on the shores of south-east England in the first quarter of the year alone. This follows an estimated 30,000 people making the crossing in the previous year, highlighting the persistent challenge of migration and the deadly risks faced by those attempting to reach the UK.



Migrants drown in Channel hours after U.K. passes Rwanda bill

The French prefecture said they spotted several small boats setting off from the coast of Pas-de-Calais in northern France in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Rescue boats intervened when one particularly overcrowded dinghy ran into difficulty. A few hundred metres from the coast, the engine stopped and several people fell into the water. The Abbey Normandie patrol boat was immediately tasked by the maritime prefect to rescue the shipwrecked crew. The sailors found several people in the boat who were unconscious and in great difficulty. Despite resuscitation attempts, five of them died. Among the dead were a seven-year-old child, a woman and three men. Authorities said that more than 50 of the dinghy's 112 passengers decided to continue their journey to the UK after managing to get the engine running again. They ask us why won't you let us cross when you don't want us to live here either. The only way they can hope for a better life is to go to England. Tuesday's tragedy is the latest in a series in recent years as migrants attempt the perilous sea crossing. People are trying to cross from a much wider area than before, going as far as Ardelo, Le Touquet and even Baie de Somme. They're putting themselves in more and more danger and they're being hunted more and more and it leads to these tragedies, it's deplorable. Separately on Tuesday, the British Border Force was seen rescuing people from a boat in UK waters. British Interior Ministry figures show they processed more than 5,000 migrants who landed on the shores of south-east England in the first three months of this year. Last year an estimated 30,000 people made the crossing.

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