A baby has died after a boat carrying illegal immigrants attempting to reach the UK got into difficulty off the coast of France.
French authorities confirmed that the baby was found unconscious and later declared dead, following the incident off the coast of Wissant in the Pas-de-Calais region on Thursday evening.
The French maritime prefecture for the English Channel and the North Sea said another 65 people were rescued and taken back to Boulogne-sur-Mer. A French navy vessel and helicopter are continuing the search for any other missing people.
Recent Channel Fatalities
The fatality occurred less than two weeks after another very young child—a 2-year-old boy—died after a boat overloaded with 90 people trying to get to the UK suffered engine failure in French waters. French interior minister Bruno Retailleau said the boy had been “trampled to death.”Similar circumstances resulted in the deaths of a woman and two men in a second incident on the same day, where a boat carrying 83 people suffered several engine failures, resulting in a panic on board. French authorities believe they were probably crushed and suffocated during the panic and drowned in the water at the bottom of the boat.
Since Labour formed a government, it has established a multi-agency Border Security Command which aims to tackle illegal immigration facilitated by people smuggling gangs.
More Than 27,000 Arrived
A total of 27,557 illegal immigrants have arrived in small boats so far this year after crossing the English Channel, 6 percent higher than at this time last year but down 26 percent at this point in 2022.On Oct. 4, the UK and other G7 nations agreed to the Anti-Smuggling Action Plan, which would include joint investigations and intelligence-sharing to combat transnational organised immigration crime.
The Home Office said the international partnership will enhance the government’s strategy to disrupt people smuggling operations upstream, such as by interrupting routes in transit countries.
“Criminal smuggling gangs who organise small boat crossings undermine our border security and put lives at risk. Our new government is rapidly accelerating cooperation with other countries to crack down on these dangerous gangs,” Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said.
