Four migrants drowned, and 38 were rescued after being swept away by strong Channel currents near Boulogne-sur-Mer. A Sudanese man alleged to have piloted the boat has been charged under the UK’s new Border Security Act.
By dw.com and news.sky.com
A Sudanese man has been charged after four migrants drowned while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to the UK.
Alnour Mohamed Ali, 27, was arrested by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and charged with endangering another during a journey by sea — an offence established under the UK’s new Border Security Act, which came into force earlier this year.
The four victims — two men and two women — attempted to board an inflatable dinghy early Thursday morning at Equihen-Plage, near Boulogne-sur-Mer on the northern French coast, but were swept away by strong currents at around 7 am local time.
François-Xavier Lauch, a senior official for Pas-de-Calais, said the victims “were already quite far into the sea” when “the currents, which can be dangerous here, swept them away.”
Ali allegedly piloted the boat from France to Britain before being detained in Manston, Kent. He appeared before Folkestone Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, where he entered a not guilty plea through an interpreter, and was remanded into custody. He is due to appear at Canterbury Crown Court on 11 May.
Another 38 migrants were rescued from the currents and returned to the French shore. Ali and more than 70 others completed the crossing and were met by the UK Border Force upon arrival. The NCA said survivors would also be questioned by police.
The “Taxi-Boat” Tactic
The deaths are the latest to be linked to a smuggling method that has become increasingly common along the northern French and Belgian coasts. Traffickers in motorised inflatables cruise prearranged pick-up points while migrants wade into the water to board — a tactic authorities have come to call “taxi-boats.”
The tactic emerged as a direct response to French police puncturing inflatable boats before they could launch from beaches. French maritime law, however, prohibits authorities from pursuing vessels already at sea on the grounds that doing so could endanger lives.
UK and France Seek to Stop Crossings Before They Start
Authorities on both sides of the Channel say they are determined to halt such dangerous crossings before they occur. The latest deaths came less than two weeks after two migrants died off the French coast during a separate attempt on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
According to Home Office data, more than 5,000 migrants have reached the UK via the Channel so far this year, with attempted crossings spiking sharply in recent weeks — including 102 migrants rescued during two separate operations on Wednesday alone.
Last month, the UK government signed an extension with France on beach patrol arrangements as part of broader efforts to curb the number of crossings. Mike Tapp, the Home Office minister for migration and citizenship, said: “Every death in the Channel is a tragedy. Our experienced law enforcement teams will continue working relentlessly with international partners to prevent these perilous journeys and bring those responsible to justice.”
He added that the Border Security Act had given officers “stronger powers to act earlier and disrupt, intercept and take down the operations of criminal smuggling gangs who bring illegal migrants to our shores.” – dw.com and news.sky.com