Four migrants found dead in Pas-de-Calais after trying to cross the Channel

Four migrants died off the coast of Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais) during an attempt to cross the Channel on the night of Thursday to Friday July 12, the maritime prefecture declared, specifying that other migrants who fell into the water had been saved.

Alerted at the end of the night that several passengers of a clandestine boat were at sea, the Navy patrol boat Cormorant intervened, recovering the passengers, the prefecture told AFP. But four of them, airlifted unconscious, were declared dead.

The deaths bring to at least 19 the number of people who have died trying to reach the UK since the start of the year. On 23 April, five migrants died off the coast of Wimereux while trying to cross the Channel in an overloaded boat.

More than 12,313 people reached the English coast illegally in 2024, mainly from France, according to official British figures in mid-June, while immigration emerged as a major theme of the British legislative elections, won by the Labour Party.

This represents an increase of 18% compared to the same period last year, despite the tightening of policies by conservative governments in recent years.