A total of 711 people traveled to the UK illegally on Wednesday and 66 others were rescued when they found themselves in difficulty on board their boat.
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A total of 711 migrants arrived in the United Kingdom on 14 small boats after crossing the Channel on Wednesday May 1, according to figures released Thursday by the Interior Ministry. This is a new peak for the year 2024, while the previous record was set on April 14, with 534 crossings. We must also add 66 people, including women and children, who were rescued on Wednesday off the coast of Dieppe, when their boat was in difficulty. They were brought ashore, according to French authorities.
A few months before the legislative elections, the British Conservative government has made putting an end to these Channel crossings by migrants a priority. A controversial law, adopted on April 23, aims to be able to expel thousands of them to Rwanda by the end of the year. Their asylum application would be considered in Rwanda, with no possibility of them returning to the UK, whatever the outcome.
In preparation for these expulsions scheduled to begin in nine to 11 weeks, several operations were carried out this week nationwide to arrest an unspecified number of irregular migrants. The Interior Ministry released photos showing men handcuffed and escorted into mesh vans. The government insists on the dissuasive nature of this law.
>> “I take the risk, God will save me”: in this Channel migrant camp, the threat of being sent back to Rwanda by the United Kingdom does not deter anyone
Channel crossings have broken a historic record for the first four months of 2024, with the arrival of more than 8,000 migrants on English shores, the majority from Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey.
