At least five migrants die while crossing English Channel, 100 rescued by French Navy
French policemen stand beside a dinghy lying on the beach near the English Channel.
At least five dead bodies of migrants were recovered from the Wimereaux beach in northern France Tuesday (Apr 23), with local media reports saying they were trying to cross the English Channel. The Voix du Nord newspaper said a rescue operation had been launched and helicopters and boats were deployed at the scene. The development comes asUK passes its controversial Rwanda bill that paves the way for the government to deport illegal immigrants to the East African nation.
The newspaper reported that at least 100 migrants were rescued in the operation, who were aboard a French navy ship and being taken to the port of Boulogne.
Migrants often embark on the perilous journey through the English Channel in hopes of making it to the UK, but not all meet the same fate. Some migrants, aboard crowded boats, end up losing their lives after drowning and sinking.
In 2023 alone, some 30,000 migrants crossed the channel.
Concerns over Rwanda bill
UK government says the Rwanda bill is to deter people from taking on the perilous journey and risking their lives.
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Watch:UK: Rwanda bill becomes a law after 5 months
However, human rights groups believe the law is inhumane and cruel. Both the United Nations refugee agency and the Council of Europe have urged the UK to rethink its plans for implementing the law. They fear that the law will jeopardiseUK’sinternational cooperation in tackling the global migrant crisis.
Imminent legal battles
However, according to experts, passing the bill in the parliament doesn’t clear all hurdles in the way of turning it into law. The government may still have to fight long legal battles in the courts.
Tim Bale, a politics professor at Queen Mary University of London, was quoted as saying by NBC News, “I don’t think it is necessarily home and dry. We will see some attempts to block deportations legally.”
The migrant crisis is a major political issue inUK, where it’s often viewed as the government’s failure to regulate the country’s borders.
In 2022, a whopping 45,774 people enteredUKillegally through the English Channel, from just 299 four years earlier.
(With inputs from agencies)