6 Afghans die as boat capsizes in English Channel

ATLANTA (Pajhwok): At least six Afghan migrants have died after the boat they were travelling in sunk in the channel between France and Britain.

Agency France Press (AFP) reported the incident took place on early Saturday morning off the northern coast of France at 2:00am.

The vessel had reported to French and British coast guards that a boat was sinking in the water.

About 70 illegal migrants were on board the boat, most of them Afghans and Sudanese nationals.

French police said six of Afghan migrants drowned and lost their lives.

French and British coast guards rescued 61 migrants from drowning and said nearly all of them were Afghans except a few Sudanese.

Most of the migrants were aged around 18 years and there were some minors as well. The French police did not say anything about the ages of minor migrants.

Elizabeth Borne, the French prime minister, expressed her concern at the incident, saying migrants were still not discouraged from traveling on dangerous routes.

Since 2018, over 100,000 migrants have managed to reach from France to Britain in small boats.

The UK government agreed in March 2023 to pay France millions of euros to prevent the flow of migrants from that country. The French coast guards have since been conducting patrols.

The movement of the marine traffic increased as the weather became more suitable to voyage.

Authorities say 116 more migrants travelling in small boats were rescued last Thursday. But it is unclear who they were.

The British government said 94 percent of migrants entering that country through the English Channel asked for asylum. Most of them received a positive response to their applications.

Note: Some information from the BBC & VOA has been used in this report.

aw/mud

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