Kurdish migrants warned against Channel crossings in UK social media campaign

Telegraph

04-03-2025

Kurdish migrants are be to warned not to attempt to cross the Channel to reach the UK in the Home Office's latest social media campaign.
The digital adverts warning Iraqi Kurds about the risks of crossing the Channel and cut-throat criminality of the people smuggling gangs follow similar campaigns targeting Albanian and Vietnamese migrants.
The UK has struck agreements with the three countries to share intelligence on the gangs and migrant routes and fast-track returns in order to deter crossings.
Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, signed an agreement with Iraq and Kurdish regional governments before Christmas to deploy National Crime Agency (NCA) officers to Iraq to mount joint operations to arrest and prosecute the kingpins behind the people smuggling gangs based in Baghdad, Erbil and other towns.
Iraqi-Kurdish gangs control most of the beaches and camps in northern France, which means the NCA wants to ramp up its operations in the people smugglers' home towns.
Martin Hewitt, the Border Security Commander, visited Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan region last week to discuss ongoing cooperation, including increased joint efforts to tackle organised immigration crime.
The digital adverts include quotes from real migrants who have attempted the journey to counter misleading claims peddled by criminals to dupe people online.
One migrant describes how people crossing the Channel disappeared into the sea, another claims they were promised a well paid job but ended up as a slave and a third described how they feared they would be killed if they tried to escape.
Dame Angela Eagle, the border security minister, said: 'Ruthless criminal gangs spread dangerous lies on social media to exploit people for money, and we are exposing them using the real stories of their victims.
'This campaign helps to break the business model of these criminals and protect people from falling victim, securing our borders as part of the government's plan for change.
'No one should be in any doubt that putting your life in the hands of a smuggler is not worth the risk. Too many people have died in the English Channel at the hands of these criminals, and we will stop at nothing to bring them to justice.'
It comes as the UK is set to sign a Joint Communiqué on Tuesday with the Vietnamese Government at the third annual UK-Vietnam Migration Dialogue, hosted in Hanoi.
It aims to build on joint work to prevent the exploitation of illegal migrants, disrupt criminal gang operations, strengthen intelligence sharing and return those with no right to be in the UK.
The Communiqué includes commitments to enable swifter and more effective returns of illegal migrants to Vietnam, who are among the biggest nationalities for Channel crossings, and for the UK Government to continue its communications campaign in Vietnam to tackle migrant smugglers' lies.
Mr Hewitt said: 'International partnerships are an essential part of our work to stop criminal gangs operating across borders to exploit vulnerable people.
'By strengthening these relationships and working closely with law enforcement partners across the world, we will bring down these gangs, break their business models, and put a stop to the misery and harm they inflict.
'Communications are an important part of this work, and our international campaign is sending a clear message to prospective migrants that these criminals cannot be trusted.'