Latest news with #migrants
Reuters
5 hours ago
- General
- Reuters
Migrant children who died meters from shore buried in Canary Islands
Funerals were held on Friday afternoon (May 30) for migrants, including children, who died when their boat capsized near La Restinga port on the island of El Hierro, Canary Islands. The capsizing occurred on Wednesday just meters from the shore, cutting short the hopes of those seeking a better life in Europe. Rachel Graham reports.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Coastguard ‘overloaded with migrant rescues' send SOS to fishermen
Coastguards issued an appeal for fishing boats to assist a yacht and kayaks in trouble in the Channel because all Border Force vessels and lifeboats were overloaded rescuing migrants. The appeal was put out over the radio on Saturday as Border Force, the Coastguard, RNLI and French vessels dealt with an estimated 15 small boats packed with migrants attempting the perilous crossing. The contingency move provided breathing space for rescue services to be deployed at a later point to the kayaks and the yacht, which had issued an alert as it was taking on water. Saturday was expected to be a potential record day for 2025 after a week of bad weather, with initial estimates suggesting it could exceed the 828 migrants who crossed in one day earlier in May, the highest total so far this year. Two patrol aircraft, four out of the five Border Force vessels, seven French vessels, including Abeille Normandie, Ridens, Oyapock, and a warship, and two lifeboats were deployed on Saturday morning as hundreds of migrants launched their dinghies. Some 13,671 migrants have so far crossed the Channel this year, the highest number in the period since the first migrants arrived on small boats in 2018. It is 30 per cent up on last year. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, has suggested that the number of crossings has surged because of the higher number of good weather 'red days' so far in 2025. The Telegraph revealed on Friday that France has so far intercepted fewer than 40 per cent of Channel migrants this year, the lowest proportion since the first small boats arrived, despite a £480 million funding deal with Britain to help stop crossings. Ministers believe that a series of legal changes in France and Germany will, however, stem the flow of migrants. The French have amended laws so police can stop boats at sea for the first time. It will enable police to use their own boats in shallow waters to take on people-smugglers carrying migrants in overloaded vessels. French ministers are also planning to restore the offence of an 'illegal stay' in France, which would allow the police to arrest migrants and smugglers before they attempt a crossing. Currently, migrants who attempt to cross the Channel are only considered to have committed an offence when they launch the boat. Germany – where many of the migrant boats are stored before being deployed to the French coast – is also tightening its law to make it easier to prosecute those helping to smuggle migrants to the UK. Facilitating people-smuggling is not technically illegal in Germany if it is to a third country outside the EU which, following Brexit, includes the UK. Under the new agreement, Germany has pledged to make the activity a clear criminal offence. A Home Office spokesman said: 'We all want to end dangerous small boat crossings, which threaten lives and undermine our border security. 'The people-smuggling gangs do not care if the vulnerable people they exploit live or die, as long as they pay and we will stop at nothing to dismantle their business models and bring them to justice. 'That is why this Government has put together a serious plan to take down these networks at every stage. 'Through international intelligence sharing under our Border Security Command, enhanced enforcement operations in northern France and tougher legislation in the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, we are strengthening international partnerships and boosting our ability to identify, disrupt, and dismantle criminal gangs whilst strengthening the security of our borders.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
The Sun
7 hours ago
- General
- The Sun
Scores of migrants board overloaded dinghies to make dangerous Channel crossing to UK – as French cops watch on
COUNTLESS migrants have boarded packed boats in France to make the treacherous journey across the English Channel to the UK. French police watched on as one of six boats, filled with adults and children seeking refuge in Britain, departed from a beach in Gravelines, located between Calais and Dunkirk. 6 6 French authorities were then also pictured escorting the small boat as it made its way across the water. Over the past week, there have not been any arrivals of migrants crossing the Channel in small boats, figures from the Home Office show. However, 2025 could be on course to have the highest number of Channel crossings ever, with more than 13,000 people having arrived in the UK so far. That's roughly 30 per cent higher than figures were at the same time last year. There have been major concerns over both the number of deaths of people making the perilous journey across the Channel and the prevalence of organised smuggling gangs. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to crack down on these criminals who put migrants' lives at risk, and to eventually reduce the number of small boat crossings. Just last month, one person tragically died while trying to cross the Channel. The International Organization for Migration (IOM), which is a UN agency, estimated at least 78 migrants died while making the crossing in 2024, making it the deadliest year on record. Since 2018, at least 225 migrants have lost their lives making the dangerous journey to the UK, according to the IOM. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said previously that gangs had been taking advantage of recent calmer weather days to try and make crossings. Inside Calais camp where migrants pay thousands to be smuggled into UK In an interview on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show, Ms Cooper said: 'The really unacceptable situation we're in is because of the way the criminal gangs have taken hold, our border security ends up being dependent on the weather. 'We cannot continue like this, where the number of calm days affects the number of crossings.' Ms Cooper insisted 'only a coordinated international response' across the whole migration route could effectively end the reign of the people smugglers. She admitted the situation was unacceptable and could not continue. Last month also saw the highest single number of migrants arriving on small boats so far this year, as more than 700 people crossed the English Channel. Last year, a total of 36,816 migrants illegally crossed the Channel in small boats, up from 29,437 in 2023. 6 6 6 However, the highest year on record remains 2022, where 45,755 people made the treacherous journey to Britain. The prime minister has faced scrutiny for failing to reduce the number of small boat crossings, and the influx of illegal migration. However, he was given a lifeline as Kosovo said it would be "open" to discussions in becoming a return hub for failed UK asylum seekers. The western Balkan Other options in the region — a principal route for illegal migrants — are said to include Serbia, North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. No formal talks have yet taken place.
Wall Street Journal
8 hours ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Ending Parole for 500,000 Migrants Creates New Headaches for Employers
WASHINGTON—The Supreme Court's decision allowing the Trump administration to revoke temporary protections for half a million migrants brings the U.S. economy closer to labor shortages in industries and regions that rely on foreign workers. The impact will take time to unfold, but could be far-reaching. The potential departure of hundreds of thousands of people from the labor force is creating anxiety for employers and adding a fresh dose of uncertainty for an economy already grappling with the administration's tariff policies.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Seven migrant women and children died metres from shore in Canary Islands
MADRID (Reuters) -Seven migrant women and children who died when their boat capsized just metres from shore in Spain's Canary Islands were buried on Friday at the La Restringa harbour where they had hoped to find safety. Two five-year-old girls and a 16-year-old were among the dead, emergency services said. The migrant boat capsized as rescuers were escorting it to port at La Restringa on the El Hierro island on Wednesday, the services said. "I heard the screams and didn't hesitate. Like any citizen faced with an emergency or an accident, I got in my car, rushed to where the boat was, and helped however I could," Javier Iglesias, a La Restringa resident, said at the funeral of the seven, which was also attended by surviving migrants. "What really moves you and leaves an impression is when you see the faces, the expressions of those people who didn't reach their dream, just five metres from the shore." The number of migrants reaching the Canary Islands from West Africa hit an all-time high in 2024, but the number of arrivals has fallen this year, Interior Ministry data shows. In the first five months of 2024, 4,808 people died on the perilous Atlantic voyage to the Canaries after leaving Africa, according to migrant rights group Walking Borders.
