Tuesday September 30, 2025
FILE - Migrants crowd an inflatable boat as they attempt to cross the English Channel near the French coast. At least three people, including two Somali women and a teenage girl, died in recent crossing attempts, French authorities reported Sept. 30, 2025.
Mogadishu (HOL) — Three migrants, including two Somali women and a teenage girl, died last week while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to Britain, French authorities and local media reported.
The teenager’s body was found Sunday on Ecault beach in Saint-Etienne-au-Mont, while the two Somali women are believed to have drowned after nearly 100 people set out from northern France in a crowded, unseaworthy boat late Friday into Saturday. French authorities have launched an investigation.
The incident highlights the rising dangers of Channel migration even as numbers reach record levels. More than 33,000 people have arrived in Britain aboard small boats so far in 2025, the highest figure since records began in 2018.
Over the weekend alone, 1,298 migrants crossed in 19 boats, according to official figures.
Despite expanded patrols and cooperation between Britain and France, the crossings continue. In 2024, small-boat arrivals represented only 4 percent of legal migration to the U.K. but accounted for more than 80 percent of unauthorized entries, underscoring the role of the Channel route in irregular migration.