Nearly 700 migrants, as well as asylum seekers, crossed the English Channel from France, attempting to reach the United Kingdom, marking a new record for the highest so far this year.
In this regard, the Ministry of Defence has stressed that a total of 696 migrants attempted to cross the Channel on 14 boats, surpassing the previous record of 651 in April, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
In addition, authorities in France also stopped two boats at sea bearing a total of 35 people at each of them, according to a report of Vatican News.
Every year, a large number of migrants attempt to cross the Channel in order to reach the UK. Up to this point, over 17,000 people have arrived in the country, based on the figures provided by the government.
At the same time, last year, a total of 28,526 people made the cross in boats, marking a notable increase from 8,404 in 2020.
Besides, a total of 3,683 people crossed the Channel in July alone, which was the highest record for this year.
According to the report, the majority of the migrants come from poorer countries and often look to claim asylum during the time they are picked by authorities in Britain.
Experts have stressed that the number of people crossing the Channel through the year depends on enforcement actions along the coastline as well as weather conditions.
The increase in the number of crossings at the Channel has been considered dangerous and unacceptable by the United Kingdom’s government, while the same suggested that “people should always claim asylum in the first safe country they reach, rather than risk their lives and line the pockets of ruthless criminal gangs in order to cross the Channel.”
Back in April, authorities in France reported that they stopped over 600 migrants from crossing the Channel from France to the UK.
Based on a statement published back then by French police, the persons who attempted to cross the Channel in order to reach Britain did not hold valid documents.
According to the previous report of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, the number of migrants trying to reach the UK in the first quarter of this year tripled compared to the figures from a year ago.
Besides, the report revealed that the majority of migrants were using boats in order to reach Britain.
“The number of irregular migrants seeking to cross the Channel towards the UK so far this year nearly tripled from a year ago to more than nearly 8 900, half of them were prevented from departure, and half were rescued by British authorities,” Frontex’s report revealed.
Besides, according to Frontex, the EU countries recorded the highest number of illegal border crossings at their external borders since the migratory crisis in 2016.
SOURCE: Schengen Visa Info
