At least 31 migrants have died after an inflatable boat capsized today (24 November 2021) in the waters of the Strait de Calais off the coast of France, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanen said the numbers were not final.
Darmanen added that French police had arrested four people suspected of involvement in the incident. The Minister condemned the trafficking networks that organize these dangerous voyages.
It is estimated that about 30 people sailed on the inflatable boat. The nationality of the dead has not been announced yet.
A spokesman for Downing Street 10 said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson would convene an emergency government meeting on the issue of migration across the English Channel.
An estimated 22,000 people have reached the UK in small boats this year, more than double the number in 2020.
