Ebetween the 1er January and June 13, 2022, “777 crossing events and attempted crossings in small boats involving 20,132 candidates (+ 68% compared to the same period in 2021) were recorded”, according to the French Ministry of the Interior. Attempts to illegally cross the Channel by migrants wanting to reach England exploded in the first half of 2022, after an already record year 2021, the Interior Ministry told AFP on Monday June 20, against a backdrop of hardening. migration policy on the British side.
In 2021, these attempted crossings, generally by inflatable boats from the northern coast between Calais and Dunkirk, had reached a “record”, with 52,000 people having attempted it and 28,000 migrants having succeeded, according to data from the Place Beauvau communicated in January. “It should be noted that the rate of defeats is constantly rising with 61.39% of sea crossings prevented by the French internal security forces. [+ 4,2 points par rapport au taux de 2021] and 10,090 individuals [+ 65 %] arrested since the beginning of the year,” said the Interior Ministry on Monday.
A controversial agreement with Rwanda
Great Britain continues to toughen its tone on the subject and has in particular implemented an ultra-controversial strategy consisting of wanting to send asylum seekers who have arrived illegally on its soil to Rwanda, a country with which it has entered into an agreement. denounced by NGOs and human rights defenders.
Last Tuesday, a first charter flight which was to convey up to 130 migrants (including Iranians, Iraqis, Albanians or Syrians) to Kigali was prevented in extremis by a decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), that the British government has again described this weekend as “scandalous” and “opaque”.
