French police put migrants at risk with aggressive tactics against small boats – POLITICO

The U.Okay. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pledged to “cease the boats” from crossing the Channel and stated he would pay thousands and thousands of kilos to France for surveillance and border controls to cease folks from touring.

French authorities have beforehand stated they gained’t intercept migrant boats going to the U.Okay. — regardless of requests from the British authorities — as a result of it contravened worldwide maritime legislation.

One search and rescue professional quoted by the Observer stated {that a} maneuver utilized by police — the place a vessel is seen heading rapidly in the direction of the dinghy, earlier than turning sharply to create waves — may trigger “a mass casualty occasion.”

“The water is deep sufficient to drown in,” the professional informed the paper. “I’ve seen this within the central Mediterranean many occasions, however that is the primary time I’ve ever seen something like this taking place within the Channel.”

Authorities within the north of France confirmed {that a} police boat had circled a dinghy in a bid to “dissuade passengers” from approaching the open sea, including: “It’s the one time we’ve been in a position to intercept a small boat utilizing this maneuver and it was a deterrent. All of the migrants had been recovered and the smugglers arrested.”