A migrant woman is feared dead after allegedly being deliberately dumped into the Canal.
The woman was reportedly thrown into the water from a small, overcrowded boat attempting to cross from France on Tuesday morning.
Forty-eight hours later and there is no sign of her, police fear she may have drowned.
The alleged attack is believed to have occurred at the Clipon pier in Loon-Plage in northern France, about 30 miles east of Calais, according to local media.
On Tuesday alone, more than 500 migrants arrived in the UK as border forces struggle to manage the crisis; the total now stands at 20,000 by 2024.
File photo. Migrants wade through the water to board a smugglers’ boat off the northern coast of France
File. Nearly 20,000 people have arrived in the UK on small boats since the start of the year
French emergency services have launched a major search and rescue operation to find the woman “thrown” from a small boat, but she is still missing.
A police spokesman said the migrants who remained in the area were uncooperative with the investigation when they arrived.
He said: ‘Authorities do not know whether she managed to return to the dock on her own or whether she drowned.
‘Researchers are leaning towards the latter option.’
French border police have launched an investigation and urged witnesses to come forward.
Authorities came under fire last week when video showed border guards ramming an overloaded migrant boat with their speedboat as it left Calais.
The migrants managed to wade less than 100 feet out to sea before being spotted by a French coast guard unit in a speedboat on August 19.
The speedboat, with flashing blue and red lights, passed close to the boat a couple of times, warning it to turn around and head for shore.
As the boat continued its journey, the coast guard vessel approached and appeared to ram the heavily overloaded migrant boat.
Migrant crossings have increased over the summer, in line with annual trends. Last year, a total of 29,437 people arrived in the UK on small boats, compared to 45,755 in 2022.
In the year ending June 2024, Afghans were the main nationality crossing the channel, followed by Iranians, Vietnamese and Turks.
Many of those arriving are fleeing war or persecution from oppressive regimes, but they take significant risks in undertaking the perilous journey.
Some 25 migrants have died trying to cross the Channel this year, according to French officials.
With blue and red lights flashing, the speedboat passed close to the boat a couple of times, warning it to turn around and head for shore.
As the boat continued on its way, the coast guard vessel approached and appeared to ram the heavily overloaded migrant boat.
A Home Office spokesman said last week: “We all want to see an end to dangerous small boat crossings, which are undermining border security and putting lives at risk.
‘The new Government is taking steps to strengthen our border security, establishing a new Border Security Command which will bring together our intelligence and law enforcement agencies, equipped with new anti-terrorist-style powers and hundreds of people stationed in the UK and abroad, to crush criminal smuggling gangs who make millions in profits.’
The Labor Party is said to be in the final stages of recruiting a new chief to lead the Border Security Command.
They will report directly to the Home Secretary and receive up to £200,000 to provide “strategic direction for work across all agencies, bringing together the work of the National Crime Agency (NCA), intelligence agencies, the police, Immigration Service and Border Force”.
Around 100 people have already moved into the command headquarters based at the Ministry of the Interior, establishing the mission and strategic direction of the new command.