UK Border Force Cutter 'Typhoon' carrying migrants, some of the first in 2024 to be picked up at sea attempting to cross the English Channel from France, as returns to the Marina in Dover southeast England, on Jan. 13, 2024. (Credit: Glyn Kirk/AFP)
A 14-year-old Syrian boy was among five people who died at the weekend trying to reach Britain from France in a small boat, French prosecutors said on Tuesday.
"One of the deceased victims is a 14-year-old minor of Syrian nationality," the investigators in the northern city of Lille told AFP.
The other four have yet to be identified, although prosecutors in Boulogne-sur-Mer, who initially led the probe, said on Sunday they were also young Syrian men.
All five died overnight from Saturday to Sunday near the French shore. A sixth is now in hospital.
The group was trying to board a small boat in freezing winter seas to try and cross the Channel to Britain.
It was the first fatal accident in a migrant crossing attempt this year, after 12 deaths in 2023 according to French maritime authorities.
Beyond the fatalities, French rescuers pulled 182 people from the sea on Saturday and Sunday, the Channel prefecture added.
The number of people crossing to Britain last year totaled almost 29,500, according to British interior ministry figures – down from the record of almost 45,800 in 2022.
A 14-year-old Syrian boy was among five people who died at the weekend trying to reach Britain from France in a small boat, French prosecutors said on Tuesday.
"One of the deceased victims is a 14-year-old minor of Syrian nationality," the investigators in the northern city of Lille told AFP.
The other four have yet to be...