French Interi­or Minist­ry data shows more than 500 tried to cross the Englis­h Channe­l in 2018PARIS: France will tighten security at its northern ports and increase surveillance along beaches to counter the rise in migrants trying to cross the English Channel to reach Britain, its interior minister said on Friday. More than 500 migrants, most Iranian, tried to cross the narrow stretch of water, one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, during 2018, French Interior Ministry data showed. Some 276 migrants reached British waters while the French authorities thwarted the attempts of another 228. Leader of France’s ‘yellow vests’ arrestedThe numbers trying to reach Britain increased sharply last year compared with 2017 but remained a tiny fraction of those regularly attempting to reach European Union territory by crossing the Mediterranean from northern Africa and Turkey. British Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said HMS Mersey, a Royal Navy offshore patrol vessel, was deploying to the Dover-Calais straits to stem the flow of migrants.

Source: The Express Tribune January 05, 2019 10:41 UTC