Twenty-six victims identified after fatal capsizing of boat in English Channel

Four women, a teenager and a seven-year-old girl are among those identified after the tragedy

A torn dinghy near the beach of Wimereux, on the northern coast of France, from where migrants leave to cross the English Channel. AFP

Soraya Ebrahimi

The Paris prosecutor said 26 people have been formally identified after the capsizing last month of a boat in the English Channel that cost the lives of at least 27 trying to reach Britain.

The dead included seven women, a teenager and a girl aged 7.

The identity of one migrant remains unknown, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said.

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The English Channel migrant crisis by numbers

Investigators confirmed the identity of 16 Iraqi Kurds, including four women, a 16-year-old and the girl.

Other victims included an Iranian Kurd, three Ethiopians including two women, a Somali woman, four Afghan men and an Egyptian man, Ms Beccuau said.

The adults ranged in age from 19 to 46.

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Their boat capsized on November 24 off the coast of northern France, in what French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin called the biggest migration tragedy on the dangerous crossing to Britain.

Ever-increasing numbers of people fleeing conflict or poverty in Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq, Eritrea and elsewhere are risking the perilous journey from France, hoping to win asylum or find better opportunities in the UK.

The crossings have tripled this year compared with 2020.

Migrants are brought ashore at Dungeness by RNLI Lifeboat members after crossing the Channel. Reuters

The past three years have seen a significant rise in attempted Channel crossings by migrants, despite the dangers. AFP

Migrants on board a Border Force rescue boat line up to disembark at Dover harbour after crossing the Channel. Reuters

A life jacket is left in the water after a group of more than 40 migrants got on an inflatable dinghy to leave the coast of northern France and cross the Channel. Reuters

Migrants are escorted by Border Force staff in Dungeness, after being brought ashore by an RNLI lifeboat. Reuters

A woman with a child is brought ashore safely. Reuters

Migrants walk along a British beach after being brought ashore by an RNLI lifeboat. Reuters

At least 27 migrants bound for Britain died on Wednesday when their boat sank in the English Channel. AP

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin speaks to the press in Calais, northern France, after the tragedy. AP

France's interior minister has called it the biggest tragedy involving migrants on the dangerous crossing to date. AP

A man wheels a gurney into a warehouse in Calais, where it is believed the bodies of migrants are being transported. PA

French police look at a map of the coast at Wimereux, in northern France. The stretch of beach is believed to be used by migrants aiming to cross the Channel. PA

A funeral van leaves the port of Calais. AFP

A group of people thought to be migrants are brought to Dover by the RNLI. PA

The tragedy prompted a new political crisis between Britain and France, which each accused the other of not doing enough to deter people from crossing the Channel.

European migration officials agreed to send a plane to monitor the shores of the English Channel for migrant activity, and pledged to work together more closely against migrant-smuggling networks.

Updated: December 14, 2021, 10:46 PM