French police circling migrant boat in English Channel

Footage has been shared online of what appears to be a French police vessel behaving in what has been described as an ‘aggressive’ manner towards a small migrant boat attempting to cross the English Channel. The video, obtained by journalism collaboration project Lighthouse Reports, shows the police boat rapidly circling the dinghy, creating large waves as it turns, which appear to flood the migrant boat. A former UK Border Force official has told reporters that, while the footage doesn’t ‘look good,’ it may have been an attempt to save the lives of those on the boat. ‘It would appear that the French are trying to force this boat back, because if they didn’t, there’s probably better than a 50/50 chance that it would sink,’ said Kevin Saunders, former Chief Immigration Officer. Amnesty International, meanwhile, has called for more to be done to prevent people having to undertake boat crossings in the first place, arguing that ‘The only way to save life is to remove the need for people to make dangerous journeys.’