ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Two migrants died overnight attempting to cross the English Channel from northern France, as anti-migrant protesters gathered in a southern England port city after nearly 150 people arrived by small boat, French and British authorities said Monday.
The two men, one in his thirties and the other in his forties, died during an attempted crossing off Berck in France’s Pas-de-Calais region, the local prefecture told AFP. Two women suffering burns over large parts of their bodies were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
French media reported that the attempted crossing involved around 120 people. Prosecutors in Boulogne-sur-Mer have opened an investigation into the circumstances of the deaths.
The deaths came hours after 149 migrants reached the shore in Gosport, Hampshire, after crossing the Channel in a separate small boat. An anti-migrant protest near Haslar Marina broke out as a result. The passengers were transferred from their inflatable dinghy to two Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) vessels in British waters before being taken ashore late Sunday.
The incidents highlight the continuing human and political tensions surrounding Channel crossings, which have fallen sharply this year but remain one of the most contentious migration issues in the UK. The route continues to claim lives despite increased British and French efforts to disrupt smuggling networks and prevent departures.
Around 100 protesters gathered near the marina after reports spread that the migrant boat would arrive there. Some demonstrators surrounded police vehicles and chanted “shame on you” and “deport the lot,” while flares were set off and some scuffles with police were reported, the BBC said.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said officers were deployed to “facilitate peaceful protest” and assist other agencies responding to the Channel crossing. Police imposed restrictions under public order legislation, including a designated protest area, powers against face coverings and a dispersal order covering Gosport.
The British Home Office said the 149 migrants would be transferred to short-term holding facilities in Kent for health, security and biometric checks.
The protest was the second such gathering in Gosport in recent weeks. Six people were arrested during a September 22 protest sparked by reports that another migrant boat could be brought ashore in the town. Three were later charged with offenses including assaulting emergency workers and a racially aggravated public order offense.
Monday’s deaths increase the number of migrants who have died at the channel to at least 24 since the beginning of 2026, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Just a week earlier, two women and a 10-year-old child died aboard an overcrowded boat carrying more than 100 people off Pas-de-Calais.
Small-boat crossings have declined this year. Britain’s National Crime Agency said arrivals fell by 41 percent in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period last year, attributing the drop to increased law enforcement activity, reduced demand and disruption of equipment supply chains used by smugglers.
Last month, British authorities detected 38,086 arrivals through irregular entry routes in the year ending June, 88 percent of them by small boat.
Official Home Office figures show 33,374 people arrived in the UK by small boat in the year ending June 2026, down 23 percent from 43,309 during the previous 12-month period.
The Channel route has also claimed the lives of migrants from the Kurdistan Region. In November 2021, 27 bodies were recovered after a migrant boat sank while crossing from France, while four people remained missing. Most of those on board were Iraqi Kurds. A French court last week sentenced 13 people for their roles in organizing the fatal crossing.
