LONDON — The governments of France and Britain scrambled to respond Sunday to a mounting number of migrants attempting to cross the English Channel, a trend illustrated by six Iranian men who turned up on a beach in southeastern England.
The recent increase in migrants departing France in small boats with England as their destination led to an urgent telephone call Sunday between French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner and British Home Secretary Sajid Javid.
The two European countries “are coordinating to strengthen our actions to combat Channel crossings undertaken by certain irregular migrants on small boats, at peril of their lives,” Castaner wrote on Twitter.
Britain’s Home Office, which oversees immigration, said the two ministers agreed to an “enhanced action plan” and plan to meet again in January. The office did not provide details on what the plan entails.
The six Iranian men were discovered on a beach in Kent along with a rigid-hulled inflatable boat they are believed to have traveled in from France, British officials said. Border agents were called to the beach on Sunday morning."