At least five migrants have been killed while attempting to cross the English Channel from France to Britain, a French police source confirmed Tuesday.
The French source, who did not wish to be named, said the circumstances of their death around the beach in the town of Wimereux, close to the resort of Boulogne-sur-Mer, were not immediately clear.
The latest death comes just hours after a controversial U.K. government plans to deport asylum-seekers to Rwanda cleared a final hurdle in parliament Monday.
It is just the latest such tragedy as migrants, many from the Middle East and Africa, attempt the perilous sea crossing for what they hope will be a better future in Britain.
On March 3, a 7-year-old girl drowned in the capsizing of an overcrowded migrant boat in the Aa canal, around 30 kilometers (19 miles) from France's northern coast.
People attempting to reach Britain have increasingly been boarding boats on inland waterways to avoid stepped-up patrols on the French coast.
In late February, a 22-year-old Turkish man died and two more people went missing in the Channel off Calais.
In January, five people including a 14-year-old Syrian died in Wimereux as they waded through chilly seawater to reach a boat off the coast.
At least 12 migrants lost their lives last year trying to cross the Channel, French authorities say.
British officials processed 5,373 migrants landing on the shores of southeast England in the first three months of this year after crossing the Channel in small vessels, the British Interior Ministry says.
The U.K., in the meanwhile, readied Tuesday to start detaining migrants within days for deportation to Rwanda after the controversial plan got parliament's approval, sparking outrage from the U.N. and rights groups.
The new legislation – a flagship policy of the Conservative government that aims to curb irregular cross-Channel migration from northern France – cleared its final hurdle after a marathon late-night parliamentary tussle Monday.
Under the U.K. scheme, undocumented asylum-seekers arriving in Britain would be sent to Rwanda, where their asylum claims would be examined and, if approved, would allow them to stay in Rwanda.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says deportations are expected to begin within 10-12 weeks, with migrants identified for the first flight due to be detained and held from as early as this week.
Rwanda said it was "pleased" to see the bill passed and was looking forward to "welcoming those relocated to Rwanda."
But the heads of the U.N. agencies for refugees and human rights warned it threatened the rule of law and set "a perilous precedent globally."
They urged the U.K. to instead "take practical measures to address irregular flows of refugees and migrants, based on international cooperation and respect for international human rights law."
The Council of Europe also called for the new law to be scrapped and said it raised "major issues about the human rights of asylum seekers and the rule of law more generally."
