Speaking before the UN General Assembly, UK Ambassador for the UN General Assembly, Archie Young, called for the expansion of the UN Security Council.

Currently, the Security Council is composed of 15 memebers, including 5 permanent members: China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms by the General Assembly. 

The UK is committed to implementing the Pact for the Future.

That's why we support expansion of non-permanent and permanent Security Council membership.

This includes permanent African representation and permanent seats for Brazil, Germany, India and Japan. pic.twitter.com/EH0sfILSbo

— UK at the UN (@UKUN_NewYork) November 11, 2024

Speaking before the UN General Assembly, UK Ambassador for the UN General Assembly, Archie Young, called for the expansion of the UN Security Council.

Currently, the Security Council is composed of 15 memebers, including 5 permanent members: China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms by the General Assembly. 

“We continue to support an expansion in both the permanent and non-permanent categories of membership to a total in the mid-twenties. We want to see permanent African representation, and permanent seats for Brazil, Germany, India and Japan” Young stated.

Whilst recognising the difficulties of reforming the UN Security Council, Young stressed the need for all members to “work together, in the spirit of compromise, to deliver the change we know is needed”.

Read the full statement here.

US President-elect Donald J Trump expected cabinet appointments will see a number of “China Hawks” in key roles such as the United Nations ambassador, National Security Adviser, and Secretary of State, signalling a shift in US foreign policy to refocus on the Indo-Pacific region.

Senator Marco Rubio is tapped to be appointed as the US Secretary of State and has long been a staunch opponent of China. Rubio’s achievements include introducing the US-India Defence Co-operation Act, which aims to deepen bilateral security ties in response to China's aggressive actions in the region. Rubio has also claimed that a second Trump administration would support Taiwan’s from Chinese encroachment.

Mike Waltz is expected to be appointed the National Security Adviser. Waltz has cultivated strong ties with India and is the co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional India Caucus. He has been an advocate for deeper defence and security co-operation between the US and India and warned against China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific.

These appointments come as Sri Lanka is attempting to revise its bankrupt economy and is heavily reliant on support from the IMF and China. In assuming the presidency, Anura Kumara Dissanayake made clear his administration would foster stronger ties with India however in meeting with India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, he was pushed to allow greater devolution to Tamils through the 13^th amendment. Dissanayake’s party, the JVP has long opposed any reforms which would enable greater devolution to Tamils.

As the US strengthens ties with India, Sri Lanka may come under greater focus with an expectation that it meets its pledged commitments.

Read more here

Somaliland, a self-declared republic in the Horn of Africa, held its fourth general election since its 1991 secession from Somalia on Wednesday, with global recognition of the state an issue for both leading candidates.

Despite establishing its own government, parliament, currency, and even issuing passports, Somaliland's independence remains unacknowledged globally. Somalia still claims Somaliland as part of its territory.

President Muse Bihi Abdi, who has led Somaliland since 2017, seeks re-election against opposition candidate Abdirahman Cirro. Core issues in this election include independence recognition and a territorial dispute over Las Anod, a contested region also claimed by Puntland—another Somali breakaway region that declared autonomy in 1998.

^{Photograph: Somailand activists in London, 2013. Alisdare Hickson.}

Somaliland, a self-declared republic in the Horn of Africa, held its fourth general election since its 1991 secession from Somalia on Wednesday, with global recognition of the state an issue for both leading candidates.

Despite establishing its own government, parliament, currency, and even issuing passports, Somaliland's independence remains unacknowledged globally. Somalia still claims Somaliland as part of its territory.

President Muse Bihi Abdi, who has led Somaliland since 2017, seeks re-election against opposition candidate Abdirahman Cirro. Core issues in this election include independence recognition and a territorial dispute over Las Anod, a contested region also claimed by Puntland—another Somali breakaway region that declared autonomy in 1998.

The election comes after a landmark deal announced with Ethiopia earlier this year. In January, President Bihi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed signed a “port-for-recognition” memorandum, proposing Ethiopian use of Somaliland's Berbera port on the Red Sea. Ethiopia, Africa's largest landlocked country, currently relies almost entirely on Djibouti for maritime access, with Djibouti handling over 90% of its sea trade.

The agreement outlines that Ethiopia will conduct an “in-depth assessment” of Somaliland’s quest for official recognition. While Ethiopia has stopped short of promising recognition, officials in Somaliland view the deal as a potential pathway toward legitimacy on the world stage.

The port deal sparked diplomatic friction between Ethiopia and Somalia, whose government views it as an encroachment on Somali sovereignty. Somalia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the agreement, calling it an “outrageous” violation, with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud warning parliament that Somalia would not tolerate any infringement on its territorial integrity. In response, Somalia expelled Ethiopian diplomats, and tensions between the two countries escalated.

At the United Nations General Assembly in October, Somali Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre called for international condemnation of Ethiopia's actions, alleging that Ethiopia sought to “annex parts of Somalia” under the pretext of securing sea access.

Both Somaliland’s presidential candidates support the agreement with Ethiopia, recognizing its strategic importance. According to Somaliland’s representative to Kenya, Mohamed A. Mohamoud, the government plans to finalize the port deal post-election, regardless of who wins.

Read more from Al Jazeera here and Reuters here.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has condemned Israel's actions in Gaza as “genocide,” at a summit of Arab and Muslim leaders organized to press for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

His comments represent one of the strongest denunciations of Israel by a Saudi official since the current Israeli offensive began.

Addressing the summit, Prince Mohammed declared, “The kingdom renews its condemnation and categorical rejection of the genocide committed by Israel against the brotherly Palestinian people, which has claimed the lives of 150,000 martyrs, wounded and missing, most of whom are women and children.” He added that Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank, especially its attacks near Al-Aqsa Mosque and Palestinian Authority territories, severely undermine regional peace efforts and Palestinian rights.

In a move reflecting warming relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Prince Mohammed also warned Israel against any attacks on Iranian territory.

The crown prince criticized not only the situation in Gaza but also Israel’s attacks on Lebanon and Iran, stating that Israel must “respect the sovereignty of the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran and not to violate its lands.”

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan Al-Saud also called the situation in Gaza a “failing of the international community,” accusing Israel of causing mass starvation. He argued that the international community had failed to “put an end to Israel’s aggression.”

This summit comes at a time of renewed dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Iran, rivals who severed diplomatic ties in 2016. It also reflects the country’s changing stance on Palestinian armed movements, including Hamas, which was previously blacklisted as a ‘terror’ group. Saudi Arabia recently revoked the broadcasting license of MBC, a Saudi-owned news channel, after it referred to Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as a “terrorist”.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's top military official, Fayyad al-Ruwaili, travelled to Tehran for talks with Iranian officials, just weeks after joint exercises in the Sea of Oman.

Leaders from Egypt, Syria, Turkey, and the Palestinian Authority echoed Saudi Arabia’s calls for an end to the violence. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi pledged to resist any plans to make Gaza uninhabitable, while Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called for “an executive plan” to halt Israel’s actions. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned what he described as Israel's “annihilation” of Palestinians, urging Arab and Muslim nations to maintain coordinated pressure against “genocide in Palestine.”

See more from the Times of Israel here, and the Middle East Eye here.

The police in Mozambique have been accused of killing at least 18 unarmed bystanders following protests against the recent presidential election result.

The official result from the general election held on the 9th October was a landslide victory for the leading party Fremlino with 70.7% of the vote. This meant that the party, which had been in power since Mozambique's independence in 1975, would remain incumbent. Another political party, Optimist Party for the Development of Mozambique (PODEMOS), had submitted documentation in support of a formal legal challenge to the election result. PODEMOS claims it had won 53% of the vote, accusing the result of being manipulated, and provided over 300kg of paperwork in dispute.

Image from The Guardian

The police in Mozambique have been accused of killing at least 18 unarmed bystanders following protests against the recent presidential election result.

The official result from the general election held on the 9th October was a landslide victory for the leading party Fremlino with 70.7% of the vote. This meant that the party, which had been in power since Mozambique's independence in 1975, would remain incumbent. Another political party, Optimist Party for the Development of Mozambique (PODEMOS), had submitted documentation in support of a formal legal challenge to the election result. PODEMOS claims it had won 53% of the vote, accusing the result of being manipulated, and provided over 300kg of paperwork in dispute.

Prior to the elections, other organisations had accused Fremlino of registering over 900,000 fake voters. EU election observers, witnessing electoral processes, had also reported Mozambique of having “irregularities during counting and unjustified alteration of election results”.

On the 19th October 2024, lawyer Elvino Dias and PODEMOS official Paulo Guambe were shot dead by unknown gunmen. Human rights researchers stated that the shootings fit a pattern of opposition politicians, journalists, activists and lawyers being killed, without anyone being brought to justice.

Since the 24th of October, the Human Rights Watch has reported at least 18 people to have been killed due to police violence. The police have been reportedly firing directly into crowds of protesters.

As a result of the civil upheaval and violence, South Africa has closed one of its busiest border crossings with its neighbouring country Mozambique due to safety concerns.

Internet and social media remain restricted in Mozambique, and the Defence Minister has threatened to deploy the army ahead of planned protests tomorrow, Thursday 7th November.

Read more here

Donald Trump has been declared the winner of the 2024 US presidential election. The Republican candidate beat Kamala Harris of the Democratic party. World leaders have begun sending in their congratulations.

^{Photograph: Gage Skidmore}

Donald Trump has been declared the winner of the 2024 US presidential election. The Republican candidate beat Kamala Harris of the Democratic party. World leaders have begun sending in their congratulations.

The result will see Trump, a former president who was in the White House from 2017 until 2021, once again return to office. J D Vance will become vice president.

World leaders have already begun congratulating Trump on his victory. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said "I look forward to working with you in the years ahead".

“As the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise,” he added. “From growth and security to innovation and tech, I know that the UK-US special relationship will continue to prosper on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come.”

“The UK has no greater friend than the US, with the special relationship being cherished on both sides of the Atlantic for more than 80 years,” said UK foreign secretary David Lammy in his congratulatory message to Trump.

Amongst the first to congratulate the US President-elect was Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “Your historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America," he said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent his “heartiest congratulations” to Trump, calling him “my friend”. “As you build on the successes of your previous term, I look forward to renewing our collaboration to further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership. Together, let’s work for the betterment of our people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity.”

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Trump’s victory “impressive,” and spoke of his meeting with the president-elect in September. “We discussed in detail the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership, the Victory Plan, and ways to put an end to Russian aggression against Ukraine,” he said.

“I appreciate President Trump’s commitment to the “peace through strength” approach in global affairs. This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer. I am hopeful that we will put it into action together. We look forward to an era of a strong United States of America under President Trump’s decisive leadership. We rely on continued strong bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States.”

Speaking in Moroccan parliament, French President Emmanuel Macron has sparked outrage by recognising Morocco’s claim over the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

In his address, Macron claimed French companies "will support the development" of Western Sahara, whose "present and future" belong under "Moroccan sovereignty". He further pledged investment in the region.

His statement follows a decisive shift in France’s foreign policy which had previously been ambiguous in addressing the demand for self-determination for West Sahara. In July, Macron pivoted France’s position to support Morocco’s claim of sovereignty over the region.

In a letter shared Tuesday by the Moroccan royal office, Macron wrote that “autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the framework within which this issue shall be resolved” and described support from Paris for the plan as “clear and unwavering.”

West Saraha was previously a Spanish colony and is largely controlled by Morocco however the Algerian-backed Polisario Front has campaigned for independence since prior to Spain’s withdrawal in 1975.

The United Nations views Western Sahara as a "non-self-governing territory" and has had a peacekeeping mission there since 1991 whose stated aim is to organise a referendum on the territory's future. However, Morocco’s government has rejected the possibility of a referendum.

In response to Marcon’s endorsement of Morocco’s plan in July, Algeria withdrew its ambassador to Paris and has yet to send a replacement. Algeria has also cut diplomatic ties with Morocco in 2021.

Responding to the letter shared by Moroccan officials, the Algerian government responded claiming that “the French government is trampling international law,”  and accused France of “setting itself apart from the patient and persistent efforts of the United Nations to decolonize Western Sahara.”

Read more here and here.

Sudanese militia have been accused of killings, sexual violence, looting and arson during eight days of attacks on villages south of Sudan’s capital, Khartoum.

The UN said there were reports of “gross human rights abuses” linked to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group, which has escalated attacks on civilians in el-Gezira state since the area’s key commander was reported to have defected to government forces on 20 October.

The Sudan Doctors Network said on Saturday that 124 people had been killed and dozens wounded after an attack on the village of al-Suhra.

The UN has reported that nearly 47,000 people have been displaced from their homes over the past week, mostly to neighbouring states, and at least 30 villages have been attacked.

The RSF has suffered key battlefield losses around Khartoum to the Sudanese army. Both sides have been fighting for control of Sudan since April 2023, causing the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis.

Famine was declared in the Zamzam displacement camp in Darfur in August, with warnings that extreme hunger would spread if the warring parties did not allow aid in.

The UN’s humanitarian coordinator in Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, said the violence echoed the RSF’s actions in the western region of Darfur, where it has control and has been targeting ethnic groups.

“I am shocked and deeply appalled that human rights violations of the kind witnessed in Darfur last year – such as rape, targeted attacks, sexual violence and mass killings – are being repeated in el-Gezira state. These are atrocious crimes,” said Nkweta-Salami.

The conflict in Sudan broke out in April 2023 after a fall out between the commanders of the RSF and military, Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan respectively.

The two had jointly staged a coup in 2021, derailing Sudan's transition to democracy, but then got involved in a vicious power struggle.

The two leaders have refused to sign a peace deal, despite efforts by the US and Saudi Arabia to broker an end to the conflict.

The Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, on Wednesday officially recognised the mass deportation of the Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union in 1944 as an act of genocide.

The statement passed in the 101-seat body with 83 votes in favor and eight abstentions. The decision comes at a time of renewed focus on Russia’s ongoing policies in Crimea, which the Riigikogu linked to Soviet-era atrocities. The statement

strongly condemn[s] the extermination and the mass deportation of the Crimean Tatars from their homeland on the Crimean Peninsula to the territories of Central Asia, which was planned and carried out by the totalitarian Soviet regime in 1944, and which resulted in the death of tens of thousands of Crimean Tatars as well as the entire nation losing their homeland and being subjected to brutal Russification for decades.

The Riigikogu drew parallels between the Soviet deportation and the current Russian occupation of Crimea, which began in 2014. It charges that “the Russian Federation is continuing the policy of genocide pursued by the Soviet Union… with the aim of destroying the identity and erasing the historical and cultural heritage of the Crimean Tatars.”

In 1944, approximately 200,000 Crimean Tatars were forcibly deported from their homeland by the Soviet regime under accusations of collaboration with Nazi forces during World War II. Tens of thousands died due to harsh conditions during the journey and subsequent resettlement in Central Asia. This experience is considered a historical and cultural disaster for the Crimean Tatar people, who were not allowed to return to their homeland until 1989.

The vote by the Riigikogu follows similar moves by other countries. Ukraine was the first to recognize the deportation as genocide in 2015, followed by Latvia and Lithuania in 2019, Canada in 2022, and Poland earlier this year.

A former doctor goes on trial on Tuesday accused of genocide in Rwanda, three decades after the massacre of the African country's Tutsi population by the Hutu majority.

Eugene Rwamucyo, 65, is accused of aiding his country's authorities in disseminating anti-Tutsi propaganda and of participating in mass murder in an attempt to destroy evidence of genocide

The former doctor, who practised medicine in France and Belgium after leaving his country, has been charged with genocide, complicity in genocide, crimes against humanity, complicity in crimes against humanity and conspiring to prepare those crimes.

Rwamucyo's trial is the eighth in France relating to the genocide in 1994, when an estimated 800,000 people – mostly ethnic Tutsis – were slaughtered.

Following an international arrest warrant issued by Rwanda, Rwamucyo was detained in May 2010 by French police following a tip-off by his colleagues in the Maubeuge hospital where he was working at the time.

Angélique Uwamahoro was 13 at the time of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. She said she had to walk through the bodies to survive.

Three decades later, she told her story on Tuesday at a Paris court where a former doctor is on trial for his alleged role in the mass killings of more than 800,000 minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus who tried to protect them.

The dead included some of Uwamahoro's family members. She said she came to court to “seek justice for my people, who died for who they were.”

If found guilty in the trial that started this month and is scheduled to end next week, Rwamucyo is facing life in prison.

Several witnesses traveled to Paris and gave graphic descriptions of the killings in the Butare region where Rwamucyo was at the time.

On Monday, another survivor, Immaculée Mukampunga, described attacks on Tutsi civilians who had gathered at a seminary. “They attacked us, using the same method: first the machete on top of the head, then the throat, then the ankles," she said.

She said she hid her children, aged 5 and 6, by covering them with bodies.

"I put blood on me, on the children too, so that they would believe we were dead,” she said.

Antoine Ndorimana was 9 when the genocide started. He told the court he had been hiding with his family in a church when they were found.

“Those with machetes and clubs started hitting people. Some slit their ankles, others their throat ... And then they stayed to see if anyone was still alive,” he said. He had been struck by a club but tried to stay still.

The next day, Ndorimana saw men putting bodies and wounded people in mass graves. He said he was almost buried alive in one but managed to escape.

Around 60 witnesses are expected to testify during the trial, which is scheduled to run until October 29.

Read more here

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal issued an arrest warrant last week for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for “crimes against humanity” stemming from mass killings during protests against her government earlier this year. 

_{Photo by Mohammad Ponir Hossain}

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal issued an arrest warrant last week for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for “crimes against humanity” stemming from mass killings during protests against her government earlier this year. 

The protests originated in response to a decision by Bangladesh’s Supreme Court, which saw the revival of a quota system that awarded 56% of civil service jobs to the descendants of those who fought in Bangladesh’s independence war. Whilst the decision was later scrapped, the protests morphed to encompass a wide range of issues, with an estimated more than 1,000 demonstrators killed. 

The protests ultimately forced Hasina to resign and flee to India. However, the warrant now orders Hasina’s arrest and attendance in Bangladesh court on 18 November. 

Under Hasina, Bangladesh sought deeper ties with Sri Lanka. In June she met with Sri Lanka’s Presiden to discuss deepening investments in tourism and in the aftermath of Sri Lanka’s economic crisis Bangladesh provided the country a currency swap of $200 million. In 2022, Bangladesh’s Foreign Minsitry also opposed a UN resolution on Sri Lanka, which sought to advance accountability, by claiming it was “politically motivated”.

At least four people have been killed and dozens of others wounded in an Israeli air attack on a hospital complex in central Gaza where displaced Palestinians sought shelter from Israel’s assault on the besieged territory.

Israeli forces have regularly attacked medical facilities in Gaza since the assault began more than a year ago. In recent months, it has repeatedly struck crowded shelters and tent sites, alleging armed groups were using them.

“What happened was that we woke up to smoke, flames, fire and burning pieces falling on the tents from every direction. The explosions terrified us in our tents and outside where we live behind Al-Aqsa Hospital,” Om Ahmad Radi, a survivor at the scene, told Al Jazeera.

Volunteer surgeon Mohammad Tahir said they were dealing with victims with burns on 60 to 80 percent of their bodies – many of whom won’t survive.

“Patients with significant high percentage burns – unfortunately, their fate is sealed. They won’t even make it to the ICU. They will die,” he told Al Jazeera from outside the hospital.

“It’s a horror show here. Honestly, sometimes I feel like this is not real life, that this can go on, and this degree of suffering is allowed to happen in this world.”

Hospital records showed that four people were killed and 40 wounded, The Associated Press news agency reported. Twenty-five people were transferred to the Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza after suffering severe burns, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.

Gaza’s Media Office said it was the seventh time this year that Israel has hit the grounds of Al-Aqsa Hospital and the third in the past couple of weeks, killing Palestinians who were forced to flee their homes.

Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Deir el-Balah, said more than 20 tents were destroyed in the attack.

“There were many people inside the tents as the fire spread, who could not be saved,” he said. “We are looking at a large number [of deaths] as these tents are close to each other, back-to-back, and set up in a small space inside the hospital courtyard.”

Last week, a United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry (CoI) released a report which found Israel perpetrating “a concerted policy to destroy Gaza’s healthcare system”.

Read more here

A senior Palestinian diplomat to the United Nations has sounded alarm over Israel’s ongoing siege of northern Gaza, in which hundreds of Palestinians have been killed over the last week and hundreds of thousands of civilian residents are either trapped or ordered to flee amid intense bombardment.

As the Israeli military siege in the Jabalia refugee camp and its vicinity entered its 10th day on Sunday, Palestinian authorities said at least 200 people have been killed since the Israeli operations began earlier this month.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said civilians must "be protected at all times".

"The secretary-general condemns the large number of civilian casualties in the intensifying Israeli campaign in northern Gaza, including its schools, displacing sheltered Palestinian civilians," he told reporters at a news conference in New York.

The offensive had also forced the closure of water wells, bakeries, medical points and shelters, as well as the suspension of other humanitarian services, including malnutrition treatment, it warned.

The UN said it had not been allowed to deliver essential supplies, including food, since 1 October, with two nearby border crossings closed and no deliveries allowed from the south.

Hussam Abu Safiyeh, director of Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, said no food or medicine had reached the hospital for 10 days, depleting its already meagre supplies and forcing it to scale down medical services.

“There’s a full siege on the north of Gaza. Medicine, treatments, food — everything is prevented from reaching us,” he said. “In the coming days, if no solution arises, we will face another catastrophe: famine.” 

The hospital had received an evacuation order two days ago, he added. But the doctors did not leave and new patients kept arriving, with the intensified bombing leaving the hospital’s wards overflowing.

“There are many people still in the north, still needing medical treatment. It’s very difficult to evacuate such a hospital that provides humanitarian services,” he said. “No one is going to leave. No safe place exists in Gaza for people to go to anyway.” 

Read more here

A two-year-old child and three others died in an attempt to cross the English Channel last week, shortly after G7 members had agreed a crackdown on migrant smuggling networks. 

There were waves of panic in an overcrowded dinghy carrying about 90 migrants in the early hours. Eyewitnesses said the vessel suffered multiple motor failures, leading the passengers to feel unstable and begin trampling over one another. In the chaos some went overboard but were later rescued or managed to clamber ashore. A similar panic was seen a short time later on another small boat thought to be carrying 83 migrants, with three bodies being found at the base of the boat once it was abandoned. Jacques Billant, the Prefect of the Pas-de-Calais, said the victims were probably “crushed, suffocated and drowned” in the water at the base of the boat. 

According to French Blue Radio, a migrant on the first dinghy had called at 7 am, saying that they found a dead child on the boat and warning that more lives were at risk if there was no intervention. Rescue vessel Abeille Normandy was sent in response.

The tragedy occurred hours after the UK Home Office announced on Friday that G7 countries had agreed on a new international plan to crack down on criminal gangs responsible for smuggling illegal migrants to the UK. Figures from the Home Office show on 4 October 395 migrants arrived in the UK in small boats, with more than 25,000 people crossing the channel in 2024 so far. At least 194 migrants have died attempting the crossing from 2018 to September 2024, according to estimates from the International Organisation for Migration. 

French and British officials issued statements condemning the migrant smugglers, holding them accountable for the deaths. France’s interior minister, Bruno Retailleau, posted on X: “This appalling tragedy should make us all aware of the catastrophe that is unfolding. The people smugglers have the blood of these people on their hands and our government will intensify the fight against these mafias who enrich themselves by organising these crossings of death.”

The UK Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, also posted on X: “It is appalling that more lives have been lost in the Channel today, including a young child, as criminal smuggler gangs continue to organise these dangerous boat crossings. The gangs do not care if people live or die – this is a terrible trade in lives.”

The G7 new plan to combat organised migrant traffickers continues the UK’s effort to reduce illegal migration, following the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. The legislation tightened laws around illegal entry where people crossing the English Channel in small boats (e.g., dinghies) without authorisation are treated as criminals. Illegal entrants were dealt with through administrative immigration processes prior to the act.