Paris: The French Coast Guard rescued 400 illegal migrants trying to cross the English Channel illegally to reach Britain. French authorities stated that the rescue operation was part of a series of operations off the French coast last weekend, as the migrants attempted to cross to Britain on unsafe boats.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the largest rescue operations took place on Saturday, involving approximately 220 people in Boulogne-sur-Mer, Dieppe, and Calais in northern France. They noted that two Somali women died despite attempts to resuscitate their hearts, while five people suffered minor injuries, and several cases of hypothermia were recorded.

This brings the number of deaths during irregular crossings of the French-British border since the beginning of this year to at least 27, according to official data. Despite the ongoing reinforcements provided by France to prevent irregular crossings, with financial support from the United Kingdom, the pace of these operations has not slowed. Since the beginning of this year, more than 32,000 people have succeeded in reaching the British coasts on small boats, a record number.