Devastated father of first victim of Channel tragedy slams France

Devastated father of first victim of Channel tragedy slams France
Devastated father of first victim of Channel tragedy slams France

The devastated father of the first confirmed victim of the Channel migrant tragedy has accused France of allowing 'butchers' to send innocent people to their deaths.

Baran Nouri Hamadamin, 24, was identified as one of 27 migrants who drowned after a flimsy boat capsized six miles off Calais during stormy weather.

The newly engaged student had travelled through Germany and France to join her fiancé in the UK, paying human-traffickers to take her across the Narrow Sea.

She had been sending Snapchat messages to her fiancé Karzan Asaad before the dinghy began to lose air. As he tracked her phone GPS, the signal went dead just over four hours into the journey – and she tried to reassure him in her last message that rescuers were on the way. Her body was tragically identified by a relative at a French morgue yesterday.

Speaking from his home in Soran, in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq, her father Nuri Mohammed Mohammed Amin urged President Emmanuel Macron to stop allowing people-smugglers to treat people 'like animals'.

'This is a tragedy not only for me but for the whole of Kurdistan and the world,' he said. 'I ask the French government to tighten their borders and stop those butchers. They are not smugglers, they are mafias. This is my only request.

'Those boats that they are using are not made for that purpose. They treat those poor people like animals. Where were her human rights? It is the role of the French government to have a strict procedure to stop those butchers to avoid further tragedies. And I hope our people stop even thinking about migrating using similar ways.'

Friends of the migrants who drowned in the Channel this week said yesterday that people-smugglers threatened to show them unless they boarded the overcrowded dinghy.

Up to 50 people were supposed to board two boats ahead of the fatal voyage – but one vessel suffered engine trouble, those stuck in camps in France claimed. Rather than curtail the trip that would have netted them tens of thousands of pounds, the gun-toting gang corralled the migrants into one boat, it was said.

The chilling details emerged as more were named among those feared drowned in Wednesday's tragedy off the coast of Calais.

It comes as President Macron's extraordinary outburst at Boris Johnson yesterday over the deaths of 27 migrants in the Channel could lead to more lives lost.

Smugglers threatened to shoot migrants, including bride-to-be Mariam Nouri Dargalayi (pictured with fiance), unless they boarded the doomed dinghy that went down in Channel

Smugglers threatened to shoot migrants, including bride-to-be Mariam Nouri Dargalayi (pictured with fiance), unless they boarded the doomed dinghy that went down in Channel

Policemen inspect the beach near Wimereux, France on November 25, 2021

Policemen inspect the beach near Wimereux, France on November 25, 2021

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during the press conference with Prime Minister Mario Draghi at Villa Madama in Rome

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during the press conference with Prime Minister Mario Draghi at Villa Madama in Rome

This is the first picture of the flimsy and dangerous dinghy that sank off Calais, killing 27 people

This is the first picture of the flimsy and dangerous dinghy that sank off Calais, killing 27 people

Up to 50 people were supposed to board two boats ahead of the fatal voyage – but one vessel suffered engine trouble, those stuck in camps in France claimed. Rather than curtail the trip that would have netted them tens of thousands of pounds, the gun-toting gang corralled the migrants into one boat, it was said

Up to 50 people were supposed to board two boats ahead of the fatal voyage – but one vessel suffered engine trouble, those stuck in camps in France claimed. Rather than curtail the trip that would have netted them tens of thousands of pounds, the gun-toting gang corralled the migrants into one boat, it was said

The new arrivals bring the total number to have made it to the UK this month to more than 6,000, exceeding the previous record of 3,879 in September. This year's total is now a record-breaking 25,772

The new arrivals bring the total number to have made it to the UK this month to more than 6,000, exceeding the previous record of 3,879 in September. This year's total is now a record-breaking 25,772

How many UK-bound migrants have died trying to cross the Channel this year? 

Before this week's accident, a total of seven people were confirmed to have died trying to make it across the Channel to Britain this year. 

A further seven migrants were missing, presumed drowned, after various incidents this year.

March 2021: One migrant missing and feared drowned after the boat he was in trying to reach the UK capsized.

August 2021: At least two migrants drowned off the coast of the UK while another died after being airlifted to hospital as part of a huge air and sea rescue operation after a boat carrying around 40 people began taking on water. 

October 2021: Three Somali migrants feared to have drowned after falling overboard while trying to reach Britain. A further four people, including two children, died while crossing. 

November 2021: One migrant dies in day of record 853 crossings in early November. Yesterday, at least 27 migrants died off the coast of Calais in the deadliest ever incident in the Channel.

 

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In an extraordinary fit of pique, the French government withdrew Home Secretary Priti Patel's invitation to a crisis meeting tomorrow after the Prime Minister published a five-point action plan.

President Macron accused the Prime Minister of breaking protocol by tweeting an open letter to him after three children, seven women and 17 men died when their dinghy sank off Calais on Wednesday.

Mr Asad, who is said to have British citizenship and is now working as a barber in Bournemouth, said: 'I am in a very bad state. It is very sad for me, and for everyone. I had continuous contact with my wife and I was tracking her live with GPS. After four hours and 18 minutes, from the moment she went into that boat, I think they were in the middle of the sea, then I lost her.

'She was a happy person. Someone went to see her body in France, so I know it's her.'

Last night a cousin in Iraq, Krmanj Ezzat, said: 'Her mother and father are totally devastated. The situation is just awful. She was a woman in the prime of her life. It's a total tragedy and the whole family are in shock.

'I understand why so many people are leaving for a better life, but this is not the correct path. It's the route of death. Please don't take this route, it's not worth it. Baran chose a very difficult way to come to Britain and you see what happened to her. Karzan was waiting for her in England. She was learning English, she was very smart.'

Mr Ezzat fears four more family members were also on the boat. Yesterday, the family of Deniz Ahmed Mohammed, a 27-year-old Kurd, said he left them a final voicemail saying: 'Just pray for us.'

Childhood friends Harem Pirot and Shakar Ali, from the town of Ranya, northern Iraq, were also among the feared victims.

Their friend Sanger Ahmed said: 'I spoke to them on the phone on the morning they went. They were saying it was only a tiny boat and people smugglers might shoot people if they tried to back out. They suspected the boat was overcrowded with around 50 people on it. I think they could have been forced on the boat.

'People smugglers are armed and don't care if the boat is overloaded or if the weather is bad. We have all heard the stories about people being threatened with a gun unless they get on.'

Best friends Shakar Ali, 25, (pictured) and Harem Pirot, 23, who grew up as neighbours in Iraq and set off together to find a new life in the UK are believed to have been on board the dinghy that sank on Wednesday, killing 27 migrants on board.

Best friends Shakar Ali, 25, and Harem Pirot, 23 (pictured), who grew up as neighbours in Iraq and set off together to find a new life in the UK are believed to have been on board the dinghy that sank on Wednesday, killing 27 migrants on board.

Shakar Ali, 25, (left) and Harem Pirot, 23, (right) who grew up as neighbours in Iraq and set off together to find a new life in the UK are believed to have been on board the dinghy

Friend of Shakar and Harem Sanger Ahmed also told of his fears for two other Iraqi Kurds – Hassan, in his late twenties, and Twana Muhammad (pictured), 18, a student

Friend of Shakar and Harem Sanger Ahmed also told of his fears for two other Iraqi Kurds – Hassan, in his late twenties, and Twana Muhammad (pictured), 18, a student

Yesterday, the family of Deniz Ahmed Mohammed (pictured), a 27-year-old Kurd, said he left them a final voicemail saying: 'Just pray for us'

Riaz Mohammed, 12, is pictured wearing a life jacket on the beach prior to the crossing which resulted in the deaths of 27 people

The family of 27-year-old Deniz Ahmed Mohammed (left) said he left them a final voicemail saying 'just pray for us', while Riaz Mohammed, 12, (right) is also feared to be among dead

Police search Wimereux beaches near Bolougne from this morning days after 27 migrants died heading to the UK as Storm Arwen threatens to take more lives if more people try to cross

Police search Wimereux beaches near Bolougne from this morning days after 27 migrants died heading to the UK as Storm Arwen threatens to take more lives if more people try to cross

Deflated dinghies used to carry migrants across the Channel pictured at a storage facility in Whitfield, Dover

Deflated dinghies used to carry migrants across the Channel pictured at a storage facility in Whitfield, Dover

Rows of vessels used to ferry migrants and refugees are being kept as evidence for smuggler prosecutions

Rows of vessels used to ferry migrants and refugees are being kept as evidence for smuggler prosecutions 

How are people smuggling gangs exploiting English Channel crossings? 

The sinking of a migrant boat with the loss of 27 lives off the coast of France has once again raised concerns about the people-smuggling trade.

For years law enforcement on both sides of the English Channel have been playing a game of cat and mouse with criminal gangs as tactics change and evolve. 

National Crime Agency (NCA) deputy director Andrea Wilson said: 'We look to target and disrupt organised crime groups involved in people smuggling at every step of the route.

'Much of this criminality lies outside the UK, so we have built up our intelligence-sharing effort with law enforcement partners in France and beyond.

'This includes having NCA officers based in those countries, sharing intelligence and working side by side on joint investigations.

'This approach is bringing operational results in the form of arrests and prosecutions, as we have seen with this particular case. 

One focus in the UK and abroad has been on disrupting the supply of dinghies and other vessels that could be used in Channel crossings.

The sale of dinghies in French towns has reportedly been banned, with kayaks seen withdrawn from sale at a Calais store.

However one alleged smuggling gang targeted by police

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