LONDON: A record number of children died in the English Channel trying to reach the UK last year, with the route witnessing its highest-ever fatality figures.
The Missing Person’s Project of the UN’s International Organization for Migration recorded 82 people dying in the Channel — one of the world’s busiest sea lanes — of whom 14 were minors.
The 82 deaths in 2024, which officials say are likely an underestimate of the true total, are more than three times the number from the previous year.
In the period spanning 2018 to 2024, child deaths in the Channel never exceeded five fatalities in a single year.
Not all of the children who died making the crossing in 2024 have been identified. However, those named include 14-year-old Obada Abd Rabbo from Syria and his compatriot Mohamed Al-Jbawi, 16, both of whom died on Jan. 14.
Several Iraqi children are also known to have died making the trip, including 7-year-old Rola Al-Mayali, who was on a boat carrying her and her family which capsized in a canal approaching the Channel.
Seven-year-old Sara Al-Ashimi, also from Iraq, drowned on April 23. The youngest victim — Maryam Bahez, who was just a month old — died on Oct. 17 after falling from her father’s hands in an overcrowded boat. Her family was from Iraqi Kurdistan.
The IOM warned that even children who survive the journey are often left vulnerable when arriving in the UK, with many separated from their parents.
Christa Rottensteiner, chief of mission for the IOM in the UK, told The Guardian: “The record high number of children who died in the English Channel last year is a wake-up call that more needs to be done.
“For those whose nationality is known, you can see that they are from war-torn countries or extremely volatile contexts.
“More safe and regular routes are urgently needed, and the right support need to be in place for separated children looking for their families.”
Dr. Wanda Wyporska, CEO of Safe Passage International, told The Guardian: “Crossing the Channel in these small and overcrowded boats is a terrifying experience no child should have to go through.
“Young people we support have shared heartbreaking descriptions with us. They thought they were going to die, have been hospitalised with painful petrol burns from broken engines, and were petrified of falling into the water as they couldn’t swim.
“We know children are often deeply traumatised from this journey, and it can take a long time for them to be able to talk about their frightening ordeal in these boats.
“It’s horrifying so many children have died on this unnecessary journey. This is a clear consequence of the lack of safe routes which would save children’s lives.”
