London: An advert campaign will be launched in Iraq to dissuade people from traveling illegally to the UK, the BBC reported on Tuesday.
Thousands of migrants have made the dangerous journey across the English Channel since 2018, with 592 doing so on Sunday alone, according to the UK Home Office.
Many of the trips are facilitated by criminal gangs, and the crossings can often lead to accidents and fatalities.
The new campaign will be aimed primarily at people in semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan, and will be spread via social media, apps and websites.
The Home Office previously launched similar adverts in Albania and Vietnam. One advert featured an image of an upturned dinghy, alongside quotes from people who had previously risked the crossing, including “the boat was too crowded” and “people disappeared into the sea.”
Another advert quoted a female migrant as saying: “I was promised a well-paid job. Instead I was a slave.”
Home Office Minister Dame Angela Eagle said: “Ruthless criminal gangs spread dangerous lies on social media to exploit people for money, and we are exposing them using the real stories of their victims.”
UK Border Security Commander Martin Hewitt said during a trip to Iraq last week: “Our international campaign is sending a clear message to prospective migrants that these criminals cannot be trusted.”
A spokesperson for the Refugee Council told the BBC that people suffering enough to flee their homes in the first place would be unlikely to be dissuaded by a social media advert campaign.
At least 2,716 people have made the trip to the UK across the Channel so far this year, a 20 percent rise from the same period in 2024, according to the Home Office. A total of 36,816 people crossed last year, including more than 2,000 Iraqis.
