More than 20 men board Kurdish-coloured boat as Belgian police watch
More than 20 men boarded a brightly coloured small boat off Belgium’s De Panne beach at about 3am on Thursday, while Belgian police watched nearby. Its red, white, green and yellow design resembles the Kurdish flag; it is not known whether the boat crossed the Channel. The incident comes amid renewed attention on people-smuggling networks and the authorities’ response to departures from the European coast.
The article reports that the National Crime Agency’s operations director recently told MPs Iraqi Kurds and Afghans were over-represented in trafficking groups. In 2024, 18 members of a gang, mostly Iraqi Kurds, were jailed in France; investigators believed it may have been linked to as many as 10,000 crossings. The report says 85,649 people have reached the UK by small boat since Labour took office, with 8,466 arriving since July.
In short
- More than 20 men boarded a Kurdish flag-coloured boat off Belgium.
- It is unclear whether the dinghy crossed the Channel.
- The NCA has cited Iraqi Kurds among over-represented groups in trafficking.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Those concerned about enforcement could argue that departures linked to organised smuggling require a prompt, coordinated response: police intervention may prevent dangerous crossings, disrupt criminal networks and protect people from exploitation. They may also see consistent action as necessary to maintain public confidence in border rules.
The case against
Those concerned about rights and proportionality could argue that police should not treat people on a boat as criminals simply because of their suspected route or nationality, and that any intervention should prioritise safety and individual assessment. They may also question whether watching a departure without acting is an effective or humane response, while noting that the report does not establish the passengers’ intentions or whether the boat crossed the Channel.
Explained simply
People-smuggling networks help migrants make unauthorised journeys to the UK in small boats, often across the Channel. De Panne, on Belgium’s North Sea coast, is one of the places from which boats may set off, while police and other authorities monitor activity along the European coast.
The National Crime Agency investigates serious and organised crime in the UK and reports to Parliament on its work. It has recently told MPs that Iraqi Kurds and Afghans are over-represented in trafficking groups; in a separate case, 18 people, mostly Iraqi Kurds, were jailed in France in 2024 for gang-related offences.
The issue matters to governments because crossings raise questions about border control, migrant safety and the role of criminal networks. The figures reported by the article give a sense of the scale of small-boat arrivals in the UK, while investigations and prosecutions offer one way authorities try to disrupt the networks involved.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “‘The gangs are laughing at us’: Channel migrants board ‘custom-made’ small boat in colours of the Kurdish flag, as Belgian police stand and watch”.