Migrants from France try to cross the English Channel to Great Britain almost every day.
Many get into distress at sea - now a boat has overturned and 31 people have died.
Calais - 31 people died in the sinking of a boat carrying migrants en route to the UK.
Among them were five women and a little girl, as France's Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced on Wednesday evening in Calais.
Two other people who were on the boat could be rescued, but their lives were in danger.
Four smugglers who may have been involved in the failed crossing have been arrested, Darmanin said.
"This is the greatest drama that we have seen so far." Prime Minister Jean Castex also spoke of a tragedy; his thoughts were with the numerous victims.
Macron calls for action
Meanwhile, President Emmanuel Macron called for a crisis meeting at European level.
France will not allow the English Channel to be turned into a cemetery and smugglers put human lives in danger.
The funds of the border protection agency Frontex at the external borders of the EU should be increased immediately.
Together with Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, action against criminal smuggling networks must be stepped up, Macron demanded.
Since the beginning of the year, 1552 smugglers have been caught on the French coast.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was "shocked, appalled and deeply saddened" after the migrants' deaths, the PA news agency reported.
In response, he convened the national security cabinet.
As the Maritime Prefecture announced, a fishing boat sent the emergency call that migrants were in distress in the English Channel.
With three boats and helicopters from France and Great Britain, helpers tried to rescue, the search was then canceled in the evening.
All of the sacrifices were brought to Calais.
The newspaper “La Voix du Nord” reported a leaden silence in the port, which was cordoned off by security forces, when the dead were brought ashore in the dark.
Migration across the English Channel is increasing
So far this year, more than 25,700 people have illegally crossed the English Channel.
That is almost three times as many as in all of 2020. The British government accuses France of not doing enough against illegal crossings, which Paris rejects.
It was only in July that the two sides agreed on a new cooperation agreement in order to get a grip on the growing number of migrants who come to England in small boats across the English Channel.
London pledged € 62.7 million to support the French authorities.
The British Home Secretary Priti Patel in particular is under pressure because of the growing number of migrants.
Conservative circles and the media speak of a "crisis".
However, the number of refugees seeking asylum in the UK is significantly lower than in other European countries.
Patel had announced that the crossings would be terminated.
After Brexit, the government introduced strict immigration rules.
But Patel has not yet found a way to stop the migration across the English Channel.
Most recently, she announced a tightening of the asylum rules.
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The conservative MP Natalie Elphicke, who has her constituency in the port of Dover, spoke of a tragedy.
The case also shows that the inflatables must be stopped before they are launched in France, said Elphicke.
The risk that people will die trying to cross over to Great Britain is increasing in the face of cold weather and rough seas.
The vice-president of the Hauts-de-France region, in which Calais is located, accused Great Britain in the evening.
“The British are responsible.
That's not France's fault, it's not Europe's fault, ”said Franck Dhersin.
dpa