French Interior Minister Threatens Brit Vigilantes Over Migrant Boat Sabotage
France is clamping down on British activists targeting migrant crossings in the Channel. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez warned that anyone caught sabotaging migrant dinghies could face arrest for obstruction and aggravated violence. The crackdown follows escalating tensions after the vigilante group Raise the Colours began slashing boats on French beaches heading for Dover.
‘Operation Overlord’: British Activists Take Radical Action
Raise the Colours, known for waving Union Jacks and St George’s Crosses across the UK, launched “Operation Overlord” to stop migrant boats leaving France. The name references the historic Normandy landings. Videos show activists racing along beaches, damaging vessels bound for the UK.
A source close to Minister Nunez told La Voix Du Nord, “We are stepping up monitoring and coordination to identify and arrest anyone caught in the act.”
Activists and Aid Groups Clash Over Migrant Crisis Tactics
Raise the Colours fired back, urging French authorities to focus on stopping migrant crossings rather than hunting their group. A member told the Telegraph, “This won’t stop those determined to halt the crossings.”
But nine French migrant support organisations, including L’Auberge des Migrants, Utopia 56, and Medecins du Monde, slammed the group for “structured intimidation tactics” and called their violent, xenophobic actions a serious threat to migrants and aid workers alike.
Migrant Crossings Soar as Government Struggles to Get Grip
Migrant arrivals surged in 2025, hitting 41,472 – the second highest ever recorded. This shatters Labour leader Keir Starmer’s promises to crack down on smuggling gangs and reduce small boat crossings. Although no crossings happened on New Year’s Eve, the total is still 13% up from 2024, despite a 9% dip from 2022’s record peak.
The average number of migrants per boat also climbed, from 53 last year to 62 in 2025. At this rate, Starmer could oversee the highest Channel crossings ever recorded under a premiership, with 64,714 arrivals since he took office — almost matching Boris Johnson’s 65,676 over more than three years.
Critics Hit Out at Labour’s Channel Crisis Failures
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp slammed the asylum system, blaming the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) for blocking deportations and fuelling illegal immigration. “Until Labour confronts that reality, nothing will change,” he said.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage branded Starmer’s Channel policies a “complete disaster.” Calling the UK-France “one in, one out” deal a “farce,” he warned: “Huge numbers continue to cross, and many young men arriving last year pose a serious risk.”
