(AFP) Arash took his first steps on English soil on a cloudy, drizzly day in May, after attempting a perilous crossing of the Channel from northern France.
UK border police intercepted the inflatable dinghy on which he and others spent five hours dodging waves and traffic on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, and brought them ashore.
Arash, 28, who is now seeking asylum in Britain, is one of more than 27,000 people who attempted the perilous journey in 2021 — a record.
In 2020, just 8,400 individuals crossed the Channel in small boats. As the numbers have soared, so, too, have fatalities, with 36 this year, including 27 who died in [a] single incident in November.
But Arash, who asked for his real name not to be used because he fears persecution for his religious beliefs in his native Iran, said the risks were worth it.
