Four children in group of 11 migrants rescued off Dover

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-46578611

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Four children are among 11 people who have been rescued from a boat off the Kent coast near Dover.

The boat was reported to the Border Force at about 04:00 GMT, a Home Office spokesman said.

"The group consisted of six men, one woman and four children. Eight have presented themselves as Iraqi nationals with the remaining three claiming to be Iranian nationals," he said.

After medical examinations they were transferred to immigration officers.

On Tuesday, 14 migrants were rescued from two dinghies in the English Channel and brought ashore at Dover.

The BBC has confirmed that at least 135 migrants have entered British waters since 3 November, with the majority presenting themselves as Iranian.

Miodrag Ćakić, chief executive of Refugee Aid Serbia, which monitors migration through the Balkans, told the BBC Iranians heading for the UK had entered the EU via Serbia.

A BBC South East investigation found people smugglers were telling migrants they should enter the UK before "the borders shut properly" after Brexit.

Why are Iranians crossing the Channel in dinghies?

Warnings have gone out from the UK authorities about the dangers of taking small boats on the Dover-Calais route.

On Thursday, 10 men were rescued from a boat off the French coast - eight of them suffering from "severe hypothermia", according to French officials.

Ben Bano, from the migrant support group Seeking Sanctuary, said: "It's amazing anyone would want to make the crossing in these cold conditions, but people are absolutely desperate - the conditions in Calais are even worse."

The people found off the Kent coast since November: