Official count of migrants in Calais camp at high of 6,901
PARIS – State authorities in the Calais region say their latest count of migrants at the makeshift camp known as “the Jungle” stands at 6,901 — the highest official figure since migrants began settling there 16 months ago.
Two leading aid associations, Auberge des Migrants and Help Refugees, put their August count at 9,106 — more than 2,000 higher.
The Prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais said on Friday that its “precise and exhaustive” count was made two days earlier by border police.
Migrant numbers typically swell with summer when Mediterranean crossings are more frequent. But migrants in Calais, trying to get to Britain, pack into an area reduced by nearly half last March after authorities ordered the southern sector razed.
The statement noted the goal of dismantling the entire camp, with no date.
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