UK border officials pick up 30 migrants in English Channel

LONDON – British border officials rescued more than 30 people Friday, who were attempting to cross the English Channel in three small inflatable boats and a kayak.

The government said a Border Force cutter and a patrol boat picked up 27 men, a woman and two children. The migrants, who claimed to be from Iran and Afghanistan, were brought ashore at the port of Dover in southeast England and will be interviewed by immigration officials.

There has been an increase in the number of people trying to cross the English Channel to Britain in small vessels, though the numbers are tiny compared to the thousands crossing the Mediterranean to countries such as Spain, Italy and Greece.

Last week the U.K. Border Force picked up 37 people in small boats, including several children.