French officials have made their first interception on the water as part of a new policy aimed at stopping small boats carrying illegal migrants to the UK.
A so-called taxi-boat was boarded by French officers on Saturday on the Aa canal in Gravelines, which is on the Channel coast above Calais.
It follows a change of tactics agreed in November following growing pressure from the UK government to step up interventions.
A photograph of the aftermath of the operation shows a number of men - apparently people-smugglers - on an inflatable dinghy with the police launch alongside. The inflatable is then towed to the dockside.
The French maritime prefecture declined to comment, stating that there was an ongoing judicial investigation regarding the small boat.
France agreed to these new tactics at a summit in the UK last July between President Emmanuel Macron and Sir Keir Starmer.
Previously, French police only intervened on beaches as boats were being prepared for launch, but on-water interventions were deemed too dangerous.
However, smugglers began using taxi-boats which operate at a distance from designated launch sites, effectively circumventing the established methods of intervention.
This strategy proved alarmingly effective, achieving an 81% success rate in preventing illegal crossings in 2025.
In 2023, the number of migrants making it to the UK increased from 36,566 in 2024 to 41,472. Although lower than the previous peak of 45,774 in 2022, the situation remains critical.
After the July 2025 agreement, intervention protocols were delayed due to concerns about the potential for life-threatening situations for migrants and the legal implications for officers.
These concerns appear to have been addressed as, under the new engagement rules, gendarmes will only intervene to stop taxi-boats before they extract migrants from the water.
During the recent operation, police suspected that the inflatable was preparing to pick up migrants and accordingly acted to apprehend the crew.
