More than 150 migrants live in tents near Calais ANDREW HASSON FOR THE TIMESJaber was sure the small boat in which he was one of 11 Iranian passengers was less than a mile from the south coast of England in the early hours of Saturday when he dialled 999. The university lecturer’s family had promised to pay people smugglers based in Iran €3,000 when he arrived in Britain, and it was his second attempted crossing in the past week. During the first, he had to call the French authorities when the boat became lost in the middle of the Channel. On the latest effort, he thought he was much closer to Dover, and called 999 in the hope that he would be taken ashore — only to be picked up by the French and taken back. Six Iranians were detained after landing on Kingsdown beach, Kent SWNSHe would…

Source: The Times December 31, 2018 00:00 UTC