550 Refugees Storm Channel Tunnel

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, December 27, 2001

550 Refugees Storm Channel Tunnel

Police used tear-gas to disperse hundreds of refugees who stormed the Channel Tunnel linking France and Britain Wednesday, trying to cross illegally to Britain by foot. At least one refugee was injured.

About 550 refugees from a nearby Red Cross centre attempted the crossing in two waves during Tuesday night and into the early hours of Wednesday. Train traffic was halted for most of the night and resumed Wednesday morning.

Large numbers of French police were drafted in to search the tunnel entrance and make sure no more migrants were inside before traffic resumed.

The illegal would-be immigrants to Britain, housed in a French Red Cross camp 2km away, cut through barriers and stormed the tunnel entrance in two groups in an effort apparently to draw attention to their plight.

A spokeswoman for Eurotunnel, the company that operates the tunnel, said services were running normally after a stoppage that lasted 10 hours, during a period of reduced traffic due to the holiday period.

Dozens of refugees try to enter Britain illegally every week through the tunnel but such a mass attempt is rare. The refugees were believed to be trying to take advantage of reduced train traffic on Christmas Day.

About 1,000 refugees are housed at the Red Cross centre in the coastal town of Sangatte. Many are Kurds or Afghans. They dream of a better life in Britain, where immigration laws are relatively liberal and they have an easier path to becoming legal residents.

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