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French warship fires 17 rounds near BBC interview with British MP
๐Ÿ‡ญ๐Ÿ‡ท Croatia /Conflict & Security

French warship fires 17 rounds near BBC interview with British MP

From Veฤernji List · () Croatian

Translated from Croatian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A French patrol boat fired 17 rounds in the English Channel near a BBC interview with a British politician.
  • The French coast guard stated the vessel was participating in a military exercise and not monitoring migrant boats.
  • The British politician suggested the incident was an intimidation attempt, while the fishing boat captain called it unprecedented.

A French patrol boat fired 17 live rounds in the English Channel on Monday morning, startling a BBC crew interviewing British MP Chris Philp. The incident occurred around 9:15 a.m. local time, with the French vessel PSP Flamant operating about 5 kilometers off the French coast and 300 meters from the interview boat.

On the channel today monitoring illegal migrant crossings โ€ฆ as I was being interviewed by the BBC just now a French warship approached close and fired 17 live rounds behind us. There was no notice or training exercise in place. Felt like warning shots or attempted intimidation

โ€” Chris Philp MPChris Philp MP's statement on Twitter following the incident.

BBC journalist Michael Keohan reported that the crew received no warning or notification of the firing and it was unclear where the shots were aimed. Philp, the shadow minister for internal affairs, suggested the event appeared to be an attempt at intimidation or a warning. He criticized France's perceived inaction against migrant smugglers, stating that if France treated smugglers as seriously as it treated him, the boats would stop coming.

If the French treated people smugglers half as seriously as they treated me, the boats would stop coming. Instead, the French let them through and pass the problem to the UK Border Force, making it our problem.

โ€” Chris PhilpChris Philp's criticism of French efforts to stop migrant smugglers.

French coast guard officials confirmed the PSP Flamant was engaged in a military exercise and that the firing was unrelated to the presence of the British boat or migrant monitoring. However, Philp argued that it was "unbelievable" for the French navy to use live ammunition against a British politician observing migrant crossings, especially when, in his view, France does not do enough to stop smugglers. He announced plans to discuss the incident with the French ambassador.

It is unbelievable that the French navy would use live ammunition against a British politician who has come to observe migrant crossings.

โ€” Chris PhilpChris Philp's reaction to the French patrol boat firing shots.

The captain of the fishing boat where the interview took place described the event as something he had "never seen before." The British Home Office stated it is in contact with French authorities to ascertain the full circumstances of the incident.

I have never seen anything like it.

โ€” Fishing boat captainThe captain's reaction to the incident.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Veฤernji List in Croatian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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