France, EU to intensify fight against migrant smuggling networks

France and other European countries resolved Sunday to intensify their fight against smuggling networks and deploy aerial surveillance to deter desperate migrants from undertaking dangerous journeys by sea and land, days after 27 people died when their overcrowded inflatable boat sank en route to Britain.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin announced that European border and coast guard agency Frontex will deploy a surveillance aircraft from Wednesday to monitor the French coast, a launching site for many migrants attempting to cross over to the UK.

The plane will "fly day and night" over the English Channel and North Sea area and from France to the Netherlands, Darmanin said following an intergovernmental meeting that was organized after an inflatable boat sunk off the coast of the city of Calais in northern France on Nov. 24, claiming the lives of at least 27 people.