Dutch military police have rescued 38 people found adrift in a motorless rubber dinghy off the country’s southwestern coast, marking a rare interception for the Netherlands.
Authorities located the vessel off the coast of Zeeland province, situated far southwest of Amsterdam. Military police spokesperson Doron Wallin confirmed the rescue to reporters, noting that none of the occupants were wearing life vests when the boat was found.
Of the 38 men on board, 36 are from Afghanistan. The remaining two individuals, who are from Sudan, have been arrested on suspicion of people smuggling. Authorities suspect these two men were operating the boat.
Investigators have not yet determined the origin or intended destination of the vessel. “We don’t know where they came from – France, the Netherlands or Belgium – and we don’t know where the boat was heading,” Wallin said.
While small-boat migrant crossings from France toward the United Kingdom have become frequent across the Channel in recent years, discovering similar vessels in Dutch waters remains highly atypical. “These are things you usually see in France and Belgium. We rarely see it here in the Netherlands before today,” Wallin remarked.
Dutch authorities are scheduled to open a formal investigation into the incident.
