Dutch coast guard rescues 38 people adrift in rubber boat off Zeeland coast
Dutch authorities rescued 38 people found adrift in a rubber boat off the southern Netherlands coast early on Saturday, 31 October, in one of the first such rescues in Dutch waters.
The boat had no motor and was drifting off the coast of Zeeland province, near the town of Breskens, about 250 kilometres south of Amsterdam. The Marechaussee military police and the Netherlands coast guard towed it to shore. No one on board was wearing a life vest.
All 38 people on the boat were men, according to the AFP news agency. Thirty-six were from Afghanistan, and two were from Sudan. The two Sudanese men were detained on suspicion of people smuggling. Those rescued were brought ashore, checked for signs of hypothermia, and then taken to another location while their nationalities and migration status were investigated.
It is still not known where the boat came from or where it was heading. “We don’t know where they came from — France, the Netherlands or Belgium — and we don’t know where the boat was heading,” Marechaussee spokesperson Doron Wallin told the Associated Press.
Why it matters
Small-boat crossings from France to the United Kingdom have become common in recent years, with tens of thousands of people attempting the journey. But it is very unusual for a boatload of people to be found off the Dutch coast. Wallin said such scenes were normally seen in France and Belgium, adding: “We rarely see it here in the Netherlands before today.”
What happens next
Dutch authorities were due to open an investigation into the case on Sunday, 1 November. That investigation is expected to look at how the boat ended up in Dutch waters and who organised the crossing, while officials continue to check the rescued men’s identities and migration status.
This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.
Sources
- https://www.byteseu.com/2488162/ (Associated Press report, 31 October 2026)
- https://newsline24.online/dutch-authorities-rescue-38-people-adrift-in-rubber-boattraffic_sourcerss/ (Al Jazeera report, 31 October 2026)
