PARIS - Four migrants who tried to reach Britain died in the night from Thursday to Friday after their boat capsized in the Channel, a French coast guard spokesperson said on Friday, confirming earlier media reports.

A total of 67 people were aboard the boat off the coast of Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France, the spokesperson said, adding that 63 of them were rescued by an operation involving four ships and one helicopter.

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Several thousand people have arrived in Britain this year via small, overloaded boats - usually flimsy inflatable dinghies - that risk being lashed by the waves as they try to reach British shores.