(Reuters) — French riot police cleared migrants from a motorway in Calais in the early hours of Sunday (August 2) morning after the migrants sat in the middle of the road to block traffic.
A witness to the events, Jason Smith, said 250 migrants tried to enter the Eurotunnel in the evening but were stopped by French police who used tear gas.
The migrants then blocked traffic at the Eurotunnel entrance ramp for trucks, sitting in the middle of the road until riot police arrived.
Smith told Reuters the police hit migrants with sticks and used tear gas to remove them. The police pursued the group until the migrants fled.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has drafted plans to help France tackle a spike in attempts by migrants to enter Britain illegally via the Channel Tunnel, but has warned there is no quick fix.
Cameron is under pressure to deter the migrants, many of whom have travelled from Africa and the Middle East, after disruption to cross-Channel passenger and freight traffic.
Migrants have long gathered in Calais to try to get into Britain. But Eurotunnel, the firm that runs freight and passenger shuttles via the Channel Tunnel, says numbers have swelled to around 5,000 people from about 600 and that it is struggling to cope.
It says migrants have also become better organised, mounting nightly attempts in large groups to storm the facilities.
