# Migrant boat found off Breskens left from the Netherlands

> The rubber boat carrying 38 people that was towed ashore in Zeeland last Saturday left from Dutch territory, the Public Prosecution Service said on Thursday. It did not leave from Belgium, as first assumed.

Migration · published 2026-11-05 21:25 · https://nlnow.nl/a/migrant-boat-found-off-breskens-set-out-from-the-netherlands/

The rubber boat found off Breskens last Saturday set out from Dutch territory, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) announced on Thursday. On board were 36 Afghan migrants and two suspected people smugglers from Sudan, 38 people in total. Six of them were minors.

Until now, it was assumed the boat had drifted over from Belgium. Bram Frouws, director of the migration knowledge centre MMC, calls the situation "highly unusual". As far as he knows, it is the first time migrants have tried to cross to the United Kingdom by boat from the Netherlands.

Around 06:00 on Saturday, the Koninklijke Marechaussee received a report of a worrying situation at sea near the Zeeuws-Vlaanderen coast. The boat was adrift because its motor was missing. It was towed to the marina at Cadzand, where ambulance staff examined the migrants. They were in reasonable condition and showed no signs of hypothermia.

The two Sudanese men were arrested on suspicion of people smuggling. On Tuesday the judge (rechter-commissaris) ordered that they be held for two more weeks.

The six minors were taken to the registration centre in Ter Apel, and at least one adult has applied for asylum. The search for the boat's motor off Cadzand is still under way.

Asylum applications in the Netherlands stood at 2,195 in September 2026, the latest month counted, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS). That is below the 2,865 of September 2025 and well below the 5,130 of October 2023. The lowest month in the period was March 2025, with 1,445.

**Monthly asylum applications are far below their level of late 2023** (asylum applications per month; source: CBS)

- Oct 2023: 5130
- Nov 2023: 4255
- Dec 2023: 3925
- Jan 2024: 3405
- Feb 2024: 2835
- Mar 2024: 3185
- Apr 2024: 3005
- May 2024: 2955
- Jun 2024: 2160
- Jul 2024: 2765
- Aug 2024: 2760
- Sep 2024: 3085
- Oct 2024: 2890
- Nov 2024: 2460
- Dec 2024: 2255
- Jan 2025: 1785
- Feb 2025: 1670
- Mar 2025: 1445
- Apr 2025: 1670
- May 2025: 1925
- Jun 2025: 2115
- Jul 2025: 2235
- Aug 2025: 2120
- Sep 2025: 2865
- Oct 2025: 2615
- Nov 2025: 2650
- Dec 2025: 2745
- Jan 2026: 2230
- Feb 2026: 2125
- Mar 2026: 2115
- Apr 2026: 2275
- May 2026: 2305
- Jun 2026: 2005
- Jul 2026: 2025
- Aug 2026: 1965
- Sep 2026: 2195

## Background

- **OM (Openbaar Ministerie)**: The Public Prosecution Service, which decides whether suspects are prosecuted and brings criminal cases to court.
- **Koninklijke Marechaussee**: The Royal Netherlands Marechaussee is the military police force of the Dutch armed forces, which also carries out police tasks. It supervises the country's borders, including sea and airport borders, monitors people entering and staying in the Netherlands, and provides security at Schiphol and other key sites. It is often the first Dutch authority to respond to incidents involving migrants or smuggling at the coast or borders.
- **Aanmeldcentrum Ter Apel**: The Ter Apel registration centre is the main facility in the Netherlands where people applying for asylum first register with the authorities. There they undergo initial checks, including medical and identity screening, and unaccompanied minors are received and cared for before being moved on. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) handles the asylum applications themselves.
- **CBS (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek)**: Statistics Netherlands, the independent government body that produces the official statistics on the Dutch economy and society.

From NLnow, news from the Netherlands in English. How stories are made: https://nlnow.nl/about/