France has issued entry bans against ten British members of an "extreme right" group, following a Mirror investigation that exposed their vigilante sabotage of boats used by migrants crossing the English Channel.
Group Leaders Boasted of Sabotage Exploits
The French Interior Ministry confirmed the measures against militants from the group Raise the Colours, characterising their activities as a potential threat to public order. The banned individuals, who have not been publicly named by French authorities, were identified as militants who carried out actions on French territory.
The group's prominent figures, Ryan Bridge and Daniel Thomas, had repeatedly boasted online about their exploits. Thomas, described as a right-hand man to far-right figure Tommy Robinson, was previously jailed for two years in 2016 for an attempted kidnap. The duo's activities included travelling to the northern French coast to locate and destroy inflatable boats.
Operation Overlord and Social Media Braggadocio
In one instance in November, Bridge and Thomas documented finding a boat and damaging its engine. Later the same month, the group's social media account claimed they had destroyed "another migrant boat." A post on X, formerly Twitter, crowed: "We don’t just say ‘Stop The Boats’ we STOP The Boats!"
The activists labelled their efforts "Operation Overlord", a reference to the Allied D-Day campaign. They posted images and videos of themselves posing with flags next to damaged boats, often set to patriotic music like "Rule, Britannia!". The French ministry stated these were "propaganda activities" aimed at recruiting from the British public to strengthen the movement.
Group's Response and Cross-Channel Tensions
In response, Raise the Colours stated it was aware of the French government's statements but had received no formal notification. The group insisted it understood the bans targeted specific individuals, not the organisation as a whole. It claimed it "always maintained that its activities must remain peaceful and within the law" and does not support violence.
This incident highlights the ongoing tensions surrounding small boat crossings in the Channel. Over 41,000 people made the journey to the UK last year, a figure that remains a persistent political issue between London and Paris. The French ban underscores how vigilante actions by UK-based groups are now provoking direct legal consequences from a key European ally.
