World · Europe · 2 hrs ago
Dutch authorities rescue 38 people from drifting boat off Zeeland
Dutch military police and the coast guard rescued 38 men from a drifting rubber boat off Zeeland, in the country’s south.
The boat had no motor, and no one aboard was wearing a life vest.
Thirty-six people were from Afghanistan, while two men from Sudan were arrested on suspicion of people smuggling.
Authorities do not know whether the boat came from France, the Netherlands or Belgium, or where it was headed.
Small-boat journeys from France to the United Kingdom are common, but boats are rarely found in Dutch waters.
The people rescued were taken ashore, checked for signs of hypothermia and moved elsewhere while their identities and migration status are investigated.
Dutch authorities are due to open an investigation into the case.
Dutch authorities rescued 38 people from a rubber boat drifting off Zeeland early Saturday.
The boat had no motor, and none of the people on board was wearing a life vest.
Two Sudanese men were detained on suspicion of people smuggling; the other 36 people were from Afghanistan, according to AFP.
Authorities had not established where the boat came from or where it was heading.
Dutch officials said such boats are rarely found in the country’s waters.
- Who
- 38 men were rescued; 36 were from Afghanistan and two Sudanese men were detained on suspicion of people smuggling.
- What
- Dutch authorities rescued people from a motorless rubber boat drifting at sea.
- When
- Early Saturday, October 31, 2026.
- Where
- Off Zeeland province in the southern Netherlands, near Breskens.
- Why
- The boat’s origin and destination were not known. Authorities were investigating suspected people smuggling.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Dutch military police and coast guard rescued the boat and towed it to shore.
Those on board were taken to dry land and checked for signs of hypothermia.
Two people were detained on suspicion of people smuggling.
- People rescued
- 38
- People from Afghanistan
- 36
- Suspected smugglers
- 2 Sudanese men
- Boat condition
- No motor; no one aboard wore a life vest
- Location
- Zeeland province, near Breskens, Netherlands
4 sources
Dutch authorities rescue 38 people adrift in rubber boat
Dozens of people saved from rubber boat off southern Netherlands coast
Rubberboot met vermoedelijk tientallen migranten van zee gehaald bij Zeeland
Nog volop raadsels over rubberboot in Cadzand met 38 vluchtelingen: twee Soedanese mensensmokkelaars opgepakt
What people are saying
We don’t know where they came from — France, the Netherlands or Belgium — and we don’t know where the boat was heading.
These are things you usually see in France and Belgium. We rarely see it here in the Netherlands before today.