4 migrants die attempting to cross English Channel on overloaded 'taxi boats'

French officials said the vessel had been operating as a "taxi boat". Four migrants died in two separate attempts to cross the English Channel overnight, French authorities said, highlighting the dangers of increasingly common "taxi boats" used by smuggling networks to ferry people to the UK.The first incident occurred late Wednesday night near Hardelot, on France's northern coast, when a small "taxi boat" capsized while attempting to pick up migrants waiting in shallow waters, BBC reported.A man believed to be in his 30s or 40s died, while six others, including a one-year-old child, suffered minor injuries.French officials said the vessel had been operating as a "taxi boat", a tactic increasingly used by smugglers in which larger inflatable boats cruise along the coast and collect migrants already standing in the sea, avoiding launches directly from beaches.Authorities intercepted the vessel after the incident, and an investigation has been launched.Hours later, another small boat that had departed from the Dunkirk area was spotted near a breakwater off the French coast. Rescue teams found three unconscious people aboard, who were later pronounced dead by emergency medical personn...