Brave lifeboat workers targeted in campaign of online hate and intimidation by balaclava-clad anti-migrant protesters
Members of Bembridge and Yarmouth RNLI on the Isle of Wight have been targeted after helping migrants safely reach land
Volunteer lifeboat crews who helped around 140 migrants safely reach shore after arriving in UK waters on a so-called “mega-dinghy” have had their identities shared online by anti-migrant protesters.
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Members of Bembridge and Yarmouth RNLI on the Isle of Wight have been targeted after helping those on board the vessel, with volunteers’ faces, names and other personal details circulated on social media.
Balaclava-clad protesters have branded the lifesaving crews “traitors” for assisting people crossing the Channel.
Two volunteers in particular appear to have become the focus of the abuse, while social media pages belonging to other RNLI stations have also been flooded with hostile messages.
It follows protests in Portsmouth and at the Port of Dover over the weekend, where demonstrators - who described themselves as "peaceful protestors" - clashed with riot police and vowed to prevent migrants from being taken to a processing centre in Kent.
Read more: Around 140 migrants rescued by RNLI from dinghy in English Channel after 10-hour journey
The vessel is understood to have entered UK waters from Cherbourg, near the Portsmouth ferry route, rather than taking the more commonly used route from Calais to Dover.
After completing the rescue, RNLI volunteers were met by men in another boat who shouted: “How do you feel bringing illegal migrants into this country?”
Meanwhile, a campaign of abuse has erupted online.
One post circulating on X features the faces of two members of the RNLI crew who assisted the rescue operation at the weekend.
It reads: "These 2 helped facilitate the invasion of Britain last night. I bet these men have family as well...I don't know how they can look at themselves in the mirror."
Under it are more than 1,600 comments.
One read: "It will be hard and painful. But all facilitators will need to be subject to treason trial."
Another simply wrote: "Traitors. Name and shame."
However, many people have rallied behind the charity, sharing their own experiences of RNLI rescues and urging others to donate.
Marian Boyd, Conservative mayor of North East Lincolnshire, said the RNLI had saved her life during a yacht race and described the crews as “special” to her.
She told the Mirror: “I was in a yachting race and caught in a storm when the RNLI came out to rescue us.
“I was so anxious out there in the mouth of the Humber. It was freezing cold, and I have never been so glad to get back on dry land.”
Others in support have left comments beneath the X post identifying the volunteers and calling them "traitors".
One read: "That is like saying UK military shouldn't save lives in war torn countries."
"They've literally saved adults and kids from drowning at sea, while you've been raging baiting via a phone for clicks."
The RNLI said its crews are duty-bound to help anyone in danger at sea.
A spokesperson said: “We are a voluntary lifesaving rescue service, tasked in the UK by HM Coastguard to assist anyone who is in trouble on the water.
“We will rescue those in danger without judgement or preference, as the RNLI has been doing for more than 200 years.”
Richard Quigley, MP for Isle of Wight West, addressed the backlash on Facebook, writing on Monday: "There’s been a lot about the protests in Portsmouth in the news and on social media overnight - including unsubstantiated statements as well as a lot of genuine concern."
He added: "Some have deliberately tried to exploit yesterday’s events and there’s been unnecessary backlash against the RNLI.
"RNLI crews are volunteers. They volunteer to save lives at sea. And yesterday, they did just that.
"They don’t discriminate or ask questions of those they’re tasked to assist.
"We’re lucky to have such dedicated and brave crews on the Island who’re prepared to assist when their pager goes off.
"So, I want to thank those who got the call yesterday, and the crews that assisted, for their professionalism and the brilliant job they do year-round.
The Government has condemned what it called “intimidating and thuggish behaviour” at the protests.
The man behind the balaclava protest in Dover on Saturday and the protest in Portsmouth on Sunday is said to be Danny Thomas, known as Danny Tommo.
Thomas became a close associate of the anti-migrant and anti-Muslim activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.
The government has condemned "intimidating and thuggish behaviour" in both protests.