Martin Daubney was left "close to tears" after a flotilla of boats commemorating the Dunkirk evacuation was forced to divert to make way for a migrant vessel crossing the English Channel.
The emotional incident occurred as 66 "Little Ships" were sailing from Ramsgate to Dunkirk on Wednesday to mark the 85th anniversary of Operation Dynamo.
The commemorative journey, described as a "poignant tribute to the bravery and sacrifice" of the Dunkirk evacuations, was disrupted when Border Force and the French navy intervened.
Speaking about the incident, GB News host Martin Daubney said: "I'm trying my very, very best to keep my composure. I heard that story in real time. You broke that story to me in real time about the Dunkirk flotilla.
Martin Daubney said he was close to tears when he heard the story
GB NEWS
"I feel like I've been punched. I honestly feel like I've been punched in the stomach. To interrupt something of such historic, national, and patriotic importance.
"The totemic moment of vanquishing the Nazis, of survival in our darkest hour. Of using the Channel as an escape route from genuine terror to get to the safety of Britain, to rebuild. I feel like I'm going to cry.
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"I honestly feel like I'm going to cry. To get back to Britain, to rebuild, to vanquish the Nazis.
"That commemoration being interrupted today because of these bloody boats around the Channel.
"We're rescuing them. Our taxpayers are paying for this and that service is being interrupted and desecrated."
The fleet of 66 vessels set sail from Ramsgate, Kent, at 6am today to commemorate the historic Operation Dynamo.
This year's crossing marks the first time the little ships have made the journey since 2015.
The Association of Dunkirk Little Ships (ADLS), which organised the voyage, had said it would ensure "the legacy of the Dunkirk little ships continues to inspire future generations".
The flotilla was being escorted by ships from the Royal Navy and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).
The commemorative journey was interrupted when authorities demanded the flotilla change course to provide a one-nautical mile exclusion zone around a migrant boat.
The small vessel, which had been launched from northern France earlier earlier today, was being escorted across the Channel by the French navy and UK Border Force.
A flotilla of Little Ships sail out of Ramsgate, Kent, during the start of 'Dunkirk 85', the Association of Dunkirk Little Ships (ADLS) commemorative cruise to Dunkirk, to mark the 85th anniversary of Operation DynamoPAMarine traffic maps showed a French warship and the French navy vessel Oyapock in the vicinity of the flotilla as it crossed the Channel.
Marine traffic audio revealed the "Little Ships" were told: "There is a [French] warship on our head with a migrant [boat] close by. And we've been requested to give one nautical mile distance from that vessel, over."
A French voice, believed to be from the French navy, responded: "Thank you, sir. Thank you very much."
One observer commented: "They have asked the British ships to get out of the way. It is one of the most important days in history and they are shoving them out of the way."
