Six smugglers jailed for manslaughter over worst Channel small boats disaster

Six people trafficking organisations have been found guilty in France for the deaths of 31 migrants in the deadliest small-boat accident in the English Channel. A four-week trial in Paris concluded with convictions for involuntary homicide, with prison sentences ranging from six to 10 years. Seven others received lesser sentences up to four years, while one was acquitted.

The incident occurred early on November 24, 2021, after the boat sent distress signals to both French and British coastguards. The victims, mainly Iraqi Kurds but also Afghan, Egyptian, and Iranian Kurds, included a 7-year-old child. The boat was of poor quality, uncertified, unsuitable for navigation, overloaded, and lacked proper life vests.

The families of the victims, speaking in French, described how their loved ones made the perilous journey from Iraq and Afghanistan to seek a better life in England. One survivor, Issa Omar, expressed his emotional state following the tragedy. The court heard statements from the survivors and their lawyers, emphasizing the human side of the tragedy.

The leaders of the two networks – one Iraqi Kurd and the other Afghan – were not present in the trial. The biggest sentence of 10 years was given to Obaidullah Maroofkhel, who ran the Afghan network. Most of the 14 defendants were Afghans or Iraqi Kurds. Following the verdict, six arrest warrants were issued for the remaining defendants.

A separate police investigation is ongoing into seven French armed forces members accused of failing to assist the migrants on the night of the disaster. The trial concluded as France and the UK announced the end of the one-in-one-out scheme, which involved sending back irregular cross-Channel migrants to France in exchange for accepting individuals with a likely prospect of asylum.