French court sentences 13 men over deadliest small-boat crossing to UK

A French court sentenced 13 men to up to 10 years in prison for their roles in the deadliest small-boat crossing to the UK in 2021. Six of the men were found guilty of involuntary homicide for organizing an unseaworthy, overloaded boat carrying 31 passengers without proper life jackets. The remaining seven received sentences of up to four years for lesser charges, with one defendant acquitted. The smugglers were driven by greed and exploited vulnerable migrants, mostly Iraqi Kurds, who drowned when the boat capsized in the English Channel, with four bodies never recovered.