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

Six people smugglers are found guilty of involuntary homicide after 31 migrants died in the English Channel in 2021.

Migrants react to tear gas fired by police as they try to leave the coast of northern France in an attempt to cross the English Channel to reach Britain, September 28, 2026 [File: Hannah McKay/Reuters]

A French court has sentenced 13 men to up to 10 years in prison for their roles in the deadliest small-boat crossing by migrants trying to reach the United Kingdom from France.

The court in Paris found six of the men guilty of involuntary homicide on Wednesday, handing down prison terms of between six and 10 years. Prosecutors said they organised the crossing of a small boat that was unfit for navigation on the open sea, was overloaded with 31 passengers and lacked appropriate life jackets.

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The remaining seven men were found guilty of lesser criminal charges and were sentenced to up to four years in jail. There were 14 defendants on trial, one of whom was acquitted.

The court said the smugglers were driven by greed and were “profiting from the vulnerability of exile candidates”.

“When it costs the lives of 31 people and the sea becomes a cemetery, there is a price, and the court said that the price they had to pay was justice and prison time,” said Emmanuel Daoud, a lawyer for victims’ families.

The migrants, mostly Iraqi Kurds, drowned after the UK-bound small boat carrying them from northern France capsized in the English Channel in November 2021. Four of the bodies were never found, while two men survived.

Seven military personnel are still being investigated for allegedly failing to help the survivors. They all deny any wrongdoing.

The sentencing of the 13 men comes as France and the UK end their pilot scheme that allowed Britain to return migrants from France deemed not to have the legal right to remain in the country.

In return, the UK accepted an equivalent number of migrants whose asylum claims were likely to be granted.

The scheme was due to expire on Thursday. However, unverified reports say the UK government wanted the programme to continue.

The UK Interior Ministry confirmed earlier on Wednesday that new applications were no longer being accepted.

2021 年，31 名移民在英吉利海峡丧生，六名人口走私贩被判过失杀人罪。

2026年9月28日，移民们试图离开法国北部海岸，横渡英吉利海峡前往英国，警方发射催泪瓦斯，移民们对此做出反应。[图片：汉娜·麦凯/路透社]

法国一家法院判处 13 名男子最高 10 年监禁，罪名是他们在移民试图从法国乘小船前往英国的致命偷渡事件中扮演了重要角色。

巴黎法院周三裁定六名男子过失杀人罪名成立，判处六至十年不等的监禁。检方称，他们组织了一艘不适合在公海航行的小船横渡大西洋，船上超载31名乘客，且缺乏合适的救生衣。

名单 1/3：涉嫌走私者因法国最致命的移民悲剧受审

英国将三名青少年难民申请者关押在监狱，原因是他们驾驶一艘超载的英吉利海峡移民船。名单之二

名单3/3：三名儿童在试图穿越英吉利海峡时于法国海岸丧生

其余七名男子被判犯有较轻的刑事罪行，并被判处最高四年监禁。共有14名被告受审，其中一人被判无罪。

法院表示，走私者是出于贪婪，“利用流亡候选人的脆弱处境牟利”。

“当31人丧生，大海变成墓地时，这是要付出代价的，法院表示，他们必须付出的代价是正义和牢狱之灾，”受害者家属的律师伊曼纽尔·达乌德说道。

2021年11月，一艘载着移民从法国北部前往英国的小船在英吉利海峡倾覆，船上大部分是伊拉克库尔德人，他们全部溺亡。其中四具遗体至今未被找到，两名男子幸存。

七名军方人员仍在接受调查，他们被指控未能向幸存者提供援助。他们都否认有任何不当行为。

在法国和英国结束允许英国将被认为没有合法居留权的法国移民遣返回国的试点计划之际，这13名男子被判刑。

作为交换，英国接收了等量的移民，这些移民的庇护申请很可能获得批准。

该计划原定于周四到期。然而，未经证实的报道称，英国政府希望该计划继续实施。

英国内政部周三早些时候证实，已不再接受新的申请。