(AFP) Nine Afghans were on trial in France over allegations of attempting to smuggle migrants across the Channel to Britain in 2021.
The case is the latest as Britain and France seek to clamp down on illegal boat crossings into the United Kingdom on a perilous route that has become increasingly used since 2018.
The men, whose trial opened in Paris on Tuesday, are accused of having helped 53 mainly Vietnamese and Afghan migrants set off on the dangerous sea crossing on dinghies on four occasions between January and March 2021.
Four were being tried for a leading role in the smuggling operations, while another five were accused of having played a secondary role.
