PARIS (AP) — Thirteen people were sentenced to prison terms of up to 10 years on Wednesday in connection with the sinking of a boat in the English Channel nearly five years ago, in one of the biggest tragedies of migrants making the dangerous crossing.
A total of 31 migrants, most of whom were Iraqi Kurds, died in November 2021 when their boat sank.
Fourteen people, including two who remain at large, had been on trial since Sept. 8. One of them was acquitted. They were accused of organizing the crossing of a small boat that was unfit for navigation on the open sea, was overloaded and lacked appropriate life jackets.
Emmanuel Daoud, a lawyer for victims’ families, said that “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.”
Meanwhile, an investigation into seven military personnel who have been indicted for failing to assist the shipwreck survivors is still underway.
Following an alert from a fishing vessel about bodies in the water off the coast of Calais, French authorities recovered 27 bodies, including two teenagers and a child. Four others weren't recovered.
The court said that the trial highlighted the dramatic consequences of the methods used by smugglers driven by greed “profiting from the vulnerability of exile candidates.”
Court documents said that one of the survivors told investigators that he had taken part in an earlier failed attempt to cross the Channel with 53 other migrants. They were brought back to French shores by rescue teams.
He said that his family in Iraq funded his passage, having paid $3,200, according to the documents.
He said that the same smugglers’ network organized the second attempt on Nov. 24 when the small boat sank. After it was prepared in a wooded area, the gray boat equipped with a 40 CV outboard motor was launched. The migrants, wearing life jackets provided by the smugglers, set out to sea at around 10 p.m. local time.
Four hours later, the boat began to deflate, and with the motor having stopped, it drifted at the mercy of the currents. Some passengers then wanted to return to France, while others wanted to reach England and several people who spoke English tried to contact emergency services.
Nicolas Vaux-Montagny reported from Saint-Etienne, France.
FILE - A parked police car parks overlooks the shore in Wimereux, northern France, on Nov. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler, File)
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — There was doubt about Cristiano Ronaldo playing for Portugal on Thursday after he missed team training and local media talked about the superstar being unhappy with coach Jorge Jesus.
Ronaldo, the all-time leading scorer in men's international soccer and pursuing the milestone of 1,000 career goals, was left on the bench on Sunday in Portugal's 2-1 win at Norway in the Nations League.
He has not practiced with the team since then, doing only gym work, the Portuguese Football Federation said.
Portuguese media said federation president Pedro Proença had to travel to meet with Ronaldo and Jesus after reports the froward was unhappy about being left out of the match against Norway. The federation confirmed only that Proença was with the squad in Sweden, where it was preparing for Thursday's Nations League game against Denmark.
Ronaldo, who has 146 international goals for Portugal, on Tuesday posted on Instagram a photo of him wearing the Portugal uniform accompanied with the Portuguese flag and a heart emoji.
Jesus, who took over the squad from Roberto Martínez after the World Cup, said ahead of the Norway game that he didn't want to overuse Ronaldo during the unusually long international break in which Portugal plays four games in 11 days.
He said he planned to give Ronaldo some minutes against Norway but the circumstances of the match kept him from being used. Jesus said right after the game that he would “talk to him,” while responding to reports that Ronaldo was upset.
Ronaldo started in Portugal's 1-0 win over Wales last Thursday and was substituted in the 67th minute.
Portugal leads Group A4 of the Nations League with six points from two matches, three points more than Denmark and Norway. Wales is last with no points.
Portugal will host Norway on Sunday.
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Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus enters the field for the Nations League soccer match between Portugal and Wales in Lisbon, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus enters the field for the Nations League soccer match between Portugal and Wales in Lisbon, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus stands by the pitch before the Nations League soccer match between Portugal and Wales in Lisbon, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo starts on the bench during a Nations League soccer match between between Norway and Portugal, in Oslo, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. (Cornelius Poppe/NTB Scanpix via AP)
