Fourteen individuals will go on trial in France for the deaths of migrants in the deadliest recorded small‑boat crossing of the English Channel. The sinking occurred in November 2021. The defendants are accused of links to people‑smuggling networks and face charges that include manslaughter and criminal conspiracy.

The death toll is reported differently. Western outlets state that thirty‑one migrants died, while other outlets report at least twenty‑seven deaths. France 24 reported that thirty‑one migrants died; English AAWSAT reported that at least twenty‑seven migrants died.

Four other migrants remain missing after the sinking. English AAWSAT reported that the victims were mainly Iraqi Kurds and that most of the fourteen defendants were born in Afghanistan and Iraq.

English AAWSAT also reported that the defendants are accused of playing a role in the sinking and that most defendants deny wrongdoing, with some Iraqi Kurdish defendants saying they were migrants rather than people smugglers.