A trial is currently taking place at the Paris correctional court involving two men accused of involuntary manslaughter and aiding illegal stay in an organized group linked to a deadly shipwreck off the coast of Calais in 2021. The incident, which occurred during the night of November 23 to 24, 2021, resulted in at least 31 deaths, including a 7-year-old girl. The two men on trial are a Pakistani man and an Iraqi Kurd in their 30s. They are among 14 individuals being tried, with two of the accused still at large. Both men have denied being smugglers, with one claiming he was a private hire driver and the other saying he was simply trying to reach England. Farman A., the Pakistani accused, claims he is not a smuggler but a private hire driver who arrived in France in 2017 and now holds refugee status. He stated that he had "bad associations" in the past but has since distanced himself from Obaïd, the main accused who is now at large. The court has questioned Farman A. about his frequent trips between the Paris region and migrant camps in Grande-Synthe, as well as his geolocation data near the embarkation beaches. He also shared details of his own migration journey from Pakistan through several European countries, which was paid for by his father to a Pakistani smuggler for 8,000 euros. Now a construction company manager earning between 4,000 and 5,000 euros per month, Farman A. lives with his wife in Sarcelles. Hossein F., the Iraqi Kurd accused, said he wanted to go to England and was promised a "passage" in exchange for his services to a Kurdish Iranian smuggler named Mariwan. He claimed he attempted to reach England three or four times between 2021 and 2022 without success. The investigation has uncovered his connections to the two immigration networks involved in the case. Many of the victims of the shipwreck were from Iraqi Kurdistan, with nine individuals specifically from that region. The trial opened with emotional testimony from two fathers and two brothers, who described the pain of losing their loved ones. These family members left Thursday morning for Erbil, along with other relatives of the victims. The trial is examining the roles of those involved in organizing and facilitating the dangerous journey to the UK, which ended in tragedy. The victims' families, many of whom are from the Middle East, have been absent from the trial, but their voices have been present through the testimonies of those who lost loved ones. The case has drawn attention to the risks faced by migrants attempting to cross the English Channel, often in overcrowded and unsafe conditions. The legal proceedings are expected to continue as the court seeks to determine the extent of each defendant's involvement in the tragic event.