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Alan Kurdi: Turkish court jails pair over Syrian toddler's death Alan Kurdi: Turkish court jails pair over Syrian toddler's death
(about 1 hour later)
A court in Turkey has sentenced two Syrian smugglers to four years and two months in prison each following the death of toddler Alan Kurdi and four other people, according to Turkey’s state-run news agency.A court in Turkey has sentenced two Syrian smugglers to four years and two months in prison each following the death of toddler Alan Kurdi and four other people, according to Turkey’s state-run news agency.
Anadolu Agency said on Friday the court convicted Muwafaka Alabash and Asem Alfrhad of human trafficking but acquitted the men of causing death through deliberate negligence. Anadolu agency said on Friday the court convicted Muwafaka Alabash and Asem Alfrhad of human trafficking but acquitted the men of causing death through deliberate negligence.
Alan, 3, his brother, Galip, 5, and their mother, Rehan Kurdi, were among the five people who drowned last year when their boat sank on the journey from Bodrum to the Greek island of Kos. Alan, three, his brother, Galip, five, and their mother, Rehan Kurdi, were among five people who drowned last year when their boat sank on the journey from Bodrum to the Greek island of Kos.
The image of Alan’s body lying face down on a Turkish beach galvanised world attention on the refugee crisis.The image of Alan’s body lying face down on a Turkish beach galvanised world attention on the refugee crisis.
Trials in Turkey usually take months even years to conclude. But Friday’s verdict, which came just a month after the trial opened, appeared to be an effort by the country to show it was cracking down on human traffickers, days before a summit on the migration crisis in Brusselsbetween Turkey and the EU.
Alabash and Alfrhad had denied any responsibility in the deaths. Instead, they blamed Alan’s father, Abdullah Kurdi, accusing him of organising the trip. Prosecutors had sought maximum 35 years in prison for each. Kurdi has since returned to Syria.
Turkey has been under pressure to reduce the number of people coming to Europe and to combat the smuggling rings since it reached a deal with the EU in November. Under the deal, Turkey is to receive a €3bn (£2.3bn) to help it deal with Syrian refugees.
Donald Tusk, the president of the European council, is scheduled to meet the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, for key talks on the migrant crisis on Friday. Tusk has said the number of people trying to enter the EU via Turkey remained “far too high”.
His meeting in Istanbul is the last stage in a regional tour, which has also taken in Greece and Slovenia, before the Turkey-EU summit on Monday.
Tusk has pulled no punches during the trip, issuing a blunt warning to economic migrants not to come to Europe and chastising European countries that have taken unilateral steps to tackle the crisis.
On Friday the EU also plans to unveil a “roadmap” to restore the Schengen zone – the passport free area that is a keystone to the spirit of European unity.
The migrant crisis has raised fears for the zone as more states bring back border controls, with both Sweden and Denmark announcing another temporary extension of identification checks on Thursday.
Sources in Brussels told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Friday that the EU’s roadmap would outline a plan to restore the Schengen zone to full force by November. The plan, a draft of which has been seen by AFP, includes quickly creating an EU coastguard system and strengthening Greece’s external borders.
According to the International Organisation for Migration, 120,369 people have arrived in Greece from Turkey so far this year. At least 321 have died en route.
On Wednesday, the EU announced a €700m emergency aid plan to help Greece and other member countries with the migration crisis, the first time humanitarian aid has been used within Europe.