KALAMATA, Greece, May 21, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - The trial of nine accused smugglers opened in Greece on Tuesday, nearly a year after a migrant trawler with hundreds on board sank off the country's coast, in one of Europe's deadliest shipwrecks.

The nine Egyptian men face charges including negligent homicide. Their defence team says they are scapegoats to hide the failure of the Greek coastguard to mount a rescue.