Smugglers accused of causing death of Aylan Kurdi put on trial in Turkey

Two alleged human traffickers have been put on trial charged with causing the death of Aylan Kurdi, whose body washed up on a beach in Turkey last year, says a report of UK daily Independent.

The men, both Syrian nationals, may face up to 35 years in prison if they are found guilty on charges of human trafficking and manslaughter.

Aylan was travelling with his father, mother and brother Galip from Bodrum in Turkey to the Greek island of Kos when their boat capsized.

His death sparked a reaction to the refugee crisis around the world.

The images that followed, showing the small boy lying face down in the sand, drew a huge reaction to the crisis of people risking their lives fleeing conflict areas to reach Europe, the report said.

The two men, Muwafaka Alabash and Asem Alfrhad, opened in the Aegean seaside town of Bodrum on Thursday. They are accused of causing the deaths of five people, including Aylan, "through deliberate negligence", it added

Aylan and his family fled the northern Syrian town of Kobani, which was periodically besieged by IS militants throughout 2014 and 2015.

After a period living in Turkey with the hope of returning to their hometown, the family made two failed attempts to travel through Europe to Canada, where Aylan's aunt Tima Kurdi lived in Vancouver, the Independent report said.

The crossing, which killed all of the family except the father, Abdullah Kurdi, was their third attempt. Abdullah described how the family paid a combined €4,000 (£2,900) to people smugglers for places on a small dinghy.

They began the crossing at night - but when the sea became too rough for the small vessel, the people smugglers allegedly abandoned it, leaving the passengers to try and steer it on their own, according to the report.

The boat soon capsized, throwing the refugees into the sea. “I was holding my wife’s hand,” Kurdi said.

“My children slipped away from my hands. We tried to hold on to the boat. Everyone was screaming in pitch darkness,” the report quoted Kurdi as saying.