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| - French prosecutors want to put Yemen's airline on trial for manslaughter over a 2009 crash off Africa that killed 152, with the only survivor a girl who clung to wreckage at sea, sources close to the case said Thursday. An investigating judge will now decide whether the case comes to court, almost 11 years after the crash of the Yemenia Airbus A310 flying to the Comoros capital Moroni. Leon Lef Forster, a lawyer for Yemenia, said he would argue the carrier was not responsible and no trial should take place. The passengers, mainly French residents, began their journeys in France, flying to Sanaa where they boarded the 19-year-old aircraft. It plunged into the sea on June 30, 2009, as it was about to land at Moroni. The sole survivor was 12-year-old Bahia Bakari from France who hung on to floating wreckage after losing her mother. France opened an investigation in July 2009 to determine the cause of the accident. The families of the victims filed a suit in April 2011 accusing the airline of trying to block the truth and putting the lives of people in danger. A 2013 report by the Comoros authorities said the accident was due to "inappropriate action by the crew" during "a non-stabilising manoeuvre". Despite the civil war that has ravaged the country, Yemenia still operates a fleet of five narrow-bodied Airbus aircraft. It is under the control of the internationally-recognised Yemen government and operates mostly out of Aden. Before the coronavirus pandemic grounded planes across the world, Yemenia was flying to countries including Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Djibouti. gd-mch-sjw/mlr/bp
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