Mohammad Hanad Abdi

An appeals court in Greece has ordered the release of a Somali migrant who had been sentenced to life in prison for people smuggling, in a case that has drawn international attention to draconian border protection laws in the European Union country.

A Somali migrant serving life in prison for people smuggling appeared in court Monday to appeal his sentence, in a case backed by a group of European Parliament members who say he was wrongfully convicted.