"Two drug traffickers, convicted in 2024 for the 2020 murder of Houcine Hakkar - a young mechanic mistakenly caught in a gang war in Besancon - are now on trial on appeal in Dijon. "The person in the dock is no longer the man who committed the acts. He has undergone a genuine process of reflection and awareness, and has already offered sincere apologies," says Robin Binsard, lawyer for Melk Ghezali, who was initially sentenced to 25 years in prison. His lawyers say he continues to face "countless, extremely violent" threats. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES