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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Paris attacks: Najim Laachraoui named as suspect by prosecutors | Paris attacks: Najim Laachraoui named as suspect by prosecutors |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Belgian prosecutors have named one of two men still sought in connection with the 13 November Paris attacks as they meet with French counterparts following the arrest of the prime suspect, Salah Abdeslam, after four months on the run. | |
| Najim Laachraoui, 24, whose nationality has not been given, is reported to have travelled to Syria in 2013, and was previously identified by his alias Soufiane Kayal. | Najim Laachraoui, 24, whose nationality has not been given, is reported to have travelled to Syria in 2013, and was previously identified by his alias Soufiane Kayal. |
| He was travelling with Abdeslam under his alias in September 2015 when their Mercedes was stopped at the Hungarian border with Austria. Also in the car was Mohammed Belkaid, who was shot dead by a police sniper in a raid in the Brussels suburb of Forest on Tuesday, an operation that led to Abdeslam’s capture a few days later. | He was travelling with Abdeslam under his alias in September 2015 when their Mercedes was stopped at the Hungarian border with Austria. Also in the car was Mohammed Belkaid, who was shot dead by a police sniper in a raid in the Brussels suburb of Forest on Tuesday, an operation that led to Abdeslam’s capture a few days later. |
| Fresh footage of the capture was on Monday broadcast by the French news channel iTélé. | Fresh footage of the capture was on Monday broadcast by the French news channel iTélé. |
| A second suspect has previously been named as Mohamed Abrini, 31, a Belgian national and childhood friend of Abdeslam in Brussels. | A second suspect has previously been named as Mohamed Abrini, 31, a Belgian national and childhood friend of Abdeslam in Brussels. |
| The identification of Laachraoui comes as the French president, François Hollande, and his justice minister are to meet families of the victims of the attacks at the Elysée Palace on Monday afternoon. | |
| Hollande will almost certainly face questions over why it took so long to find Abdeslam, a suspected member of the 10-man team that carried out the Paris attacks. He has allegedly told Belgian police he was supposed to blow himself up at the Stade de France football stadium on 13 November but backed out. | |
| French officials and police and their Belgian counterparts are facing criticism over how they lost trace of Abdeslam in the hours after the attacks that left 130 dead. | French officials and police and their Belgian counterparts are facing criticism over how they lost trace of Abdeslam in the hours after the attacks that left 130 dead. |
| Abdeslam, 26, was captured in another Brussels suburb, Molenbeek, on Friday, one day after the funeral of his brother Braham, 31, who blew himself up at the Comptoir Voltaire cafe on 13 November, seriously injuring a waitress. | |
| Brussels investigators claimed he was planning another attack in Belgium. | Brussels investigators claimed he was planning another attack in Belgium. |
| Abdeslam is being held in isolation in a high-security prison in Bruges, Belgium, and is expected to appear before a judge on Wednesday when the court will order his continued detention. French media reported on Monday that he had been in hiding in Belgium for four months since leaving Paris late on 13 November. | Abdeslam is being held in isolation in a high-security prison in Bruges, Belgium, and is expected to appear before a judge on Wednesday when the court will order his continued detention. French media reported on Monday that he had been in hiding in Belgium for four months since leaving Paris late on 13 November. |
| Related: Saleh Abdeslam may be a terrorist, but his trial must be unimpeachable | Mary Dejevsky | Related: Saleh Abdeslam may be a terrorist, but his trial must be unimpeachable | Mary Dejevsky |
| He is fighting extradition to France, but could be surrendered to Paris under the terms of a European arrest warrant. This could take up to 90 days. | He is fighting extradition to France, but could be surrendered to Paris under the terms of a European arrest warrant. This could take up to 90 days. |
| The French public prosecutor, François Molins, is in Brussels on Monday to meet his Belgian counterpart, Frédéric van Leeuw. They are expected to hold a press conference afterwards. | |
| Sven Mary, Abdeslam’s Belgian lawyer, said his client “is collaborating and is communicating”. “It will be interesting now to allow time so that I can speak to him and so the investigators can talk to him,” Mary added. | Sven Mary, Abdeslam’s Belgian lawyer, said his client “is collaborating and is communicating”. “It will be interesting now to allow time so that I can speak to him and so the investigators can talk to him,” Mary added. |
| Mary is threatening to sue the French prosecutor for breaking investigation secrecy by revealing that Abdeslam had failed to carry out his suicide mission. | Mary is threatening to sue the French prosecutor for breaking investigation secrecy by revealing that Abdeslam had failed to carry out his suicide mission. |
| The French prime minister, Manuel Valls, said there were 609 French nationals or residents in Syria and Iraq in territories controlled by Islamic State. Among them were 283 women and 18 minors. | The French prime minister, Manuel Valls, said there were 609 French nationals or residents in Syria and Iraq in territories controlled by Islamic State. Among them were 283 women and 18 minors. |