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Suspected Isis militant accused of involvement in Paris attacks appears before French judge on terror charges | |
(about 11 hours later) | |
The suspected Isis militant Salah Abdeslam appeared before a judge in Paris on Wednesday afternoon where he was formally charged with murder and the attempted murder of a terrorist nature, just hours after being extradited from Brussels. | |
Abdeslam – believed to be the only surviving member of the group that killed 130 people during the 13 November Paris attacks – was remanded in provisional custody. He will be held in solitary confinement, according to reports. | |
A spokesperson for the Belgian federal prosecutor's office said a European arrest warrant issued by France had been executed. | |
Abdeslam, 26, reportedly told Belgian police he could not bring himself to blow himself up in his allotted mission at the Stade de France. | |
Frank Berton, a high-profile French criminal lawyer, said he would lead his defence and had visited Abdeslam at a prison in Bruges last week, along with the suspect’s Belgian lawyer, Sven Mary. | |
“He told me naturally that he has things to say and he will say them. He wants to talk,” Mr Berton told BFM TV. | “He told me naturally that he has things to say and he will say them. He wants to talk,” Mr Berton told BFM TV. |
“What counts and what matters for us as his lawyers is simply that he gets a fair trial, that he is sentenced for things he did and not things that he didn't do. That's vital because he is the sole survivor.” | “What counts and what matters for us as his lawyers is simply that he gets a fair trial, that he is sentenced for things he did and not things that he didn't do. That's vital because he is the sole survivor.” |
Abdeslam, whose brother Brahim was among the suicide bombers, was on the run until he was caught hiding out in Brussels in March. | Abdeslam, whose brother Brahim was among the suicide bombers, was on the run until he was caught hiding out in Brussels in March. |
An Isis militant, Mohamed Belkaid, 35, was shot dead by police during the shoot-out at a flat in Forest on 15 March. | |
Three days later, Abdeslam was traced to a flat in the suburb of Molenbeek and arrested alongside an suspected accomplice known under the aliases Amine Choukri and Monir Ahmed Alaaj. | Three days later, Abdeslam was traced to a flat in the suburb of Molenbeek and arrested alongside an suspected accomplice known under the aliases Amine Choukri and Monir Ahmed Alaaj. |
His lawyer initially said his client, a French national who grew up in Belgium, would resist extradition to France but the move was agreed on 31 March. | His lawyer initially said his client, a French national who grew up in Belgium, would resist extradition to France but the move was agreed on 31 March. |
Abdeslam is just one of several suspects held on suspicion of involvement in the Paris and Brussels attacks. | Abdeslam is just one of several suspects held on suspicion of involvement in the Paris and Brussels attacks. |
Mohamed Abrini, accused of being the surviving Brussels bomber, is in custody ahead of a pre-trial hearing scheduled for 26 May. | Mohamed Abrini, accused of being the surviving Brussels bomber, is in custody ahead of a pre-trial hearing scheduled for 26 May. |
He was also wanted in connection with the Paris attacks, after being seen with Abdeslam in a car used in the massacres, but evaded security services until he was arrested in Brussels on 8 April. | He was also wanted in connection with the Paris attacks, after being seen with Abdeslam in a car used in the massacres, but evaded security services until he was arrested in Brussels on 8 April. |
Belgian investigators said he admitted being the “man in the hat” wheeling a suitcase bomb in Brussels Airport minutes before the 22 March attacks. | Belgian investigators said he admitted being the “man in the hat” wheeling a suitcase bomb in Brussels Airport minutes before the 22 March attacks. |
Alleged accomplice Osama Krayem, who was driven from Germany to Belgium by Abdeslam in October, has also been charged with “terrorist murder” in both the Paris and Brussels attacks. | Alleged accomplice Osama Krayem, who was driven from Germany to Belgium by Abdeslam in October, has also been charged with “terrorist murder” in both the Paris and Brussels attacks. |