Attacks in Brussels

Islamist transferred to French prison

The terrorist Salah Abdeslam, convicted of the Islamist attacks in Paris and Brussels, is now in a prison in France. This was announced by the Belgian Attorney General's Office on Wednesday. The Islamist had tried several times in the past to prevent his repatriation.

As reported , Abdeslam was sentenced to life imprisonment in France in 2022 for his involvement in the Paris terror attacks of November 13, 2015 (see video above). He was then extradited to Belgium for the trial for the Islamist terrorist attacks in Brussels in 2016. There, the now 34-year-old was also convicted of terrorist murders.

Almost three dozen people were killed and 340 others injured in the terrorist attacks at the airport and in a metro station in Brussels. In Paris, 130 people died in the attacks and a further 350 were injured. 

Sole survivor of the terrorist squad
 Abdeslam is a French citizen and is the only survivor of the terrorist squad. He was only caught after months on the run from the police in Brussels. His older brother Brahim was one of the attackers who blew themselves up in a bar in Paris. The two had grown up in Molenbeek in Brussels, which is known as a retreat for radical Islamists. Abdeslam worked as a mechanic, had temporary jobs and was arrested in 2011 for attempted theft. He was also known to the police for drug offenses.

During the trial in France, he blamed politics for the attacks and only partially answered questions. He continued to glorify the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS). Recently, he had repeatedly tried to prevent his return to a French prison because his human rights would be violated there. The competent judge was not convinced. Abdeslam was received by French authorities on Wednesday.