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Brussels Terror Attack Suspects, Including Salah Abdeslam, to Face Trial in Belgium
Friday 17 September 2021, by
This Friday, September 17, the federal prosecutor’s office in Belgium referred the case of Franco-Moroccan Salah Abdeslam and nine other men suspected of being involved in the jihadist attacks carried out on March 22, 2016 in Brussels to the Assize Court.
The facts. On the morning of March 22, 2016, two jihadists had blown themselves up at Brussels-Zaventem international airport, and a third in the metro of the Belgian capital. The result: 32 dead and more than 340 injured.
The investigation quickly revealed, notably thanks to a computer found in a trash can, that the perpetrators are linked to those of November 13, 2015, and to Salah Abdeslam, the only surviving member of the commandos who attacked the French capital that evening.
Three of the thirteen indicted were discharged. Regarding the other ten, the prosecution made a distinction, arguing that eight men (including Salah Abdeslam and Mohamed Abrini, the "man in the hat" from the airport) should be tried in the Assize Court for "murders in a terrorist context", and the last two by the criminal court for "participation in the activities of a terrorist group".
In a tweet, Eric Van Duyse, spokesperson for the federal prosecutor’s office, indicated that "ten defendants [were] referred today to the Assize Court by the indictment chamber of Brussels".
This jurisdiction thus confirms the decision rendered in January at first instance by the council chamber of the Brussels court. It had argued that eight men should be tried in the Assize Court for "murders in a historical context" and the last two by the criminal court for "participation in the activities of a terrorist group".