Paris Terror Trial: Main Defendant Apologizes

(dpa) In the trial of the 2015 Islamist terrorist attacks in Paris that killed 130, the main defendant apologized to the victims. “I would like to offer my condolences and apologies to all the victims,” ​​Salah Abdeslam said in court in Paris on Friday, the AFP news agency reported. “I know that hate continues (…), today I ask you to hate me en masse.” It was the first time in the seven-month trial that the sole survivor of the terrorist squad offered words of sympathy for the victims.

Abdeslam had admitted his involvement in the attacks in court, but said he deliberately did not detonate his explosive vest because he had changed his mind. Since his explosive vest was defective according to an expert, there are doubts about his statement.

Although Abdeslam testified extensively during the course of the trial, he left all important questions unanswered. The Frenchman did not say who planned, financed and coordinated the series of attacks, who set the targets and where further attacks were originally planned.

outraged reactions

Rather, he emphasized his continued sympathy for the terrorist militia Islamic State. He described the series of attacks as a defense action by the IS because of alleged French attacks against Islamists in Syria with civilian victims. He gave responsibility for this to France’s then President François Hollande. Relatives and survivors reacted with outrage to these words.

In the series of attacks on November 13, 2015, extremists killed a total of 130 people. Three attackers committed a massacre in the Bataclan concert hall, others attacked bars and restaurants. Three suicide bombers also blew themselves up at the Stade de France during an international football match between Germany and France. The terrorist militia Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the acts that hit France to the core. A total of 20 suspected Islamists have been charged.