Paris – They indiscriminately shot concertgoers and killed young people celebrating in bars and restaurants – the terrorist attack in Paris on November 13, 2015 shook not only the capital but the entire world.
130 were killed and 350 were injured. It is the largest terrorist attack in Europe to date by militants claiming to be Islamic State.
On Wednesday, six and a half years after the attacks, the biggest investigation in French history came to an end: ISIS killer should go to jail for life! The verdict was handed down by an arbitral tribunal in Paris.
The killer will have to serve his sentence until the end of his life, parole is impossible.
This is how the court draftsman views the scene at the Palace of Justice in ParisPhoto: BENOIT PEYRUCQ / AFP
The investigation revealed the November 2015 series of attacks from the fall. At that time, 90 men and women were killed in a massacre by militants at the Badaklan concert hall. They opened fire on restaurant terraces and bustling Paris nightlife areas, killing at least 39 people. That night during a football friendship between Germany and France in the State of France, three suicide bombers blew themselves up and detonated an innocent man.
The only person who escaped from the terrorist force, Abdeslam drew much attention to the investigation.
The public prosecutor saw the 32-year-old Frenchman as a key figure in the attacks and spoke of the enormous seriousness of his actions.
Then, during a football match between France and Germany in the State of France, Abdeslam drove three suicide bombers with their bombs in a small black car. During the bombings at the stadium, allies massacred the city. Abdeslam fled to Belgium, where he was born to French-Moroccan parents, and was arrested four months later.
“State de France” on November 13, 2015: Spectators gather on the field after the shots are firedPhoto: FRANCK FIFE / AFP
The blood of all the victims is in his conscience and almost in his hands, the public prosecutor said in the petition. The defense asked that Abdeslam not be given a “slow death sentence” as his sentence could be reduced later.
The accused has already been sentenced to 20 years in prison in Belgium and is currently in a French prison under special conditions for firing on police.
Of the other 19 accused, 6 were questioned in absentia. One suspect is in custody in Turkey, while five others are said to have died in Syria. Among other things, the accused are said to have obtained documents showing that Abdeslam was expelled from the country or acted as a failed assassin. Some are accused of acting only in small roles and doing tasks from time to time. In addition to imprisonment, the Attorney General’s Office demanded that at least a temporary ban be imposed on many of them residing in France.
The accused Salah Abdeslam (32) in his trial – the court artist described the scene as follows. Photo: BENOIT PEYRUCQ / AFP
The process, which lasted more than nine months, was eagerly awaited in France. These attacks have long shocked French society.
Many saw them as an attack on the French way of life. Unlike previous attacks against certain professional groups or sects, no one seems to be safe after a terrible night. The prosecutor’s office also believed during the investigation that the militants did not care who killed them.
In addition to personal cuts in victims’ health, work, family and community life, the terrorist series is still having an impact on public life: more police officers and soldiers can be found on the streets and at beach parades, and parents are no longer allowed to enter schools.
Terrorism is no longer organized from abroad, but because it is based on internal forces, experts see the risk of further division in a society that is splitting anyway.
Many French people hoped that the trial would provide answers from the accused and, in some cases, from politicians. However, there is no significant gain in knowledge.
The main defendant, Abdeslam, reiterated his responsibility, blaming ISIS for the deadly attacks and the suffering in French politics. According to lawyers, his attitude did not allow for remorse or guilt.
A woman with flowers outside the Bataklan concert hall after the attackPhoto: Christophe Ena / AP
This must have given frustration and disappointment, especially to the survivors and their families. Over the weeks, hundreds of them tortured the courtroom for a terrible night, and many still complained of bodily and mental injuries six years after the attacks.
It remains to be seen whether the verdicts of the 20 accused will help their personal work. According to the state prosecutor’s office, the process was able to at least identify the victims and their fate.
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