TERRORIST LEADER Finally Learns His Fate
(FeaturedNews.com) – Terrorists attacked Paris, France, leaving a bloody trail in their wake on November 13, 2015. On June 29, a special terrorism court convicted Salah Abdeslam of murder and related charges for his part in a massacre at a Bataclan concert hall, sentencing him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The Attacks
The onslaught of terror began when suicide bombers activated their explosives outside France’s national stadium, the Stade de France. Shooters attacked people at restaurants, and another suicide bomber set off an explosion in a nearby bar. Concertgoers at the Bataclan were unaware of the horrors happening outside.
Then, the terrorists, including Abdeslam, charged into the concert hall and opened fire, killing 89 attendees and injuring many others before law enforcement officials arrived. The group also took hostages to act as human shields. Nine other terrorists accompanied Abdeslam, but they either detonated their explosive vests or died during a gunfight with French police officers.
In total, the attacks claimed the lives of 130 people. Hundreds of others suffered injuries.
The Trial
Investigators and prosecutors spent six years preparing their case to go to trial. That eventually happened on September 8, 2021.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys spent more than nine months presenting their cases. The defense tried to convince the court that Abdeslam abandoned his vest after deciding not to go through with his part of the attack. The court didn’t buy that argument, finding instead that the explosives in Abdeslam’s vest malfunctioned.
A life sentence without the possibility of parole is the harshest sentence permissible under French law, and French judges have only imposed it four times for charges related to murder and rape. However, there’s a slight chance that officials could order his supervised release after he serves 30 years, but court watchers say that’s unlikely.
Other Defendants and the Long-Term Impact of the Attacks
The special court also convicted 19 other terrorists involved in the November 15 attacks on Parisian cafes and the national stadium on various terrorism charges. Several of them received life sentences. A few of them received credit for time served and left the court as free men.
The seemingly unprovoked attack on Paris led France to adjust its security measures, strengthen defenses within its borders, and increase military actions against extremists.
Abdeslam’s attorneys declined to answer reporters’ questions about the verdict and sentence.
What do you think about France’s decision not to consider the death penalty as an option for mass murderers?
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