The trial of the attacks that took place more than six years ago began today. Many accused of the Brussels 2016 attacks were convicted in the summer of participation in the Paris 2015 attacks as well.
The largest criminal trial in the country’s history regarding the devastating terrorist attacks in Brussels in 2016 has begun today, Monday, in Belgium.
What happened in the attacks?
The terrorist attacks in Brussels took place on March 22, 2016. At eight in the morning, two men wearing explosive vests blew themselves up in the check-in queues at the Brussels airport.
Just over an hour later, a third man detonated his bomb vest on a metro train at Maelbeek metro station. The main building of the European Commission is located near the station.
32 bystanders died and more than 300 were injured in the attacks, which were claimed by the terrorist organization Isis.
Why is the trial starting now?
The investigation of the terrorist attacks has continued for a considerable time, as the actual trial now begins more than six and a half years after the attacks.
The start of the trial was postponed due to a dispute that arose in the last few meters in the fall. The defendants and defense attorneys complained about the separate glass booths where the defendants were supposed to sit as part of the hearing’s tight security measures.
The defense lawyers considered the small glass booths to be inhumane “animal cages”. They also criticized the resulting practical problems, such as the difficulty for lawyers to communicate with the accused.
The judge ordered the small glass booths to be replaced with one large glass booth where the incarcerated defendants sit together. The delivery of the new glass booth and the start of the trial were delayed by several weeks.
Who sits in the dock?
In the trial, nine men are accused of several murders with terrorist intent and attempted murder. They are suspected of having participated in the planning and practical organization of the attack.
If the men are found guilty, they could face life imprisonment.
Ninth and one other man are also accused of participating in the activities of a terrorist organization.
Nine out of ten defendants are present at the trial. The case of the tenth accused is being processed in absentia, as he is believed to have since died in Syria.
The most famous of the accused is Salah Abdeslam, who participated in the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris. After the Paris attacks, he eluded the police for four months. He was arrested in Brussels just days before the attacks there, in the planning of which he is also suspected to have participated.
How were the Brussels attacks connected to the Paris attacks?
A few months earlier, in November 2015, there was also a terrorist attack in Paris in which 130 people died. In June, six people who are now on trial in Brussels were also convicted of involvement in the Paris attacks.
In France, a court sentenced Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the Paris attacks, to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. In the summer, the “man in the hat” was also convicted of planning the Paris attack Mohamed Abriniwho is suspected of having left his unexploded bombs at the Brussels airport and left the scene.
There are several connections between the individuals behind the Brussels and Paris attacks. Many of those who participated in both attacks belonged to the same ISIS cell that operated in the Molenbeek district of Brussels.
The mutual connections between the attacks and those behind them have been highlighted, for example, by the British public radio BBC (switch to another service) and a US magazine New York Times (you will switch to another service).
How is the trial progressing?
Today the judge Laurence Massart confirmed the identities of the accused. The prosecutors are supposed to start reading the 486-page indictment in court tomorrow, Tuesday.
Hearings begin after the charges are read. A total of around 370 experts and witnesses will be heard in court over the next few months.
The trial will take place in the former headquarters of the military alliance NATO, which has been converted into a large courtroom. The cost of the trial is estimated to be at least 35 million euros.
About a thousand people who were injured themselves or whose relatives died in the attacks are watching the trial. Many victims and relatives have said they hope the trial will bring them comfort and help in dealing with the case.
The verdicts are due seven months from now, when the trial is scheduled to come to a conclusion. In addition to the judges, the verdict and punishments are also influenced by a 12-person jury assembled from ordinary Belgians.
Sources: Reuters, AFP