At the trial of the attacks of November 13, the testimonies of the Belgian investigators follow one another by video to evoke the course of the members of the commandos while limiting themselves for the moment to the period preceding the attacks, until August 2015. During the hearing concerning on Brahim Abdeslam, who blew himself up inside the bar Le Comptoir Voltaire, several civil party and defense lawyers deplored what they qualify as ” failures From the Belgian police.
On February 9, 2015, the local Belgian police opened a file on Brahim Abdeslam after being informed that he had contacted his brother Salah from Turkey to tell him that he was preparing to cross to Syria, explains the federal investigator. A week later, Brahim, back in Belgium, was arrested following a simple road check. His succinct hearing will not really have any consequences. However, if he denies any sympathy for the Islamic State, Brahim then recognizes ” to have had radical ideas “And carries with him a document entitled” Parents’ permission to do jihad “.
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Little or no use of elements
” It’s cold in the back afterwards because we had it on hand, we had everything on a plate », Underlines a defense lawyer. Contrary to what the federal investigator puts forward to avoid explaining himself on this ” missed “, The file was not in the hands of the local police only, she points out, but also in those of the counterterrorism. It is moreover the federal prosecutor’s office which will classify it “without continuation” in June 2015.
Some elements were however little or not exploited, in particular the telephone seized on Brahim Abdeslam. Other ” missed “, Insist the civil parties, because an expert opinion finally carried out in 2016 will reveal a conversation going back to July 2014 with Abdelhamid Abaaoud. ” May Allah guide you in the voice of jihad and grant you martyrdom “, Launches from Syria the future coordinator of the attacks to Brahim Abdeslam, who assures:” I’m coming inch’Allah “. ” If this conversation had been picked up earlier, the decision to dismiss would have been different », Ends up recognizing with difficulty the investigator.
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