Bataclan attack trial: Court case begins into 2015 Paris attacks as 1,000 police stand guard

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French Gendarmes arrive at the Palais de Justice of Paris ahead of the start of the trial into the 2015 Paris attacks (AFP via Getty Images)

The trial is set to open into the terrorist attacks which left around 130 dead in Paris more than six years ago.

Gunmen with suicide vests attacked six bars and restaurants, the Bataclan concert hall and a sports stadium in the French capital in November 2015 in a deadly jihadist rampage, which also wounded hundreds.

Scores of police gathered around the Palais de Justice courthouse in central Paris ahead of the trial of 20 men suspected of involvement in the attacks.

The French interior minister has warned the terrorist threat is especially high at times like the attack’s trial, which is due to start on Wednesday morning.

Around 1,000 police have been deployed for the trial, he said.

Key Points

• France prepapes for ‘trial of century'
• Who are the defendants?
• Minister warns of terror threat
• Around 1,000 police deployed for trial

[8 September 2021 11:25 · Zoe Tidman]

Timeline of 2015 attacks

The 2015 attacks in Paris killed 130 people and wounded hundreds of others.The attacks were carefully planned and simultaneous across the French capital.Here is a timeline of events:

September-November 2015:

Two apartments and a house in Belgium are rented under false identities to prepare and coordinate the attacks. Salah Abdeslam rents two cars in Belgium to drive to France.

13 November 2015:

9.16pm and 9.20pm: Two suicide bombers detonate themselves outside the national stadium just north of Paris after failing to enter it. A security guard and both bombers die.

9:24 p.m. to 9:36 p.m. Three shootings take place at different restaurants in the 10th and 11th arrondissement of Paris. Thirty-nine people die.

9:41 p.m: A suicide bomber detonates his vest by another restaurant, kills no one but wounds two.

9:47 p.m: Three gunmen storm the Bataclan concert hall, killing 90.

9:53 p.m: A suicide bomber detonates his vest near the national stadium. He is the only one killed.

14 November 2015:

12:12 a.m: Police special forces enter the Bataclan, two terrorists blow themselves up, one is killed by police.

Early morning: Salah Abdeslam, who had dropped the stadium bombers off and whose brother was one of the restaurant attackers, flees to Belgium.

AP

[8 September 2021 11:37 · Zoe Tidman]

Lawyer of victims arrived at court

Here is Olivier Morice, French lawyer of the relatives of the victims of the Paris attacks, seen speaking to the press as he arrived at the courtroom for the start of the trial:

French lawyer of the relatives of the victims of the Paris attacks, Olivier Morice, speaks to the press upon his arrival for the start of the trial (AFP via Getty Images)

[8 September 2021 11:57 · Zoe Tidman]

Security operation for trial

A vast security operation swung into operation in Paris as the trial of those charged with carrying out the worst terrorist attack in the French capital’s history was set to begin.

Peter Allen in Paris reports:

[8 September 2021 12:05 · Zoe Tidman]

Salah Abdeslam appears in court

Salah Abdeslam has appeared in the dock for the trial, according to French TV station LCI.

While cameras are not allowed in the room, their reporter inside described him as having mid-length hair and a beard longer than his face mask.

According to Reuters, the 31-year-old arrived in the courtroom dressed all in black, including with a black face mask.

He is widely reported to have remained silent during the investigation and survivors and relatives of those killed said they did not expect to hear much from him.

[8 September 2021 12:36 · Zoe Tidman]

Trial begins

The trial into the 2015 Paris attacks has started.

According to Agence France Presse, Salah Abdeslam said in his opening remarks: “There is no god except for Allah.”

[8 September 2021 12:51 · Zoe Tidman]

Defendant says ‘ambition is to become a fighter for Islamic State’

As the trial began, the defendants were called in alphabetical order.

Salah Abdeslam - thought to be the only surviving member of the group suspected of carrying out the 2015 Paris attacks - was first and he was asked to identify himself. Requested to state his profession, the 31-year-old said his “ambition is to become a fighter for Islamic State.”

Additional reporting by AP

[8 September 2021 12:51 · Zoe Tidman]

Defendant says ‘ambition is to become a fighter for Islamic State’

As the trial began, the defendants were called in alphabetical order.

Salah Abdeslam - thought to be the only surviving member of the group suspected of carrying out the 2015 Paris attacks - was first and he was asked to identify himself. Requested to state his profession, the 31-year-old said his “ambition is to become a fighter for Islamic State.”

Additional reporting by AP

[8 September 2021 13:15 · Zoe Tidman]

‘We don’t want the terrorists to win’ - Bataclan hostage ahead of trial

Survivors of the Islamic State group attack on Paris in 2015 have spoken out ahead of the long-awaited trial.

Bataclan hostage Stéphane Toutlouyan told AP: “I think we have a duty to stay positive and keep moving forward. We don’t want the terrorists to win.”

Watch on Independent TV:

[8 September 2021 13:36 · Tom Batchelor]

Salah Abdeslam describes himself as ‘Islamic State soldier'

A French-Moroccan believed to be the only surviving member of a group that killed 130 people in a rampage across Paris has described himself as “an Islamic State soldier” at the start of the trial into the 2015 attacks.

Salah Abdeslam appeared in court dressed in black and with a black face mask, one of 20 men accused of involvement in attacks by gunmen in suicide vests on six restaurants and bars, the Bataclan concert hall and a sports stadium on Nov. 13, 2015.

Asked what his profession was, Abdeslam, 31, told the court: “I gave up my job to become an Islamic State soldier.”

“I want to testify that there is no god except Allah and that Mohammad is his servant,” he said.