Salah Abdeslam: Paris attacks suspect 'planned more attacks in Brussels', says Belgian foreign minister
Terror suspect being held after being caught in a raid
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Your support makes all the difference.Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam has reportedly told Belgian investigators he was planning to carry out further attacks, the country’s foreign minister has said.
Didier Reynders said Abdeslam said “he was ready to restart something from Brussels, and it’s maybe the reality”.
Mr Reynders says authorities were taking the claim seriously because "we found a lot of weapons, heavy weapons in the first investigations, and we have seen a new network of people around him in Brussels".
It comes as disputes between the French and Belgian authorities threatened to hamper the investigation into Abdeslam's actions, with the suspect's Belgian lawyer announcing legal action against the Paris prosecutor.
Abdeslam was captured on Friday in a police raid in Brussels after escaping from another raid where one suspect was shot dead and four police officers were injured.
He was charged on Saturday with “terrorist murder” in connection with the 13 November attacks on paris which left 130 people dead in a series of bombings and shootings across the city.
Abdeslam’s precise role is unclear but he is suspected of helping manufacture explosives, hiring cars, renting hideouts and transporting jihadists for the 13 November attacks.
Paris prosecutor François Molins said the 26-year-old told investigators he had planned to carry out a suicide attack outside the Stade de France but he “backed out”.
Abdeslam’s lawyer Sven Mary told Belgian broadcaster RTBF he plans to file a complaint against Mr Mollins for revealing the details of the first interrogation to the media.
He said: “This is an error that I cannot allow to pass.
“Reading this out at a press conference is a violation”.
The Belgian national is believed to be the only surviving member of the 10 man gang who attacked the city in an Isis-inspired attack.
Mr Mary has said he will seek to block Abdeslam’s extradition to France to face charges there.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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