Frenchman Salah Abdel Salam, who was sentenced to life in France for his involvement in the 2015 Paris attacks, refused to appear in court in Brussels at the start of court hearings yesterday for his role in the attacks carried out by the same armed cell. in the Belgian capital in March 2016.
The 32-year-old Frenchman, one of 11 defendants in the trial, has been taken out of his cell until he intends to face that trial, according to his lawyer.
A few minutes after the opening of the meeting, he expressed a desire to leave the dock, going to the chairman of the court, saying: “The way you treat us is unfair.”
He was referring to the conditions of being in closed individual indictment cells behind glass, which, according to them, defense lawyers compared to “cages” that limit the ability to communicate.
Nine defendants who are due to stand trial have also been released from prison and charged with terrorism. But many of them were quick to criticize these “cells” after they were put on trial. “We are like dogs here,” said Sofiane Ayari, a Tunisian who was an accomplice to Abd al-Salam’s escape.
