The trial of the defendants in the November 13, 2015 attacks in France will conclude this week, the defendants will testify today before the Special Criminal Court meets to begin its deliberations. Paris and Saint-Denis, a suburb not far from the French capital, caused shock throughout the country.
On this day, armed groups opened fire on the balconies of cafes and restaurants and attacked the Bataclan concert hall during a concert, and three suicide bombers blew themselves up near the Stade de France stadium during a football match between France and Germany.
The “historic” trial, which became the longest criminal trial in the history of the French judiciary after World War II and began on September 8, did not answer all the questions raised by 2,500 civilian prosecutors.
Although not all points have been clarified, the trial has allowed the survivors and families of the victims to come forward and feel their pain again, far beyond the courtroom of the Palace of Justice, which has been turned into a fortress for almost ten months.
Prosecutors have demanded an irreducible life sentence, or “actual life”, the harshest sentence under French law, for Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the gangs that killed 130 people in Paris and Saint-Denis.
He also requested jail terms ranging from five years to life for 19 other defendants, including six who were tried in absentia.
“I’m only asking you to work as usual,” said Leah Dorddi, the lawyer for Algerian Adel Haddadi, who was asked by the prosecution to be sentenced to 20 years in prison.
