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France Identifies 3rd Attacker at Bataclan Concert Hall France Identifies 3rd Attacker at Bataclan Concert Hall
(about 5 hours later)
PARIS — The third attacker at the Bataclan concert hall, where 90 people were killed in the terrorist attacks here last month, was a 23-year-old native of northeastern France who had gone to fight in Syria, a lawyer for his family said on Wednesday. PARIS — The third attacker at the Bataclan concert hall, where 90 people were killed in the terrorist attacks here last month, was a 23-year-old native of northeastern France who had gone to fight in Syria, a lawyer for his family said Wednesday.
Without giving a name, the authorities confirmed on Wednesday that the last Bataclan attacker had been identified, and the lawyer later said he was Foued Mohamed-Aggad. Without giving a name, the authorities confirmed that the last Bataclan attacker had been identified, and the lawyer later said he was Foued Mohamed-Aggad.
It was Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s mother who first alerted the authorities that her son was probably one of the gunmen who opened fire on concertgoers on Nov. 13, the lawyer, Françoise Cotta, said in a telephone interview. Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s mother had “been without news of him for several months,” Ms. Cotta said, when she received a text message from Syria saying that he had “died a martyr on Nov. 13.” Ms. Cotta said that the mother then asked her to alert the authorities and that a DNA match was made. It was Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s mother who first alerted the authorities that her son was probably one of the gunmen who opened fire on concertgoers on Nov. 13, the lawyer, Françoise Cotta, said in a phone interview.
Mr. Mohamed-Aggad was one of a group of young men from Strasbourg and its region, friends and brothers, who left for Syria at the end of 2013, according to the lawyer and the French news media. All were reported to have been in contact with a man identified as one of the principal French jihadist recruiters, Mourad Farès, who is now in prison here. Their departure from working-class districts of housing projects, reported by the French media, caused a stir at the time. Mr. Mohamed-Aggad lived with his mother in a housing project in the small town of Wissembourg, about 40 miles north of Strasbourg. Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s mother had “been without news of him for several months,” Ms. Cotta said, when she received a text message from Syria saying that he had “died a martyr on Nov. 13.” Ms. Cotta said that the mother then asked her to alert the authorities and that a DNA match was made.
Mr. Farès was described as “an especially dangerous individual, close to terrorist jihadist movements,” by the French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, after his arrest in Turkey last year. Mr. Farès once boasted to a French journalist that “all the jihadists that are written about in the newspapers have gone through me.” Mr. Mohamed-Aggad was one of a group of young men from Strasbourg and its region, friends and brothers, who left for Syria at the end of 2013, according to the lawyer and the French news media. All were reported to have been in contact with a man identified as one of the principal French jihadist recruiters, Mourad Farès, who is now in prison here. Their departure from working-class districts of housing projects, reported by the French news media, caused a stir. Mr. Mohamed-Aggad lived with his mother in a housing project in the small town of Wissembourg, about 40 miles north of Strasbourg.
Of the 10 from the Strasbourg area who went to Syria in 2013, two appear to have been killed in combat, while seven returned to France and were arrested. They include Mr. Aggad’s brother, who is also now in jail. Mr. Farès was described as “an especially dangerous individual, close to terrorist jihadist movements,” by the French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, after his arrest in Turkey last year. Of the 10 from the Strasbourg area who went to Syria in 2013, two appear to have been killed in combat, while seven returned to France and were arrested. They include Mr. Aggad’s brother, who is also now in jail.
Their arrest in Strasbourg in May 2014 was also extensively covered in the media. Only Foued Mohamed-Aggad remained behind in Syria, according to Ms. Cotta and the French media. Their arrest in Strasbourg in May 2014 was also extensively reported. Only Foued Mohamed-Aggad remained behind in Syria, according to Ms. Cotta and the French news media.
“In all his messages home, he said he was going to die in Iraq,” Ms. Cotta said by phone. In fact, of the Strasbourg group, Mr. Mohamed-Aggad may have been one of the few to actually see combat, according to a court document cited on Wednesday by the daily Le Monde. The document describes his ideological hardening while in Syria, citing the testimony of his comrades. The others spoke of “wanting to do humanitarian work” in Syria, according to Le Monde — an explanation the authorities did not believe. “In all his messages home, he said he was going to die in Iraq,” Ms. Cotta said by phone. In fact, of the Strasbourg group, Mr. Mohamed-Aggad may have been one of the few to see combat, according to a court document cited Wednesday by the daily Le Monde .
Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s father, on learning that his son was one of the attackers, said he “would have killed him” had he known his plans, Ms. Cotta said. “The mother is desperate. It is terrible for the family,” she said. “His brother is in prison in France. He said the attacks are not his problem.” The document describes his ideological hardening while in Syria, citing the testimony of his comrades. The others spoke of “wanting to do humanitarian work” in Syria, according to Le Monde — an explanation the authorities did not believe.
Mr. Mohamed-Aggad’s father, on learning his son was one of the attackers, said he “would have killed him” had he known his plans, Ms. Cotta said. “The mother is desperate. It is terrible for the family,” she said.
The police have been working to identify all the assailants, but it has been a painstaking process because some traveled under false names and, in some cases, their bodies were badly damaged after they detonated the explosives they were wearing.The police have been working to identify all the assailants, but it has been a painstaking process because some traveled under false names and, in some cases, their bodies were badly damaged after they detonated the explosives they were wearing.
The police have yet to determine the identities of two of the attackers at the Stade de France who posed as migrants to enter Europe through Greece, and of one of the gunmen who attacked the restaurants and bars, who is thought to have died in a police raid on an apartment in the Paris suburb of St.-Denis. In all, the attackers killed 130 people.The police have yet to determine the identities of two of the attackers at the Stade de France who posed as migrants to enter Europe through Greece, and of one of the gunmen who attacked the restaurants and bars, who is thought to have died in a police raid on an apartment in the Paris suburb of St.-Denis. In all, the attackers killed 130 people.
Of the three attackers at the Bataclan, one was shot early in the siege, another was blown up when the police shot at him in the final assault over two hours later, and a third died in an explosion immediately afterward. It was not immediately clear which of the three was Mr. Mohamed-Aggad. The police, in statements after the attacks, spoke of conducting fraught negotiations with the two terrorists who remained at the end. They described the men as nervous and unstable and threatening to decapitate the hostages they had taken. Of the attackers at the Bataclan, one was shot early, another was blown up when the police shot at him in the final assault two hours later, and a third died in an explosion afterward. It was not immediately clear which of the three was Mr. Mohamed-Aggad. The police, in statements after the attacks, spoke of conducting fraught negotiations with the two terrorists who remained at the end. They described the men as nervous and unstable and threatening to decapitate the hostages they had taken.