After the “historic” trial of the Bataclan attacks, France is now Beautiful. It started at noon this Monday paris court Court process eight so-called accomplices of great anger 14 July 2016. While several prominent members of the Islamic State (IS) sit on the bench at the final hearing of the November 2015 attacks, the profile of the defendants in the Nice case – and the sentences they faced – is more modest. Eight people were part of the circle or in contact a few weeks before the Tunisian attack. Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhleldeadly journey with a truck 86 dead.
On that fateful night, Lahouaiej Bouhlel passed over the dense crowd of more than 25,000 people during the traditional ceremony. firework your glorious national holiday Promenade des Angels It’s in Nice, the main city on the Côte d’Azur in southeast France. With more than 80 deaths – 15 minor victims and a third of them Muslim confessors – and 400 injuredIt represented the second most significant jihadist attack in the neighboring country in the last decade.
Although ISIS accepted responsibility for this attack, it did not do so until 36 hours after the events. Since then, the agents responsible for the investigation have not found no direct link between the person responsible for the massacre and the Islamic fundamentalist organization. So much so that they think it is claimed by “pure opportunism”.
Low profile alleged accomplices
As in many other jihadist attacks, the author was shot dead by French police that same night. Profile and motivations of this 31 year old Tunisian known for his mental problems obsessed with her sex and violencewill be available throughout four month trial. Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, who ate pork, made salsa, and did not respect Ramadan, was unknown to the security forces. It was only archived from him in 2011 and 2014 due to his wife’s complaints about sexist violence. It was learned that he became interested in ISIS propaganda videos after the attack and grew a beard a few weeks before 14 July 2016.
The confusing profile of Lahouaiej-Bouhlel—did he act like an ISIS soldier or is he mentally ill?— the ambiguous character of the eight supposed accomplices (seven men and one woman) were tried in Paris. The three main defendantsrelationship with terrorist and perpetrator”. Three Tunisian friends or acquaintances of the author of the massacre. He is suspected of accompanying them on a truck trip along the Promenade des Anges a few days before the attack. Four Albanians and a Tunisian are also on trial for giving him the weapons he was carrying in the truck – a pistol, a grenade and two fake rifles. they can be convicted 20 to 5 years imprisonment.
Finding meaning in judgment
Seven of the defendants, who were tried in the absence of one detained in Tunisia, gave their first statements Monday before the court chaired by Judge Laurent Raviot. He looked more like a plumber or electrician than an Islamic fundamentalist. “There are no co-authors or accomplices among the defendants. (…) We cannot expect the punishment to be equal to the prejudice suffered. By civic parties”, agreed by Judge Denis Salas in remarks to the progressive newspaper liberation. “Some victims are having a hard time understanding this case precisely because of the absence of the person responsible,” adds Sophie Hébert, a lawyer from the 14-7 Avocats collective.
In addition to the usual rounds of presentation of the accused, this first hearing is devoted to procedural matters such as the composition of the parties involved. Again More than 2,450 people were compensated as victims, only 865 of them applied as civil parties. As Anti-Terrorism Justice is headquartered in Paris, the process takes place in the capital, about 1,000 kilometers from Nice.
As in the Bataclan process, hearings are recorded – an exceptional case in France, where the dissemination of footage from inside the rooms is prohibited – and they are released to the public at the Court of Paris and in Nice. Victims can also follow the route via a specific radio station. announcement The sentence is scheduled for mid-December..