(Radio France) The second week of the Paris November 2015 terror trial began with the continuation of the reading of the court president’s report, the ten-hour overview of the facts as they appear after six years of criminal investigation. And then the first witness, an anti-terrorist police officer protected by anonymity, went over the same ground. Chief accused, Salah Abdeslam, and some defence lawyers, were less than pleased.
There was an inevitable sense of déjà vu.
Outlining the charges
The president’s report culminated with the details of the charges facing each of the 20 accused. Certain expressions were repeated with insistence: “terrorist conspiracy,” “organised gang,” “trained, chosen and directed by Islamic State in Syria/Iraq,” “serious menace to public order,” “intimidation,” “terror,” “targets in France, Europe.”
