Paris suspect Salah Abdeslam ‘wants transfer to France ASAP’

Salah Abdeslam, the leading suspect in November's Paris attacks, wants to be transferred to France "as soon as possible" to face charges there, his lawyer has said.

Abdeslam has been been held in a high-security jail since his dramatic arrest at a Brussels flat on Friday, four days before suicide bombers struck a Brussels airport and metro.

The 26-year-old had been on the run for four months after the November Paris attacks, which killed 130 people. He is believed to be the last survivor from the cell of 10 men who carried out the massacre.

The investigation suggests Abdeslam and a wider circle of suspected logistics operatives in the Paris attacks could have had links to the suspects in the Brussels attacks. Abdeslam's lawyer, Sven Mary, when asked if his client had prior knowledge about the Brussels suicide bombings, told journalists outside a Brussels court: "He didn't know [about] it."

Just after his arrest, Abdeslam had made clear he would oppose moves by France to obtain his extradition quickly. But that stance has changed, and now he apparently wants to transfer to France to “explain himself”.

Asked why, he said: “The most important part of the file is in France. His explanations have to go there.”

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Mr Mary had told

Europe

1 radio on Wednesday night that Abdeslam had not agreed to speak to investigators who visited him on Tuesday after the Brussels attacks. He said this was perhaps because Abdeslam wanted to speak to his lawyer first. Mr Mary said he did not want Abdeslam to close up or withdraw from speaking.

Abdeslam had been due in court in Brussels on March 31st to face a European arrest warrant issued by France. The hearing has now been postponed until April 7th. Asked whether Abdeslam, French-born though raised in Brussels, was still helping police investigators, Mr Mary declined to comment, citing client confidentiality.

The lawyer had said on Monday, before the attacks, that Abdeslam was collaborating and communicating, and he was “worth his weight in gold” for the investigation.

The Belgian daily Le Soir reported Mr Mary was assaulted on Tuesday by someone who criticised him for defending a terrorist. – (Guardian service)