The sole survivor among the group of terrorists who launched the attacks in Paris last November appeared in court Friday but had little to say other than to complain about cameras in his jail cell.
Salah Abdeslam, who was extradited to France after being arrested in Belgium in March, refused to clarify why he didn’t want to talk. He also refused to elaborate on information he was reported to have revealed during his detention in Belgium about the Paris attacks and terror attacks in Brussels.
His French lawyer, Franck Berton, said Abdeslam has not come to terms with the conditions of his detention in the Fleury-Merogis prison, where two security cameras are constantly pointed at his cell.
However, the attorney said, he did expect his client to eventually cooperate with French authorities.
Attacks deadliest in France since WWII
The hearing, which was supposed to last all day, ended quickly, according to BFMTV, a CNN affiliate in France.
On November 13, 2015 a group of attackers launched a series of attacks in or near Paris. In the first, three suicide bombers struck near the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, followed by suicide bombings and mass shootings at cafés, restaurants and a music venue in central Paris.
In all, 130 people were killed, including 89 at the Bataclan theatre, where the attackers took hostages before engaging in a stand-off with police. Another 368 people were injured.
Seven of the attackers also died.
According to Paris prosecutor Francois Molins, Abdeslam told Belgian authorities that he had planned to blow himself up at the Stade de France but simply backed down. Investigators believe Abdeslam may have been the driver of a black Renault Clio that dropped off the three suicide bombers near the Stade de France.
They also think he’d worn a suicide belt that was found discarded on a Paris street after the attacks. Sweat on the belt matched Abdelslam’s DNA, a source close to the investigation told CNN.