Belgium questioned 'terror brothers' before Paris attacks – but didn't tell France



BRUSSELS: -- Belgium says that before Friday’s massacre in Paris, police questioned two brothers at the centre of the terror
plot but the pair were released because they didn’t appear to represent any threat.

Brahim Abdeslam, 31, blew himself up at the Comptoir Voltaire in the French capital, a cafe close to the Bataclan concert hall where gunmen killed 89 of the 129 people slaughtered in the co-ordinated attacks.

His brother Salah Abdeslam, 26, a key suspect in the Paris killings, is now on the run and the object of an international arrest warrant.

Brahim ran Les Beguines, a neighbourhood bar in the Molenbeek area of Brussels, where police found young men dealing drugs and smoking dope over the summer.

The brothers sold the business just six weeks ago. It was closed down in early November following reports of drugs on the premises.

An acquaintance of Brahim, who chose to remain anonymous, describes him as follows:

“He watched a lot of videos on the Islamic State. Sometimes when he was angry he would say ‘I am going to blow everything up’. But he smoked a lot of cannabis so you say to yourself ‘maybe it is just the effect on his brain.’ You think, he is a bit weird, he is in a frenzy. Brahim came to us in this neighbourhood over a week ago to ask us to hide some Kalashnikovs. But as we knew he was a weirdo we said ‘Brahim, you’re joking?’ He said: ‘No, I am serious.’ I have got enough gear to blow up all of Belgium.”

Both brothers lived in Molenbeek – a Brussels district known as a hotbed of radical Islam.

Yet its mayor Francoise Schepmans says the pair had every chance to integrate.

“The Abdeslam brothers were not social rejects,” she said.

“They were not poor lads whose parents had nothing and who hung around the streets. They were boys who had an education, who were given work – a family who were given housing and despite all that they fell into radicalism, into terrorism.”

Whatever their life chances, the fact remains that the brothers were questioned in Belgium – exactly when has not been revealed – without French authorities being informed.


-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2015-11-19

A lot of finger pointing during reflection on what was missed how they could have been

identified and stopped and also how they became radicalized. I think European governments

and governments around the world should look closely at Saudi Imams who have been

sent far and wide to preach a particular hard line interpretation of the Koran. The Saudis

have funded the building of mosques around the world and then a hard liner is parachuted

in. Of course nobody wants to offend the House of Saud.

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

If it is indeed "pretty much impossible", then we're all dead:

"Brahim came to us in this neighbourhood over a week ago to ask us to hide some Kalashnikovs. But as we knew he was a weirdo we said ‘Brahim, you’re joking?’ He said: ‘No, I am serious.’ I have got enough gear to blow up all of Belgium.”

Somebody makes that kind of claim and it goes unreported (no doubt)? What kind of drugs are these people doing? Oh, it's mentioned in the OP.

It must have been one of those "moderate" Muslims, eh?

Islam: The religion of peace - Submit or eternal peace will be visited upon you, by the will of Allah

Edited November 19, 201510 yr by MaxYakov

"the fact remains that the brothers were questioned in Belgium – exactly when has not been revealed – without French authorities being informed."

Yes - "Ever Closer Union" working at its best.

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

I am afraid your opinion is shared by too many unthinking people in Europe.

It is rarely friends and family who report terrorists. Most good intelligence comes from informers who specialise in muslim infiltration.

The major problems the EU face come mostly from the untended borders. It's not just terrorists.

Drug purveyors and vendors can bring their muck in from a thousand ports and distribute these with ease - because there are NO Borders.

Human Traffickers can collect high value underage children from Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, drug them and put them into the back of a van knowing that there are NO Borders between them and their brothels in Amsterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp, Brussels, Paris etc.

Arms dealers - buy their weapons openly in Kosovo, Albania, Romania, Croatia, Bosnia - rockets, grenades, AK47s, HKs, explosives and distribute these to gangsters or the islamic community in any city they want to create murder - and they do so with impunity BECAUSE there ARE NO Borders.

So when the disgusting "Government of Governments", the EU Commission, echo Angela Merkel and tell us that they cannot even look at the possibility of considering the re-introduction of Borders - because it is the single greatest achievement of the EU - it is time for a nation's people to leave the EU as quickly as possible.

We learn today that the two brothers who masterminded the Paris murders had already been interrogated by the Belgian Police - but they had not mentioned the dangers to the French authorities.

To just close our eyes to the coming full horror of islamic terrorism - of which the people of Thailand are daily victims - is dangerous.

It has been known for a while that Belgiun was a terrorist hot bed One solution let Russia and America to start bombing them. I think that China might even help to destroy these chicken ass killers!

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

I am afraid your opinion is shared by too many unthinking people in Europe.

It is rarely friends and family who report terrorists. Most good intelligence comes from informers who specialise in muslim infiltration.

The major problems the EU face come mostly from the untended borders. It's not just terrorists.

Drug purveyors and vendors can bring their muck in from a thousand ports and distribute these with ease - because there are NO Borders.

Human Traffickers can collect high value underage children from Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, drug them and put them into the back of a van knowing that there are NO Borders between them and their brothels in Amsterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp, Brussels, Paris etc.

Arms dealers - buy their weapons openly in Kosovo, Albania, Romania, Croatia, Bosnia - rockets, grenades, AK47s, HKs, explosives and distribute these to gangsters or the islamic community in any city they want to create murder - and they do so with impunity BECAUSE there ARE NO Borders.

So when the disgusting "Government of Governments", the EU Commission, echo Angela Merkel and tell us that they cannot even look at the possibility of considering the re-introduction of Borders - because it is the single greatest achievement of the EU - it is time for a nation's people to leave the EU as quickly as possible.

We learn today that the two brothers who masterminded the Paris murders had already been interrogated by the Belgian Police - but they had not mentioned the dangers to the French authorities.

To just close our eyes to the coming full horror of islamic terrorism - of which the people of Thailand are daily victims - is dangerous.

Ok, I guess I need to take that back - its not "impossible" just "very hard". Terrorist will always be able to slip in on way or the other, that is what I mean. So its not 100% possible to stop these lunatics. So if you agree with that statement, my earlier statement actually still holds true, its impossible to stop them.

They were interrogated for trying to travel there, but not linked with any cell or terrorist activities yet. There are thousands of folks like them in Europe, I'm sure thousands of radicals are on watch lists, the problem is we will never know which one will make their move. Some could be lone wolfs acting out on their own.

Yes I do agree, rarely friends and family members turn them in, and the rest regarding to borders etc etc.

USA is a harder target due to the border compare to Europe. US also have extensive spying and filtering done on messages and calls all around the world, I believe they do have an advantage in thwarting attacks.

Edited November 19, 201510 yr by mike324

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

Also I agree in part with your posting, however if someone is even linked to a terror or muslim fanatic cells. they should be at least put under house arrest or give the courts the same power as they have against citizens that are send to the mental hospital because they are a danger to the public.

Their are people in Europe that had fight for ISIS and returned to Europe and not everyone is in prison. Those people should be jailed for the sake of public security or if they can't be jailed build a mental hospital for Muslims and lock them up forever. All those long bearded fanatics too should be send to the Mental hospital that are preaching violence on the street in Europe.

Its pretty much impossible to stop terrorists like this unless their friends or family report them in. Even if they were interview by police, with no evidence of anything but just a gut feeling, no one can do anything.

We are living in an increasing violent world, hate to see events like this spread to Asia.

Also I agree in part with your posting, however if someone is even linked to a terror or muslim fanatic cells. they should be at least put under house arrest or give the courts the same power as they have against citizens that are send to the mental hospital because they are a danger to the public.

Their are people in Europe that had fight for ISIS and returned to Europe and not everyone is in prison. Those people should be jailed for the sake of public security or if they can't be jailed build a mental hospital for Muslims and lock them up forever. All those long bearded fanatics too should be send to the Mental hospital that are preaching violence on the street in Europe.

I agree with what you say. The problem is how do we determine how dangerous someone is, and how do we determine they are safe to be released?

For example, being radicalize from reading content online, should we throw them in jail or under house arrest?

Same for anyone caught reading bomb making content, should we automatically throw them in jail?

I'm not saying we shouldn't put them under house arrest, just want to discuss on the process of determining how do we rate how radicalize one is, and how likely they will commit a crime.

As for the Belgian brothers, they were known as radicals and tried to travel to Syria. But not linked to any cells yet, but that should have raised several red flags. But I think there are probably hundreds of folks just like them, intelligence probably can't follow every single one of them as well. So there are limitations to what intelligence officers can do.

'They were boys who had an education, who were given work – a family who were given housing and despite all that they fell into radicalism, into terrorism.”' Obviously, they didn't fall into either radicalism or terrorism; they sought it out. And no doubt the do-gooders, the human rights organisations, government experts, will continue to persist in fostering the idea that Islamic radicalism is all down to poor circumstances and lack of opportunity.