Paris Attacks: French Attacker Identified, Israel to Aid France

Paris: 1 Frenchman, 3 Belgians arrested for alleged involvement in the terror attacks, 3 IS teams involved

• Omar Ismael Mostefai, a Frenchman, has been arrested in connection with the attacks in Paris.
• Car hired in Belgium linked to Paris attack.
  
• One of three arrested in Brussels was in Paris on Friday.

• Attacks carried out by three teams of IS attackers acting in unison.
• Israel’s spy agencies are helping France investigate the attack.

Frenchman Identified as One of the Attackers

The Financial Times reported that Omar Ismael Mostefai, a 29-year-old Frenchman of Algerian origin, who had been flagged for links to Islamic radicalism has been identified as one of those who executed the terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday.

France has declared a state of emergency, which could last beyond the stipulated 12 days. The country has vowed to “hit, annihilate Daesh.” ‘Daesh’ is how France officially refers to the ISIS.

Belgians Arrested in Connection with Attacks in Paris

Belgian police arrested three people on Saturday in raids in a poor, immigrant quarter of Brussels as they pursued emerging links between the Paris attacks and an Islamist bastion in France’s northern neighbour.

Prime Minister Charles Michel said at least one of those held from the inner Brussels neighbourhood of Molenbeek was believed to have spent the previous evening in Paris, where two cars registered in Belgium were impounded close to scenes of violence, including the Bataclan music hall.

A French prosecutor said a car hired in Belgium was linked to the attacks and that a Frenchman living in Brussels rented it and was later stopped early on Saturday at the Belgian border.

Officials declined comment on reports that the attacks may have been largely plotted in Brussels.

Proportional to its 11 million population, of whom half a million are Muslim, Belgium has been the European country which has contributed the most foreign fighters to the civil war in Syria — over 300 by official estimates a year ago— and it has figured in many Islamist attacks and plots across the continent.

Though there has been violence in Belgium, and Brussels is home to the institutions of the European Union, France, and Paris in particular, has appeared a higher-profile target, more clearly associated with the action in the war in Syria. And, across borders normally unchecked, Paris lies barely three hours by road and under 90 minutes by high-speed train from Brussels.

Attacks Carried Out by Three Teams of IS Members

The New York Times reported that the attacks in Paris were carried out by three teams of Islamic State attackers acting in unison. One of the assailants may have travelled to Europe on a Syrian passport, along with migrants.

The death toll has risen to 129. Of the 352 wounded, 99 are critical. A basic timeline of the attacks has become evident.

Francois Molins, the Paris prosecutor, said the attackers were armed with assault rifles and suicide vests. The assault began at 9.20 pm, local time. A terrorist detonated a suicide bomb outside the gates of the football stadium on the northern outskirts of Paris. The attack ended twenty minutes past midnight on Friday when the authorities stormed the Bataclan. An attacker was killed, while two others detonated suicide vests. 89 people who were listening to the band, Eagles of Death Metal were shot to death.

Israel to Aid France’s Investigations

Israel said on Sunday its spy services were helping France investigate the Paris attacks, and Israeli media suggested that intelligence being provided drew on surveillance of militant groups in Syria and Iraq.

After Friday’s rampage, which killed at least 129 people, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered full cooperation with French and other European authorities trying to identify the perpetrators and prevent further attacks.

The cooperation is ongoing, but in accordance with the prime minister’s directive, intelligence material relevant to what happened has been relayed, and we will also deepen the cooperation. This information can help the French - and not just the French, by the way - to deal with the aftermath, and not just with what happened, but also with terrorist attacks planned for the future.

Yisrael Katz, Intelligence Minister, Israel

(With agency inputs)