Paris terror attacks suspect stays mum in Belgian court
The prime surviving suspect in the 2015 Islamic State attacks on Paris said he would answer no questions as his trial in Belgium over a shooting that preceded his arrest got under way in Brussels on Monday.
Appearing in public for the first time since the November 2015 attacks and his arrest in Brussels four months later, Salah Abdeslam, 28, remained seated, flanked by two masked Belgian police officers.
“I do not wish to answer questions,” Abdeslam said.
After a first session during which his alleged accomplice admitted to having fought for Islamic State in Syria and said that both accused were present during the March 2016 shootout with Brussels police, the judge again asked Abdeslam to speak.
Citing his right to silence and declaring his Muslim faith, he accused the media of condemning
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him before his trial: “Judge me. Do as you want with me,” he told the judge. “I put my trust in my Lord .... I remain silent. That is a right which I have,” he said, adding: “My silence does not make me a criminal or guilty.
“I am defending myself by remaining silent.”
He asked that the prosecution base itself only on forensic evidence and to “not swagger about to satisfy public opinion”, adding: “Muslims are judged and treated in the worst kind of ways. They are judged without mercy. There is no presumption of innocence.” REUTERS
On February 1, the court quashed terror cases against former president Mohamed Nasheed — in self-exile in Sri Lanka — and ordered eight other opposition leaders be released and tried again. It also ruled that 12 parliamentarians sacked for defecting from Yameen’s party be reinstated — such a move would reduce the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives to a minority
President Abdulla Yameen has said that the court had overstepped its authority. His law minister said that the government does not believe that the ruling "can be enforced".
Two police chiefs who said they would uphold the court verdict have been fired. The ruling PPM has also sought to shut an independent TV station accused of "spreading discord" Former president Mohamed Nasheed