The city is located in western Brussels. He’s now at the centre of an worldwide manhunt.
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One of her other sons, Salah Abdeslam, escaped and was questioned at the Belgian border but was allowed to go free.
Speaking to the media through a nephew, his mother insisted that her son “did not mean to kill anyone”. “The fact that his suicide belt exploded without killing anyone says a lot”.
She added: “We even saw him two days before the attacks. There were no signs that they has plans to do anything violent” despite admitting he had spent “a long time” in Syria.
Mohamed Abdeslam, who was himself arrested after the attacks before being released, also confirmed that Salah’s family have no idea where he is. They said French authorities were notified in December 2014 and in June 2015.
In response to the attacks, Mohammed said, “We never thought that one of our brothers was part of this attack”.
Abdeslam’s brother, Salah Abdeslam, is also suspected in the attacks, and is believed to be on the run. He’s believed to still be there, where one French official said he’s considered a “high-profile terrorism figure”. Belgian authorities were immediately notified that Salah had rented the vehicle near the scene of the Bataclan theatre massacre after abandoning a vehicle that held three Kalashnikov AK-47 assault rifles on the outskirts of the French capital. A fourth terrorist was shot and killed by police officers before another bomb could be detonated.
Police have launched a massive investigation and have detained several people connected to the suspects in both France and Belgium. At least one of the attackers was living in Molenbeek, an area of Brussels.
A complete rundown of what is known about attackers is here.
Omar Mostefai was the first of the seven dead ISIS attackers to be identified. The 29-year-old who reportedly opened fire inside the Bataclan music hall lived in the town of Chartres, southwest of Paris.
France wants to unite with the U.S. and Russian Federation in a grand coalition dedicated to fighting Islamic State, French president Francois Hollande has said.
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Across France, police utilising emergency powers said they raided 168 properties and arrested 127 people, 104 of whom were placed under house arrest, in search of members of a suspected sleeper cell of Islamic State activists.
