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Mangled Body Of Paris Attacks Mastermind Identified After Saint-Denis Shootout

By Val Powell
Published on: 16:49 PST, Nov 19, 2015

The French police launched a raid in the suburban town of Saint-Denis early Wednesday, which left two dead, while eight suspects of the Paris Attack last week were arrested.

One of the two who died was Abdelhamid Abaaoud, 27, who had been pinpointed as the mastermind of the Paris bombings on Friday. The information came from two European officials.

Over 100 police officers went to Saint-Denis, a suburban town on the northern border of Paris, and approached the apartment where Abaaoud was believed to be hiding. However, as early as 4:30 a.m. local time, gunshots were heard as well as a few explosions, which lasted for more than two hours.

News then came out that two people were killed, one of which was a woman, Hasna Ait Boulahcen, who reportedly detonated a suicide vest while talking to the police. Officers asked her where her boyfriend was, referring to Abaaoud, but she claimed that she wasn’t his girlfriend. Afterwards, “loud bangs” were heard inside the apartment.

The bodies of the two, Abaaoud and Ait Boulahcen, were reportedly “mangled” and could not easily be identified. Officials said the former was identified through a skin sample. Eight other suspects were also arrested.

The authorities got the information on where the alleged Paris attack mastermind was hiding using tapped phone calls, surveillance, and tipoffs.

Earlier this week, it was believed that Abaaoud was already in Greece, although a Greek Senior Ministry official told otherwise.

“There is no evidence, nothing has come up that shows that this person was in Greece,” the official said.

However, intelligence reports from “outside of Europe'”confirmed where he was located. It is believed that the apartment was the location where Abaaoud began plotting the Paris attack 11 months ago.

Aside from the Paris attack, Abaaoud had also been linked to other terrorist attacks including one that took place in April in a church located in Paris suburb of Villejuif, where one was killed. Another involved a gunman in a high-speed train, which was prevented by three Americans.

The alleged perpetrator of the attacks had also been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in Belgium.

Reports say that Abaaoud successfully reached France through the country’s open borders, without any warning from fellow EU countries.

“It is urgent for Europe to come together,” said French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve.

French IM Bernard Cazeneuve Announces Drastic Defense And Security Measures After Paris Attack

Meanwhile, several raids are also underway in France’s neighboring country of Belgium, where some of the suicide bombers reportedly came from.

Six raids were conducted in the country’s Brussels region in order to capture suspects who are linked to one of the suicide bombers, Bilal Hadfi.

On Thursday, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel called for changes in the European country’s constitution in order to “combat extremists.” He also aims to boost funding for Belgium’s security against terrorism.

On the other hand, France is eager to take down the Islamic State group by “stepping up” its airstrikes on suspected terrorist headquarters in Syria.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in a radio interview that ISIS “is a monster. But if all the countries in the world aren’t capable of fighting against 30,000 people (ISIS members), it’s incomprehensible.”

In spite of the increased bombings on their bases after the Paris attack, ISIS said, through their English magazine, that they will “retaliate with fire and bloodshed.'”

In relation to the group’s threats, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said that it is possible that ISIS may soon use chemical or biological weapons.

“Terrorism hit France not because of what it is doing in Iraq and Syria… but for what it is,” Valls told the lower house of parliament. “We know that there could also be a risk of chemical or biological weapons,” he added.

[Image via Youtube]

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