BRUSSELS (AP) – A jury is expected to hand down its verdict Tuesday in Belgium’s deadly peacetime, suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a busy train station in 2016 that killed 32 people in attacks across Europe claimed by the Islamic State group.
Among the 10 defendants is Salah Abdeslam, who is serving a life sentence without parole in France for his role in the attacks on Paris cafes, the Bataclan theater and the French stadium in 2015.
The biggest trial in Belgian court history took place over half a year in a special court to deal with this special case. Survivors and victims’ families hoped the trial and sentencing would help them work through their trauma and find closure.
The rush hour attack on March 22, 2016 at Zavantem airport and the Brussels subway line seriously shook the city – the capital of the European Union and NATO – and put the country at risk. In addition to the 32 people killed, nearly 900 others were injured or seriously injured.
The 12 judges have been deliberating since early July about 300 questions the court asked them to consider before reaching a verdict. The decision expected to be taken on Tuesday will deal with whether the suspects have different charges; The final verdict will be decided in a separate and unexpected process before September. If convicted, some could face up to 30 years in prison.
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Abdeslam was the only survivor among Islamic State extremists who attacked Paris in November 2015 and was part of a Franco-Belgian network that went on to target Brussels four months later.
Also on trial in Brussels is Mohamed Abrini, Abdeslam’s childhood friend and Brussels native who fled Zaventem airport after his explosives failed to detonate.
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