Court sentences suspect in 2015 Paris attack that killed 130 to life in prison

Salah Abdeslam, believed to be the only surviving member of the group that carried out the deadliest attack ever seen in France, was found guilty of terrorism and murder charges by a criminal court on Wednesday. He was sentenced to life imprisonment

The trial, which was held in a specially designed courtroom in Paris’ historic Palais de Justice, lasted nine months, with more than 2,000 plaintiffs and more than 300 lawyers involved.

Responsibility for the attacks that killed 130 people and injured hundreds was claimed by the Islamic State, which urged followers to attack France. All 20 men tried were convicted.

Considered the only surviving member of the group that carried out the attacks on November 13, 2015, the Belgian-born 32-year-old Frenchman proudly said at the start of the trial that he was a “soldier” of the Islamic State, which claimed responsibility for the attacks. The reason would be the French involvement in the fight against the militant group in Iraq and Syria.

It was a trial like no other, not only for its exceptional duration of 10 months, but also for the time it took to allow victims to testify in detail about their ordeal and their struggles to overcome it, while the families of the dead spoke of how it was difficult to move on.

Thirteen other people, 10 of whom are also in custody, were also in court during the months-long hearings, accused of crimes ranging from helping to supply guns or cars to the attackers to planning to participate in the attack. Another six were tried in absentia.

The Bataclan auditorium, six bars, restaurants and the perimeter of the Stade de France sports stadium were targets of attacks that lasted hours, shook France and left deep scars on the country’s psyche.