Abdelhamid Abaaoud

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Abdelhamid Abaaoud
Bearded man holding a book in his right hand and a black flag in his left; a humane in the background
Abaaoud (pictured) holding the Quran and a black flag of the Islamic State
Born 8 April 1987
Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, Belgium
Died 18 November 2015(2015-11-18) (aged 28)
Saint-Denis, France
Cause of death Ballistic trauma
Nationality Belgian
Other names Abdel-Hamid Abu Oud
Known for November 2015 Paris attacks
Religion Sunni Islam (Salafism)
Military career
Allegiance Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Battles/wars Syrian Civil War (2014–15)
This article contains Arabic text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols.

Abdelhamid Abaaoud (Arabic: عبد الحميد أبا عود‎‎; 8 April 1987 – 18 November 2015) was a Belgian and Moroccan[1][2][3] Islamic terrorist, who had spent time in Syria, known as a place where radical groups operate and train, prior to returning to Europe.[4] He was suspected of having organized multiple terror attacks in Belgium and France, and is known to have participated in the November 2015 Paris attacks.[5]

He is also known as Abu Omar Soussi (Arabic: أبو عمر السوسي‎, meaning "from Sous", his Moroccan family's place of origin) and Abu Omar al-Baljīkī (Arabic: أبو عمر البلجيكي‎, meaning Abou Omar the Belgian),[6][7] both of which were noms de guerre.[8][9]

He was killed during a raid which targeted him while he was in Saint-Denis, north of Paris.

Prior to the events which unfolded in Paris, there had been an international arrest warrant issued for Abaaoud on the basis of his activities in recruiting individuals to Syrian Islamic terrorism.[10]

Early life[edit]

Abdelhamid, one of six children, was born on 8 April 1987[11] in Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, a suburb of Brussels, Belgium.[12] He was the son of Omar Abaaoud, whose first employment upon emigration to Belgium was within mining, [9] later employed as a shopkeeper, he emigrated to Belgium from Morocco in 1975.[6][13] Abaaoud grew up in Molenbeek, an area where "the radical Salafist ideology has flourished among some young Muslims."[14] He attended the select Collège Saint-Pierre in Uccle from 1999 to 2000.[6][15][16]

In 2010, he spent time in prison at Saint Gilles for petty theft.[6][17] For a time, sometime prior to 2013, Abdelhamid Abaaoud was involved in trading via employment with his father. [9]

In 2013, he recruited his then 13-year-old brother Younes to join him in Syria.[6][13] They left for Syria on 19 January 2014, for which he was convicted of abduction, having been previously convicted of robbery.[18]

Abaaoud and Salah Abdeslam were in prison together in Belgium.[19]

Earlier terrorist activities[edit]

See also: Jihadism and Islamic terrorism

Abaaoud is reported to have joined a group within ISIS known as al-Battar Katiba, [9] (the al-Battar [20][9] Battalion [21]) while fighting was against Bashar al-Assad, during 2013. He returned to Belgium by the end of the same year.[22] In 2014, independent journalists Étienne Huver and Guillaume Lhotellier visited the Syria–Turkey border, where they obtained photos and video of Abaaoud's time in Syria. One portion of this material showed Abaaoud and others loading bloody corpses into a truck and trailer before Abaaoud grinned and told the camera: "Before we towed jet skis, motorcycles, quad bikes, big trailers filled with gifts for vacation in Morocco. Now, thank God, following God's path, we're towing apostates, infidels who are fighting us."[23] Within Syria, Abaaoud is known to have been active at Hraytan. A diary entry while there records: "Admittedly there is no joy in spilling blood, although it's nice to see, from time to time, the blood of the infidels".[24]

Analysis of a telephone call established Abaaoud was in contact with Mehdi Nemmouche during January 2014.[25] Nemmouche, a Franco-Algerian jihadist, shot and killed four people at the Jewish Museum in Brussels on 24 May 2014.[26] Belgian authorities suspect him of having helped to organize and finance a terror cell in Verviers. This cell was raided on 15 January 2015 and two members of the cell were killed. In an interview with Dabiq, the magazine of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), Abaaoud bragged on social media that he had gone to Belgium to lead the cell but escaped back to Syria, even being stopped by a police officer who compared him to a photo but did not identify him.[23] In July 2015, following the Verviers raid, he was convicted in absentia and sentenced to twenty years in prison by a Belgian judge for organizing terrorism.[18]

In an interview with Dabiq magazine published February 2015, Abaaoud was reported to have made comments of his intention to fight persons of the Western world which he identifies as "the crusaders".[27]

Abaaoud was implicated in four out of six attacks foiled in France since spring 2015.[28] This included an attempted attack by Sid Ahmed Ghlam (fr) at a church in Villejuif near Paris in April 2015, as well as the thwarted Thalys train attack, which occurred on 21 August 2015.[29]

According to a BBC report on 19 November 2015, after Abaaoud's death, France's Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told reporters that he had received intelligence that Abaaoud had passed through Greece on his return from Syria. It is unclear whether the Belgian had concealed himself among the thousands of migrants arriving in Greece before heading for other EU nations. Greek officials subsequently insisted that there was no evidence that Abaaoud had been in that country.[30] Confirming that Abaaoud had left for Syria last year, Mr. Cazeneuve said no EU states had signalled his return.[28]

He was thought by counter-terrorism officials to have been close to Abu Bakr al-Bagdadi, and the link between ISIL leadership in Syria and terror cells operating in Europe.[24]

Paris attacks and death[edit]

See also: November 2015 Paris attacks and 2015 Saint-Denis raid

By 16 November 2015, French and Belgian security services were focused on Abaaoud, who they believed to have been the leader of the November 2015 Paris attacks.[31] On 18 November, French authorities conducted a raid that ended in the injury of five police officers, three deaths, and at least five arrests, although some reports later indicated eight.[32] The raid took place in the suburb of Saint-Denis, in north Paris, and targeted Abaaoud,[33][34] successfully, since he was one of three killed during the raid.[35][36]

The police were aware that Hasna Ait Boulahcen, a suspect in a drug ring investigation during which her telephone was tapped, also of Moroccan origin, was an associate of Abaaoud. They followed her to a Saint-Denis apartment building at 8 Rue Corbillon on 17 November and saw Abaaoud entering with her.[37][38] This was the building where the subsequent raid started at 4:20 am on 18 November.

The prosecutor's office said that Abaaoud's body was found in the apartment that had been targeted in the raid and that the identification was made using skin samples, according to some published reports.[39] However, other reports referred to identification by fingerprint samples taken from Abaaoud's mutilated body[40] which had been riddled with bullets and bits of shrapnel from a grenade explosion.[41]

According to French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, Abaaoud had "played a decisive role" in the Paris attacks and played a part in four of six terror attacks foiled since spring of 2015, with one alleged jihadist claiming Abaaoud had trained him personally.[42]

See also[edit]

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References[edit]

  1. ^ "Qui est Abdelhamid Abaaoud, le prétendu cerveau des attentats de Paris ?" (in French). RT. 19 November 2015. Retrieved 21 November 2015. Le terroriste présumé possède la double nationalité belge et marocaine 
  2. ^ http://www.lepoint.fr/monde/attentats-un-renseignement-marocain-a-mis-les-enqueteurs-sur-la-piste-d-abaaoud-19-11-2015-1983213_24.php
  3. ^ http://www.rtbf.be/info/dossier/attaques-terroristes-a-paris/detail_saint-denis-le-renseignement-marocain-a-l-origine-de-la-localisation-des-terroristes?id=9140372
  4. ^ McDonnell, Patrick J; Zavis, Alexandra (19 November 2015). "Suspected Paris attack mastermind's Europe ties facilitated travel from Syria". Los Angeles Times, in the Sacramento Bee (Los Angeles, USA). Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  5. ^ "Suspected Mastermind of Paris Attacks Named". Sky News. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2015. 
  6. ^ a b c d e Andrew Higgins (24 January 2015). "Belgium Confronts the Jihadist Danger Within". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 November 2015. 
  7. ^ "Abaaoud – Profile of man behind Paris attacks". 18 November 2015. 
  8. ^ Waugh, R. (18 November 2015). "Who is Abdelhamid Abaaoud? 8 facts on alleged Paris terror mastermind - Metro News". Metro. Retrieved 21 November 2015. 
  9. ^ a b c d e D. Connett, O. Abaaoud. article. published by The Independent. Retrieved 2015-11-22. 
  10. ^ "Paris attacks: Belgium has 'new information' on Salah Abdeslam". Financial Times. 20 November 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  11. ^ Pablo R. Suanzes (18 November 2015). "Abdelhamiid Abaaoud, el 'cerebro' belga de los ataques de París". El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 November 2015. 
  12. ^ "Paris attacks: footage shows moment shooting starts in Bataclan theatre – video". The Guardian. 15 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015. 
  13. ^ a b "Alleged Belgian plot mastermind shamed family, says father". The Malaysian Insider. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015. 
  14. ^ "Paris attacks: Key suspect Abdelhamid Abaaoud". BBC News. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015. 
  15. ^ "Abdelhamid Abaaoud, l'homme le plus recherché de Belgique a fréquenté une école huppée" [Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the most wanted man in Belgium attended a posh school]. Sudinfo.Belgium. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  16. ^ "Tout ce qu'il faut savoir sur le djihadiste Abdelhamid Abaaoud, cerveau molenbeekois présumé des attentats de Paris, tué ce mercredi à Saint-Denis (vidéo)" [Everything you need to know about the jihadist Abdelhamid Abaaoud, alleged mastermind of the attacks of Paris, killed Wednesday in Saint-Denis (video)]. La Capitale. 19 November 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2015. 
  17. ^ "Paris attacks: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the suspected mastermind of atrocity". Financial Times. 
  18. ^ a b "De rattenvanger van Molenbeek veroordeeld". De Standaard. 30 July 2015. 
  19. ^ G. Botelho; M. Haddad; C.E. Shoichet (20 November 2015). "Paris attacks ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud dead". CNN. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  20. ^ United States Naval Academy - article [Retrieved 2015-11-23]
  21. ^ E. Hill - article published by Al Jazeera March 1, 2011 [Retrieved 2015-11-23]
  22. ^ Ian Black; Josh Halliday (16 November 2015). "Abdelhamid Abaaoud: alleged mastermind of Paris attacks". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  23. ^ a b Raphael Satter; John-Thor Dahlburg (16 November 2015). Paris attacks: Belgian Abdelhamid Abaaoud identified as presumed mastermind. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  24. ^ a b Mariano Castillo; Paul Cruickshank (19 November 2015). Who was Abdelhamid Abaaoud, suspected ringleader of Paris attack?. CNN. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  25. ^ "Abdelhamid Abaaoud, l’instigateur présumé des attentats tué à Saint-Denis" [Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the alleged instigator of the attacks killed at Saint-Denis]. Le Monde. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  26. ^ "Paris attacks: Who was Abdelhamid Abaaoud?". BBC News. 19 November 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  27. ^ Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks (16 November 2015). "Paris attacks 'mastermind' Abdel-Hamid Abu Oud: what we know". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2015. 
  28. ^ a b no by-line. "Paris attacks: 'Ringleader' Abdelhamid Abaaoud killed in raid". BBC News. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  29. ^ "Qui est Abdelhamid Abaaoud, le commanditaire présumé des attentats ciblé par le RAID à Saint-Denis ?". Le Monde. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  30. ^ Reuters (19 November 2015). "No evidence Paris attack mastermind was ever in Greece -Greek official". Daily Mail (London, England). Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  31. ^ Aurelien Breeden, Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura and Katrin Bennhold (16 November 2015). "Hollande Calls for New Powers to 'Eradicate' ISIS After Paris Attacks". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2015. 
  32. ^ Reguly, Eric (19 November 2015). "Two dead, eight arrested after police raid Paris apartment in hunt for suspects". The Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada). Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  33. ^ "Paris attacks: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, mastermind of Friday's attack, targeted in major police raid in St Denis". The Daily Telegraph. 18 November 2015. 
  34. ^ Brethes, Sara (17 November 2015). "Female suicide bomber and another jihadist killed in Paris assault". Yahoo! News. Agence France-Presse. Retrieved 18 November 2015. 
  35. ^ French Prosecutor Says Terrorist Abdel Hamid Abaaoud Is Dead, Bloomberg, 19 November 2015
  36. ^ "Paris Siege: Third Body Found At Scene". Sky News. 20 November 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 
  37. ^ Thomas, Leigh; Bon, Gerard (21 November 2015). "Tapped phone led Paris attack leader to his death". Reuters UK. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved 21 November 2015. 
  38. ^ Samuel Osborne (20 November 2015). "Hasna Ait Boulahcen – Europe's first female suicide bomber – 'did not blow herself up'". The Independent. Retrieved 21 November 2015. 
  39. ^ Bloomberg and Associated Press (19 November 2015). "Paris attacks suspected mastermind killed in Saint-Denis raids". Toronto Star. Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  40. ^ Julian, Borger (19 November 2015). "Abdelhamid Abaaoud: dead Paris terror 'leader' leaves behind countless what-ifs". The Guardian (London, England). Retrieved 19 November 2015. 
  41. ^ "Faces of ISIS: Abdelhamid Abaaoud – dead". CBSNews.com. Retrieved 21 November 2015. 
  42. ^ Botelho, Greg; Shoichet, Catherine E. (20 November 2015). "Paris attacks ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud dead". CNN US Edition. Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. Retrieved 20 November 2015. 

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