'Mastermind' of Paris Attacks Killed in Raid, Prosecutor Confirms
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The body of the suspected 'mastermind' of the Paris attacks, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, has been identified among those killed in a police raid, the prosecutor's office said Thursday.
"Abdelhamid Abaaoud has just been formally identified... as having been killed during the raid" in a northern Paris suburb, the prosecutor said in a statement, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, the French National Assembly has voted to extend the state of emergency for three months following the attacks in Paris by militants in which 129 people died last Friday.
The government initially imposed the state of emergency on Saturday, giving police extended powers to search and detain suspects.
Meanwhile, Belgian police staged six raids this morning in the Brussels area linked to a suicide bomber who blew himself up outside the French national stadium last week during the Paris attacks.
The prosecutor's office told AFP the raids targeted places "linked to Bilal Hadfi," the 20-year-old who died when he set off his explosives on Friday, in Brussels as well as the suburbs of Uccle, Jette and Molenbeek, which is dubbed a haven for extremists.
The prosecutor added that the raids targeted places involving Hadfi's family, friends and other people directly linked to him.
