Terrorist attacks on November 13, 2015: Trial of suspects begins

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Almost six years after the Islamist attacks in Paris, the trial of 20 suspects has begun.

Lydia, survivor

»What comes to my mind: Finally.

It's been almost six years and now we'll soon find out the rest. "

On the night of November 13-14, a group of Islamist extremists killed 130 people in the French capital. As a result, the IS militia claimed the attack for themselves. A suicide bomber blew himself up in front of the Stade de France, where France was playing against Germany, terrorists shot in a nightlife district, and another terrorist squad broke into the Bataclan concert hall and shot 90 people there.

Jerome Bartelemy, Survivor

“We heard fireworks.

We thought they were fireworks.

We turned around and saw two young men, no older than 25, with Kalashnikovs.

They ordered us to lie down.

One of them gestured that we should lie down on the floor.

We all lay down, the whole room.

I was completely covered with people and they shot with regular interruptions. "

Jerome Bartelemy is 48 years old today.

The vintner managed to escape from the concert hall that evening.

Jerome Bartelemy, Survivor

“What saved me is that I went to the concert on my own that evening.

That meant that I could make the decision about how to escape.

If you are there with a friend or partner, would you get up?

Am I leaving my friend behind? "

The trial is scheduled for nine months.

20 defendants, 1,800 civil plaintiffs, 330 lawyers - it is a trial of the century that brings back memories of the November night in the survivors.

It took Jerome Bartelemy a long time to overcome the horror.

Jerome Bartelemy, Survivor

“The year after Bataclan I was fine, feeling great because I survived.

But in 2017, 2018 I got post-traumatic stress disorder. "

Jerome Bartelemy, Survivor

“For example, I was afraid to prepare for my daughter's birthday.

It was utterly ridiculous, but it just so happened that the Bataclan attack made people feel anxious about things that had absolutely nothing to do with it.

Afraid of the little things in life.

And because we almost died, we are under pressure not to lose any time in life. "

After therapy, Bartelemy is fine today.

But he won't go into the courtroom, he wants to closely follow the proceedings from outside.

Jerome Bartelemy, Survivor

»

What

interests me most about the trial are the statements made by other survivors and by the people who were at the Stade de France at the time.

I want to hear what you've been through for the past six years.

I think this will be discussed at length.

As for the defendants, I don't even expect them to testify. "

The judgments in the terror process are expected at the end of May 2022.

Most of the defendants face life imprisonment, including 31-year-old Salah Abdeslam, arguably the only survivor of the terrorist squad.

He was arrested in Belgium in 2016.