Brussels attacks: Paris suspect denies involvement as he agrees to extradition

Paris terror suspect Salah Abdeslam was unaware of the Brussels terror plot, his lawyer has insisted. As the 26-year-old was brought to court to face extradition proceedings, his lawyer, Sven Mary, insisted: “He didn’t know [about] it.“ His denial comes amid mounting evidence of links between the extremists who carried out Tuesday’s Belgium bombings and those behind the atrocities which killed 130 people in the French capital last November. Abdeslam has also said he will no longer fight extradition to France. Instead, Mr Vary said he wanted to return as quickly as possible to "explain himself” to the authorities. The hearing was postponed until April 7.

A community of 5,000 suspects that have been radicalised in Europe, that have travelled to Syria and Iraq for conflict experience, some of whom - not all - have since come back to Europe

Europol director Robin Wainwright

Meanwhile, it has emerged that the authorities suspect a second bomber was involved in the Maalbeek metro station attack, which killed 20 people. He is thought to have struck alongside Khalid El Bakraoui, whose brother, Ibrahim, was one of two suicide bombers who blew themselves up at Zaventem Airport, where another 11 died. The second bomber at the airport has been tentatively identified as Paris attacks bomb-maker Najim Laachraoui, 24. A third bomber, caught on CCTV wearing a hat and a white jacket, fled the the scene when his device failed to go off and remains at large.

salah abdeslam