Abdeslam has been on the run since the attacks and is being hunted down by police and intelligence services across Europe — despite the fact that he was stopped by police, crossing back into Belgium immediately following the attacks.
He was one of the cell of terrorists that carried out a series of attacks in which radicalized Islamic terrorists either detonated suicide bombs or opened fire indiscriminately in cafés, restaurants and — with the highest fatalities — the Bataclan music venue in Paris.
Although most of the attackers were hunted down and killed following the attacks, Abdeslam has been on the run.
According to Belgium's Belga news agency, Abdeslam has been in contact with the lawyer Sven Mary, who has made it known he would defend the attacker in order to fight the "abuse of power" on the part of authorities who were using the Paris attacks for "surfing on fear to get even more power."
Manhunt
A huge manhunt has been on in search of Abdeslam, which has led to the discovery of a series of safe houses in Brussels, as well as Charleroi and Auvelais — both around 50km south of the Belgian capital.
On the day after the attacks, November 14, Abdeslam's car was stopped by police in Belgium, but allowed to proceed. Images of him were captured on CCTV that day at a gas station near the Belgian border. Abdeslam was shown with his friend Hazma Attou.
His movements since have been tracked down, following a series of investigations by intelligence services. Ali Oulkadi, who was detained by Brussels police, drove Abdeslam to another part of Brussels on 14 November. Afterwards, Abdeslam was given directions to Schaerbeek, another suburb where one of the safe houses was discovered.
