The trial of defendants held responsible for the 2016 Brussels terror attacks was halted again this morning, but following mediation by the head of Francophone lawyers in the capital was able to resume.
Just like yesterday chief suspect Salah Abdeslam refused to attend. He says he’s ill but the court hasn’t received a doctor’s sick note. A second accused, Bilal El Makhoukhi, also refused to leave his cell this morning.
Laurence Massart, the president of the court of assises, has asked the police to draw up a report on the refusal to attend court. She told the jury defendants are supposed to attend court every day: the police may use force, but no violence.
Police say they tried to convince the two defendants who were not minded to attend, but “serious force” would have been required to take them to court and police officers didn’t think that would be a good idea following earlier incidents that led to complaints about maltreatment.
When the president refused to allow Mohamed Abrini, one of the defendants, to address the court he and all other defendants requested they be returned to their cells.
The lawyer of Bilal El Makhoukhi, the defendant who had refused to attend court and who was refusing to take calls in his cell, told the court he wanted to know why his client refused to attend court because otherwise he could no longer defend him. The presiding judge then decided to suspend the session and seek mediation from the head of Francophone lawyers in the capital.
Following this mediation and a chat of an hour the lawyer agreed to continue to represent his client. The session then resumed with, for a third day in a row, no defendants present.