The Paris public prosecutor François Molins has announced that at least two people were killed in an assault targeting the suspected mastermind of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, Abdel-Hamid Aba Oud. It is unknown if Oud was successfully taken down in the operation. The raid occurred at an apartment in the French town of St. Denis, which is located north of Paris.
During the assault which lasted for seven hours and saw a large amount of guns being fired, neither Oud nor another fugitive, Salah Abdeslam, were among the arrested. A total of eight people were arrested in the incident. More than 100 heavily armed anti-terrorist police officers and Swat teams were involved in the assault.
During the operation, a woman identified as Oud’s cousin, Hasna Aitboulahcen blew herself up. Another man was successfully killed by police, but he has not yet been identified. It is possible that this man was Oud, but authorities are still looking into the matter.
During the seven hour situation, the building was so badly damaged that there was risk that the walls and the floor would collapse around the investigators. Five police officers and an innocent bystander were injured in the raid, and a police dog was killed.
The plan was put into action after police received a tip that Oud was in the apartment building, possibly planning another attack. Three men were arrested inside the building, while another two were detained outside. The man responsible for allowing the terrorists to stay at the apartment Jawad Bendaoud said that he did not know the individuals were terrorists.
French President François Hollande recently held an emergency cabinet meeting in order to confirm that France is at war with the terrorists. The French have already increased their involvement in Syria to target the Islamic State. The country is very likely going to institute permanent increases in security measures in the near future.
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