Identifying one of the gunmen at Bataclan

(Baonghean.vn) – The portrait of Ismael Omar Mostefai – one of the suicide bombers at the Bataclan theater – has just been revealed.

On the evening of November 13th, at 9:40 PM, Ismael Omar Mostefai was one of three men who exited a black Polo car and opened fire at Bataclan with a Kalashnikov rifle and wearing explosive vests. Before committing suicide in the music hall in District 11, the terrorists mentioned Syria and Iraq during hostage negotiations with police. They killed at least 89 people and injured many others.

From a severed finger fragment that flew off after the explosion, and after DNA testing, authorities identified one of the attackers as Ismael Omar Mostefai. Ismael Omar Mostefai is also the only one of the seven attackers whose identity has been confirmed so far.

Outside the Bataclan theater after the horrific events of the night of November 13. Photo: AFP

Born on November 21, 1985, in the suburbs of Paris, Ismael Omar Mostefai is of French Algerian descent and has two older brothers and two older sisters. One of Ismael Omar Mostefai's brothers owns a shisha bar in the town of Chartres.

According to Jean Piere Gorges, Deputy Mayor of Chartres, Ismael Omar Mostefai, 29, was born in Courcouronne, Essonne, and has lived on La Madeleine Street in Chartres in recent years. It is highly likely that Ismael Omar Mostefai stayed in Syria for several months during the winter of 2013-2014. Investigators say he traveled through Türkiye – one of the main routes to Syria.

Jean Piere Gorges recalled that Mostefai hadn't gone anywhere or caused any trouble since 2012. In the La Madeleine neighborhood, some residents said they thought Mostefai had left town "two or three years ago."

According to the Journal du Centre, between 2004 and 2010, Mostefai had a criminal record with eight convictions for common offenses such as operating without a license and involvement with local drug trafficking. Despite being convicted, Mostefai never served time in prison.

Since 2010, Mostefai had been under surveillance by national intelligence and was on the police's "S file" due to his extremist Islamic ideology. However, prosecutor Francois Molins also stated that Mostefai had never been involved in any criminal activities related to terrorism.

According to Le Monde, Mostefai did indeed leave France for Syria. Mostefai's documents show that he traveled through Türkiye in the fall of 2013 before being discovered by intelligence agencies in the spring of 2014 when he joined a Salafist group in Chartres.

On November 14, the Counter-Terrorism Unit (SDAT) and RAID police forces raided the homes of Mostefai's father and one of his brothers in Romilly-sur-Seine and Bondoufle. Both were arrested for questioning. According to a source close to the investigating police, Mostefai's brother, 34, confessed at the Creteil police station before being arrested.

Chu Thanh

(According to Le Monde)