The ruling permitting Bakkali to leave prison on six separate occasions for 36 hours each has provoked criticism in both Belgium and France.
An influential participant in the terrorist group responsible for the November 2015 Paris attacks has been granted several temporary prison leaves and might qualify for parole.
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Mohamed Bakkali received a 30-year sentence from a French court in 2022 for his involvement in organizing the deadly attacks that resulted in 130 fatalities and hundreds injured after gunmen attacked Paris’ Bataclan theater and coordinated suicide bombings throughout the city.
After being extradited to Belgium in 2018, Bakkali was also handed a 25-year term in Belgium for his role in plotting another assault on a Thalys train traveling from Amsterdam to Paris.
Belgian prosecutors informed Agence France-Presse that a Brussels court recently ruled in favor of permitting Bakkali temporary leave from the Ittre prison, a maximum-security facility operational since 2002.
The prosecutor’s office in Brussels noted that the court made its decision «despite opposition from the prosecution,» adding that «the prosecution cannot appeal, which makes this ruling final.»
«The responsibility to execute the decision lies with the prison director,» the statement concluded.
According to Le Monde, these furloughs represent a preliminary phase before possible parole under electronic supervision.
This ruling, sanctioning six prison exits each lasting 36 hours, has ignited strong reactions in both Belgian and French circles.
«His prison furloughs and any forthcoming release after completing a third of his sentence constitute an insult to the victims, investigators, and democratic justice,» Thibault de Montbrial, a French attorney and head of the Center for Reflection on Internal Security, expressed on X.
Matthieu Valet, a French MEP from the far-right National Rally, condemned the decision as «a blatant insult to French justice and the victims.»
«Individuals involved in such networks must serve their sentences fully, without concessions,» he insisted.
In Belgium, Denis Ducarme of the Reformist Movement equated the move to «turning one’s back on the memory of victims and the suffering of their families.»
«Such a decision is disgraceful for the country,» he added.
Alexander van Hoecke, MP for Vlaams Belang, announced that his party intends to propose legislation to prevent «convicted terrorists from qualifying for exit permits or temporary prison leave.»
Justice Minister Annelies Verlinden stated that Bakkali’s authorization for temporary leave came after «a comprehensive case evaluation» and under «very strict conditions.»
Verlinden also mentioned that Bakkali had previously been granted leave but only for shorter durations.