This Wednesday, November 10, the one who was President of the Republic at the time of the attacks of November 13 went to the bar to testify on this night of horror.
Some defense lawyers did not want him to testify. But after an hour of deliberation, François Hollande finally appeared at the bar of the Paris Tribunal to tell his version, on the terrible events of the night of November 13, 2015.
President of the Republic at the time of the attacks, François Hollande opened the ball by assuring that he would respond “to all the questions. I owe this testimony to all the victims, to those who are no longer there, who want to understand, to those who survived.”
“François Hollande knew the risks he was taking by attacking the Islamic State in Syria”. Appearing to respond to these accusations made by Salah Abdeslam during the first week of the trial, the former head of state explained: “This pseudo-state group struck us not for what we were doing but for what we represented, a secular republic, a country which cherishes culture, which loves sport and does not conceive of happiness as perversity.. This group struck us not for our modes of action abroad but for our lifestyles here … “
“We knew actions were brewing”
François Hollande also told of the growing anxiety in the Stade de France, where he was to follow a Football match between France and Germany. “When the first detonation sounded, I immediately realized that one could be in front of the reality of an attack. At the second explosion, I had no more doubts.”
In this year 2015, the terrorist threat was stronger than ever. The attacks of the Hyper Kosher and Charlie Hebdo had occurred in particular at the beginning of the year. “We knew that actions were being prepared, that leaders whose names we now know were planning attacks, letting individuals cut their throats. But we did not know where or how they were going to strike.”