Khalid Zerkani, the man who formed the Brussel terror ring that killed 162 people in attacks in Paris and Brussels, was sentenced to 15 years in prison Thursday for recruiting activities in the Brussels suburb of Molenbeek.
Known as the “Emir of Molenbeek,” Zerkani is “the biggest recruiter of jihadists Belgium has ever known,” according to Belgian federal prosecutor Bernard Michel. Paris mastermind Abdelhamid Abbaoud and Brussels bomber Najim Laachraoui are two of the recruits Zerkani is found guilty of radicalizing. (RELATED: Step Inside The One District In Brussels That’s Connected To Nearly Every Major Terror Attack On The West)
The Brussels cell that carried out both the attacks has even been named “The Zerkani Network” by Belgian media. Zerkani was originally sentenced to 12 years in July, 2015, but an appeals court extended the sentence by three years. Zerkani’s recruitment activities also include seven convicted members of al-Shabaab, an al-Qaida affiliate in Somalia.
Belgian legislation has not been able to keep up with the recent development of terrorism in its backyard. Life sentences in Belgium come with the possibility of parole after just 15 years. Life sentences can only be given to people who have been convicted of murder, which neither Zerkani nor the other living suspects from the network have. (RELATED: Mastermind Behind Paris And Brussels Attacks Likely To Get Out By 50)
In total, Zerkani will serve less than 34 days for each person his network killed in Paris and Brussels.
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