The Belgian federal prosecutor threatened Wednesday not to allow his investigators to testify, as part of the trial of the November 13 attacks, if their anonymity was not guaranteed. Several sources familiar with the matter confirmed to franceinfo on Friday that this anonymity will be guaranteed to them.
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Investigators from the anti-terrorism unit of the Brussels Federal Judicial Police (Belgium) will testify anonymously at the trial of the November 13 attacks, Franceinfo learned on Friday, November 19 from several sources familiar with the matter. These Belgian investigators therefore obtain the anonymity they wanted since they will file in videoconference but with exposed faces, without their name being given.
On Wednesday, franceinfo had access to a letter from Frédéric van Leeuw, Belgian federal prosecutor, who asked explicitly to Jean-Louis Périès, the President of the Special Assize Court of Paris, that the Belgian investigators testify anonymously, just like the French anti-terrorist police officers.
In this letter, the Belgian prosecutor said to himself “legally impossible” to allow investigators to testify if anonymity was not guaranteed. Indeed, according to Frédéric van Leeuw, a Belgian law of December 25, 2016 “inspired by French legislation” guarantees the anonymity of the special and anti-terrorist units of the Belgian federal police.