Overview

• Paris’s special assize court sentenced Michaël Chiolo to life imprisonment without possibility of release, making him the third person in France to receive an uncompressible life term in a terrorism case.
• Co-defendants received mixed outcomes: Abdelaziz Fahd was given a life sentence with a 30-year safety period, Nabil Ganned drew 20 years with a two-thirds safety period, Yassine Merai was sentenced in absentia to 12 years, and Jérémy Bailly was acquitted.
• Throughout five weeks of testimony, Chiolo openly endorsed Islamic State’s actions, repeatedly declaring his full support for jihadist ideology during the trial.
• The professional magistrates on the special court followed the national antiterror prosecutor’s requisitions and have allotted ten days for all convicted parties to file appeals.
• The case underscores persistent challenges in detecting and countering jihadist networks and radicalization within high-security penitentiary environments.