Lawyer Michel Bouchat, right, during the ongoing trial of the Brussels attacks at the Justitia building in Brussels, Thursday, July 6, 2023. Seven years after the deadliest peacetime attack on Belgian soil, the trial of ten men accused over the suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a subway station took a major part toward its conclusion on Thursday. The court opened its last audience before the jury and then will start the drawnout process of deciding on the fate of those accused. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert, Pool)
Lawyer Michel Bouchat, right, during the ongoing trial of the Brussels attacks at the Justitia building in Brussels, Thursday, July 6, 2023. Seven years after the deadliest peacetime attack on Belgian soil, the trial of ten men accused over the suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a subway station took a major part toward its conclusion on Thursday. The court opened its last audience before the jury and then will start the drawnout process of deciding on the fate of those accused. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert, Pool)
BRUSSELS (AP) — Seven years after the deadliest peacetime attack on Belgian soil, the trial of 10 men accused over the suicide bombings at Brussels airport and a subway station took a major step toward its conclusion on Thursday.
More than half a year after the trial started, the court held its last audience and the jury will begin the drawn-out process of deciding on the fate of those charged. The 12 jurors will have to answer almost 300 questions about the suspects, which means reaching a verdict can take several weeks.
The 10 men were charged over the morning rush hour attacks at Belgium’s main airport and on the central commuter line on March 22, 2016, which killed 32 people, and nearly 900 others were wounded or suffered mental trauma.
The ten defendants face charges that include murder, attempted murder and membership in, or participation in the acts of, a terrorist group.
If convicted, some of them could face up to 30 years in prison. Sentencing is not expected before September.
Among the accused is Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor among the Islamic State extremists who in 2015 struck the Bataclan theater in Paris, city cafes and France’s national stadium.
