Failed Bomb Reveals French Terror Network

Seven people have been arrested in connection with a failed car bombing outside Paris’ famed Notre Dame Cathedral.

Seven gas cylinders and three diesel containers were found in a vacant car last week near the Cathedral. The Peugeot 607 was found Saturday abandoned in Rue du Petit-Pont with hazard lights flashing and without a license plate. Within the car police found seven gas cylinders, three diesel containers, a burned cloth, a document with Arabic writing, and verses from the Koran. There was no detonator found within the car. The burned cloth suggests the suspects may have tried to detonate the explosive but it failed to ignite.

This particular model explosive is not new. A similar, gas cylinder-based device was used in the failed 2007 Glasgow International Airport “Doctor plot.” PhD student from India, Kafeel Ahmed attempted to drive a Jeep into the airport. While the car ignited, it did not explode, and Ahmed died a month later due to burns on his body he obtained during the attack. Out of the eight people who were arrested in 2007, seven of them were physicians with the eighth one being a medical technician. The Glasgow attack and the failed Notre Dame bombing both featured a sizeable network involved in the plots.

By Thursday, French police had arrested two couples that were connected to the car, their names and information have not been made public yet. Shortly after three women were arrested.

Ornella G (39 years old), Ines Madani (19 years old), and Sarah H (23 years old) are all a part of the cell that tried to carry out this attack. They were arrested in Boussy-Saint_Antoine, which is 40 minutes south of Notre Dame Cathedral.  During the arrest of the three women, a police officer was stabbed before shooting Ines Madani in the leg, leaving her wounded.

All three women have claimed to be supporters of IS.

Ornella G has confessed to investigators about planning the attack and planning on carrying the attack out. She has been charged with attempted murder and association with a terrorists group.

Ornella is a mother of two girls and a boy. In 2009 she was sought out by jihadist recruiter through twitter, and married to an IS member. In 2014 she grabbed French Law Enforcement’s attention when she suddenly left her home with her children to Roissy Airport, meeting with another individual at headquarters of the Union of Islamic Organizations of France (UIOF) before flying to Istanbul.

The introduction of the UIOF is interesting, since the organization is a known entity of the French Muslim Brotherhood network. The organization was designated as a terror group by the United Arab Emirates.

Ines Madani was caught by police in a stolen vehicle owned by her father, and had a hand written letter in which she pledged her allegiance with IS in her handbag.

Madani was born in Tremblay and grew up there her whole life. Her uncle, Sharaf Din Aberouz, is currently in custody on suspicion of helping Larossi Abballa in killing two policemen in Magnaville.

The women are linked to the terrorists’ networks of Hayat Boumeddiene, Larossi Abballa and Adel Kermiche., all of whom were involved in recent attacks in France.

Hayat Boumeddiene is France most wanted woman. She was the wife of French terrorist, Amedy Coulibaly the perpetrator of the Charlie Hebdo attack. Boumeddiene now lives in IS territory. She herself has killed multiple people in Paris.

Larossi Abballa murdered a police officer and his wife, who was also a police employee.

Adel Kermiche made an attack at a Normandy church, killing French priest Jacques Hamel.

The suspect identified as Sarah H was reportedly engaged to Ahballa, and had previously engaged in terrorist activities together with Kermiche.

There have already been multiple attacks this year in France, targeting all segments of the French population including religious leaders, law enforcement and government personnel as well as tourists. More than 200 have died in France over the 18 months due to terrorist attacks.

The women in custody could be a threat to IS members who reside in France. Ornella has already reportedly begun to talk about members and has confessed to the failed attack. If the women open up more it may provide insight for French intelligence into how extensive the network is in France truly is, specifically in the Paris area. Obviously law enforcement will be seeking details on those plotting feature attacks, in an effort to prevent future attacks.