AppId is over the quota
A lawyer says a Frenchman suspected of helping his brother plot attacks against Jewish schoolchildren and paratroopers knew nothing about what was going on.
A French judge filed preliminary murder and terrorism charges Sunday against brother Abdelkader Merah on Sunday, whose younger brother Mohamed claimed responsibility for the attacks.
Abdelkader is in custody and has not spoken publicly. His lawyer Anne-Sophie Laguens said Sunday that "no one was aware of anything."
Laguens denied reports that Abdelkader was proud of his brother's actions.
Investigators looking into France's worst terror attacks in years believe Abdelkader helped prepare the killings and are investigating whether they were linked to an international network or worked on their own.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
PARIS (AP) — A French judge filed preliminary murder and terrorism charges Sunday against the brother of a gunman who killed Jewish schoolchildren and paratroopers in attacks that stunned the country.
Investigators looking into France's worst terror attacks in years believe Mohamed Merah's brother helped prepare the killings and are trying to find out how deeply he was involved. They are also investigating whether they were linked to an international network or worked on their own.
An unidentified man with his head covered, believed to be Abdelkader Merah or his companion, sits between masked police officers as they head to the French police's anti-terrorist headquarters in Levallois-Perret, outside Paris, Saturday, March 24, 2012. Merah's brother, Mohamed Merah is blamed for a series of deadly shootings which have shocked France and upended the country's presidential race. Merah, who claimed allegiance to al-Qaida, died in a hail of gunfire Thursday after a dramatic 32-hour-long standoff with law enforcement. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) CloseMohamed Merah, 23, claimed responsibility for killing three Jewish schoolchildren, a rabbi and three paratroopers earlier this month. After a 32-hour standoff with police, he died Thursday in a hail of gunfire as he jumped out a window of his apartment in the southern city of Toulouse.
Since then, attention has focused on his older brother Abdelkader Merah, who was handed preliminary charges on Sunday of complicity to murder and theft, and involvement in a terrorist enterprise, prosecutors said. Detained last week, he will remain in custody pending further investigation.
Preliminary charges under French law mean there is strong reason to believe a crime was committed, but allow magistrates more time to investigate.
Authorities suspect Abdelkader had a role in acquiring his younger brother's arsenal and financing his trips to Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East. Mohamed Merah claimed allegiance to al-Qaida and told police he traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan for training.
Abdelkader was questioned several years ago about alleged links to a network sending Toulouse-area youths to Iraq, but no action was brought against him at the time.
Prosecutor Francois Molins said the inquiry is also looking at anyone else who could have been involved in planning the attacks.
The brother's girlfriend, Yamina Mesbah, was held, then released early Sunday without being charged. The Merah brothers' mother was released Friday night.
The girlfriend denied any involvement in what happened and said she was shocked by the killings, her lawyer Guy Debuisson said, adding that Abdelkader Merah appeared to have led a double life.
"This woman was unaware of anything about her husband's accessory, complementary or secret life," the lawyer said. The couple married according to Muslim custom in 2006, but did not undergo the civil ceremony required in France for a marriage to be recognized.
Abdelkader Merah took five or six long trips to Egypt, ostensibly to study Arabic literature, and his girlfriend joined him on two or three, the lawyer said.
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