Salah Abdeslam remains in isolation: Lille court rejects his appeal
The administrative tribunal in Lille rejected on Monday Salah Abdeslam's request to lift his isolation and restrictions on visits. He is serving a life sentence at Vendin-le-Vieil.
Isolation maintained for Abdeslam, court rejects his appeals
The administrative tribunal in Lille rejected on Monday Salah Abdeslam's requests to suspend his placement in isolation and to remove the hygiaphone device at visiting facilities, according to DHnet. Convicted for his role in the attacks of 13 November 2015 in Paris and 22 March 2016 in Brussels, Abdeslam is serving a life sentence at the high-security prison in Vendin-le-Vieil, in Pas-de-Calais.
In early September, he had petitioned the administrative courts to obtain a suspension of the extension of his isolation until 7 November 2026, as well as the lifting of the hygiaphone separation imposed during visits to the visiting area. The emergency judge rejected these requests, lacking elements "capable of casting doubt on the legality" of the measures applied by the prison administration, according to an order transmitted to AFP.
At the hearing on 15 September 2026, Abdeslam had invoked "the impact of the contested measures on his physical and mental state". In a video hearing, he stated: "My life no longer has any meaning", according to remarks reported by La Voix du Nord. "I am afraid of losing the last thing I have left, my family, which comes less and less because of the hygiaphone", he added, he being the last surviving member of the 13 November 2015 commando.
This decision comes after a brief relaxation: in early April, the same tribunal had ordered the state to improve visiting conditions. The courts reversed this decision in June, following threats made by the detainee against the prison director and an attempt by several visitors to hand him prohibited items during a visit.
Source: DHnet