Paris attacks alleged mastermind Abaaoud declared dead
The body of Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the alleged mastermind of Friday's Paris attacks, has been identified as one of the dead in Wednesday's raid in Saint Denis on the city's outskirts, French police have announced.
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A body that was found riddled with bullets after the operation has been formally identified by its fingerprints, public prosecutors announced on Thursday afternoon.
A woman who detonated a suicide vest was also killed.
Eight people were arrested but the whereabouts of Salah Abdeslam, suspected of taking part in the attacks along with his brother, Brahim, who blew himself up, was not known.
Abaaoud, a Belgian national, was part of a fourth commando that was planning attacks on Charles De Gaulle airport and the La Défense business district, France 2 television said.
US intelligence in May named Abaaoud as a possible leader of future attacks after Belgian authorities uncovered a plot in several cities in January.
Two alleged accomplices, Mohammed Amri and Hamza Attou, have been arrested in Belgium and charged with "terrorist attacks".
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