France has deported a radical Islamist preacher to his home country of Algeria after his release from prison, where he became a “mentor” to at least two terrorists who later carried out deadly attacks on Charlie Hebdo newspaper and a jewish market
Djamel Beghal was given a 10-year jail term in 2005 after being sent to France following his arrest in the United Arab Emirates shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks in the U.S.
He was suspected of leading a network charged by Osama bin Laden to attack American interests in France and is considered by French officials to have been a mentor for several generations of aspiring militants.
His activities have also highlighted the struggle by French authorities to prevent Islamic radicalization in prisons, which have proved fertile recruiting grounds for militant fighters.
Beghal, now 52 and stripped of his French nationality, was freed from the Vezin-le-Coquet prison near the western city of Rennes early Monday.