Two Suspects in Paris Attack Known to Intelligence Services: Reports

Two suspects in the terror attack on Charlie Hebdo magazine office in Paris have been known to the French intelligence services, French media reported Thursday.

MOSCOW, January 8 (Sputnik) – Said and Cherif Kouach, two brothers in their 30s who are suspected of committing the terror attack, have been known to France's General Directorate for Internal Security and the prefecture of Police of Paris, Le Point news magazine said Thursday.

Brothers are the French nationals of Algerian origin. According to the police source cited by the magazine, they had a profile of radicalized nationals.

Cherif Kouach, the younger brother, was sentenced for three years of imprisonment in 2008 under the accusation of participating in the network that recruited French Muslims to fight alongside al-Qaeda in Iraq, Le Point reported.

Said and Cherif Kouach are suspected to be the gunmen who attacked the office of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris, killing 12 people and injuring 11. According to the reports, the attackers were wearing masks and shouting "Allah Akbar".

Hamyd Mourad, the third suspect, is believed to have been driving the car, by which the killers escaped. However, Mourad claims to be innocent and says he was at school at the time of the attack.

According to Le Point, the police identified the suspects after they found identification papers in the car that was allegedly used to escape and later abandoned.

The satirical magazine had previously received several threats from radical Islamists due to its publication of caricatures of the prophet Muhammad. Among the latest posts on Charlie Hebdo's Twitter before the attack was a cartoon mocking the leader of Islamic State militant group Abu Bakr Baghdadi.