PARIS: A militant Islamic State (IS) group’s operative went on trial on Monday in Paris on terror charges for swaggering bare-chested through a train in 2015 with an arsenal of weapons and shooting one passenger. He was brought down by three American vacationers in an electrifying capture that Clint Eastwood turned into a Hollywood thriller.

The scene five years ago on the fast train from Amsterdam to Paris is the focus of the month-long trial of Ayoub El Khazzani, with testimony expected from the two US servicemen and their friend, who have been hailed as heroes.

Their lawyer, Thibault de Montbrial, said at the courthouse on Monday that their “very brave intervention” had thwarted a slaughter.

This terror attack could have killed up to 300 people based on the number of ammunition that was found on the terrorist and in his bag, he said, With El Khazzani in court and watched by security officers, the trial opening was largely taken up with procedural issues, including whether Eastwood’s presence is needed. That question was not immediately resolved. The actor-director has so far not responded to a summons. Eastwood turned the Aug 21, 2015, drama in car No. 12 into a movie, The 15:17 to Paris.

El Khazzani, a 31-year-old Moroccan, spent several months in Syria and boarded the train in Brussels armed to the hilt, authorities say. He is charged with attempted terrorist murder for the foiled attack. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2020