Suspected author of deadly Paris attack faces possible release

Almost thirty years after a deadly attack on a Paris synagogue, Hassan Diab, the suspected author of the bombing, appeared before a Canadian judge in Ottawa on Wednesday.

The judge is to decide whether Diab will be released after four months in temporary custody while extradition proceedings to France are ongoing. Diab faces charges for his suspected involvement in the Oct. 3, 1980 attack that killed four people and wounded at least 20.

The hearing should last three days at the Ottawa courthouse. Diab, a 55-year-old Canadian-Lebanese sociology professor at two Canadian universities, might be released after four months in prison in Canada.

Diab was arrested on November 13 in the suburbs of Ottawa at the request of the French authorities. French judges believe Diab purchased the motorbike that was used during the attack on a synagogue in the rue Copernic. He is also accused of preparing explosives and placing them in bags attached to the motorbike.

Diab maintains French authorities have mistaken him for another who bears the same name.

Last December, after several days of hearing, the judge of the Ontario Supreme Court decided not to release him as extradition proceedings were underway. He feared that Diab might try to flee the authorities if freed.