Paris attacks suspect's brother makes public plea for him
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E-mail Xinhua, November 23, 2015
The brother of the on-the-run Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam said on Sunday his family "would prefer to see him in a prison than in a cemetery".
Mohamed Abdeslam, who was briefly detained last week and released without charge, made a public plea for his brother to surrender himself to police "so that he can give us answers -- to the family but also to the people and families of victims".
In an interview with Belgian public broadcaster RTBF, he said: "I saw my brothers two or three days before they left. There was no sign. There was no farewell, no goodbye. I was close to my brothers, they were part of my life, we had ordinary day-to-day conversations."
Mohamed said his two brothers, Salah and Brahim, were not at home on the Wednesday evening before the Paris attacks, and their mother believed they had gone on a ski holiday.
"About six months ago, I saw a change in their behaviour. They lived a healthier life, prayed more, did not drink alcohol, went to mosque from time to time. But that is not a direct sign of radicalisation. They said nothing that led me to think they were radicalised, " Mohamed was quoted as saying.
He told RTBF he belived his brothers had been "manipulated", rather than radicalised, adding: "Salah is very intelligent."
Brussels is on a state of high alert since Saturday morning as the manhunt continues. The Belgian government is due to give an update on the terror threat level later Sunday afternoon.
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