What we know about those behind the Paris attacks

As police continued to search for Salah Abdeslam, a Belgian-born Frenchman believed to be involved in the Paris terrorist attacks, more information has emerged about the people behind Friday’s atrocities.

People observe a minute of silence . Picture: Getty

- Belgian Abdelhamid Abaaoud was named by a French official as the suspected mastermind of the Paris attacks.

The official said Abaaoud has previously been linked to thwarted attacks on a Paris-bound high-speed train and a church in the Paris area.

- Samy Amimour was one of the suicide bombers who blew himself up at the Bataclan music hall, the Paris prosecutor’s office said. A 28-year-old Frenchman, he was known to French intelligence services.

He was charged with terrorist offences in 2012 and was placed under judicial supervision. But he later disappeared and an international arrest warrant was issued for him. Three of his relatives have been arrested, prosecutors said yesterday.

- A suicide bomber who blew himself up outside the Stade de France, the country’s national sports stadium, was found with a Syrian passport bearing the name Ahmad Al Mohammad. The 25-year-old was born in Idlib, a city in north-west Syria. The Paris prosecutor’s office said fingerprints from the attacker match those of a person who travelled through Greece last month.

- Brahim Abdeslam, Salah’s elder brother, was named by a judicial source in France as one of the attackers.

The 31-year-old was identified by police as the suicide bomber who blew himself up on Boulevard Voltaire.

- Another suicide bomber was named as 20-year-old Bilal Hadfi, one of three who attacked the Stade de France. He is said to have fought with Islamic State in Syria.

- Ismael Mostefai, 29, was identified as another attacker. Previously flagged for links to Islamic radicalism, he had been named by police after being identified through remains found at the Bataclan music hall.