Three young women, aged 18, 19, and 21, were arrested and charged on October 10th with terrorist conspiracy. According to investigators, they had been discussing a planned violent attack in a bar or concert hall in Paris for several weeks.
Three women suspected of plotting an Islamist attack . This is an extremely rare occurrence in the history of French jihadism, the only precedent dating back more than nine years to
the Notre-Dame gas cylinder attack in 2016 .
This is the culmination of an investigation by the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT) which led to the indictment and imprisonment, on October 10, of three French women, for having planned a violent action in the capital, according to information from RTL obtained from concordant sources and confirmed by the PNAT.
The potential target had not yet been precisely determined, but the group specifically mentioned concert halls and bars, according to a source close to the case, as France prepares to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the November 13, 2015 attacks .
Aged 18, 19, and 21, the three suspects, all wearing a niqab (full-face veil), were arrested in
Lyon, Villeurbanne, and Vierzon in early October. One of them, considered at this stage to be
the group’s leader and the most radicalized , had initially been identified through an Islamist who was himself under surveillance by intelligence services.
From mid-summer onwards, her communications were placed under close surveillance by the
General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI) , which was in charge of the investigation opened by
the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT ) on July 23. This brought to light both her close ties with the two other women and her inclinations towards violent action, which she denies.
According to the investigation, the main suspect discussed, among other things, the purchase price of a Kalashnikov-type assault rifle and the making of explosive belts in conversations. A note was also found during a search, detailing the preparation of a jihadist attack.
“I’m going to go there and blow everything up.”
The two other suspects have quite different profiles: the older one, who has a motor disability and uses a wheelchair, spent several years in care homes and appears rather fragile. The younger one, on the other hand, is described as “childish” in some of her exchanges.
In particular, during a conversation intercepted by police during her “defense and citizenship” day, where, according to our information, she wrote to her pen pals: ” If they only knew they had a terrorist in their midst! ” The alleged ringleader’s response: “I’m going to go and blow everything up.” “Not now, sis,” the tall teenager retorted.
The three suspects met at least once in person according to the investigations, which reinforces the DGSI’s conviction of a desire to carry out an attack.
Six terrorist attacks thwarted since the beginning of 2025
The entire focus of the investigation will be to determine the true motivation of the group and each of its members, and whether the alleged plan was intended to be carried out. While in custody, the main suspect admitted to possibly having been radicalized, but claims to have gradually abandoned jihadist ideology since this summer. All three women deny planning an attack.
“The investigation will undoubtedly separate fact from fiction; as always, we must be wary of drawing hasty conclusions,” commented Thibaut Bailly, the lawyer for the oldest woman.
“We still know very little about the extent to which the alleged plan was developed, if indeed it was serious,” emphasizes Jean-Baptiste Riolacci, the lawyer for the younger woman. “ We will soon see whether the remarks she may have made or heard constituted a serious threat or, as one might suspect, the futile and unfortunate attempts of a very young girl to escape her loneliness.”
Also contacted by RTL, the lawyer for the main suspect, Reda Ghilaci, declined to comment at this stage. According to the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT), this is the sixth thwarted terrorist attack in France since the beginning of 2025 .
