BREAKING: Paris Airport attacker revealed as terrorist

By ALIX CULBERTSON

Ziyed Ben Belgacem

French-born national Ziyed Ben Belgacem was shot dead after he attempted to snatch a military policewoman's gun inside the French capital's main airport this morning, at about 8.30am.

The Paris prosecutor revealed in a press conference this evening, as he grabbed the gun, he shouted: "Put your weapons down, hands on your head.

"I am here to die for Allah, there will be deaths." They upgraded their investigation from a criminal one to a terrorist attack as they revealed three people - his cousin, father and brother - are being held in police custody.

François Molins, the chief prosecutor, said Belgacem threw a gasoline canister to the ground then attacked the female soldier, who had a handgun in her right hand and a bag over her shoulder.

He attempted to grab the gun with his left arm and shoved her backwards. Belgacem was then shot dead by two other soldiers before he could do anything.

The capital's prosecutor said Belgacem was on probation for burglarly at the time of the attack and was prohibited from leaving the country.

He added the criminal's choice of target and signs of his radicalisation justified treating the attack as a terrorism investigation.

Earlier in the day the 39-year-old had shot at police at a roadside check point in the Saint Denis suburb of Paris just before 7am.

Police chased his black Renault Clio car before he dumped it and he later stole another car which he drove to Orly Airport before attempting to grab the police gun and then running into a McDonald's after he failed.

He was then shot dead in the main airport thoroughfare. The attack came as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met survivors of the 2015 Paris attacks in the capital.

France's anti-terror prosecutors took over the case this morning and his father and brother handed themselves over to police who are questioning them. The 39-year-old had previously been flagged for possible radicalism.

A search of his home turned up machetes, foreign currencies and cocaine, the prosecutor added.

Born in 1978, Belgacem was well-known to police, with nine offences on his criminal record which mainly included narcotics and aggravated burglary offences.

He had not been included on the Terrorist Radicalisation Prevention Reporting File, although police initially said he was a radicalised Muslim - then took back their comments and have now reiterated them.

Following the Paris attacks in November 2015 by ISIS jihadis, Belgacem's Paris home was searched.

France