One of the Suspects in the Paris Attack 'Was in Contact with Al-Qaeda in Yemen'

Media reports citing U.S. officials say that one of the individuals being pursued for the attack on the 'Charlie Hebdo' publication was 'in contact with Al-Qaeda in Yemen' and they 'trained him.' Reports from a senior U.S. government official indicate that one of the Kouachi brothers, Sharif and Said, who are suspected of the deadly attack on 'Charlie Hebdo,' was trained by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in Yemen in 2011. The Los Angeles Times states that this senior U.S. official did not specify which brother was in Yemen. However, the French news agency reported on January 9 that the U.S. official, referencing intelligence findings from French officials, stated that 'Said Kouachi' - the older brother at 34 years old - traveled to Yemen in 2011, where he received training from Al-Qaeda. Reuters also published similar news, indicating that both brothers were on the police watch list. Additionally, the French news agency quoted another U.S. official stating that the Kouachi brothers had been on the U.S. no-fly list for 'years.' Thus, Said and Sharif Kouachi, who are currently being pursued, have not been able to travel to the United States and have been listed as potential suspects for carrying out terrorist attacks. Currently, French police have launched a large-scale operation in a northeastern Paris area where the two brothers are believed to be hiding. The attack on the 'Charlie Hebdo' publication was the worst of its kind in decades in France. Reuters reports that Sharif Kouachi, 32, was previously involved in 'pizza delivery' and aspired to be a rap music star; he was more interested in girls and marijuana than 'defending the Prophet of Islam.' However, his name is now associated with an attack that the French President described as 'exemplary barbarism,' which claimed the lives of 12 people, including cartoonists and staff of 'Charlie Hebdo' and two police officers. Kouachi, born in eastern Paris to an Algerian family, lost his parents when they were still children. The younger brother grew up in an orphanage in the city of Rennes. After obtaining a diploma in physical education, he returned to Paris to work as a pizza delivery person. His former lawyer told Liberation newspaper that he was 'among a group of young people who were somewhat lost in their world. He was not literally that fanatic.' However, according to Reuters, he became acquainted with 'Farid Benito,' described as a radical Muslim, and his life changed. In 2008, he was sentenced to prison for his extremist activities, where, according to his lawyer, he was completely transformed. In 2010, police investigated him for attempting to free a radical prisoner, but they did not gather substantial evidence against Sharif Kouachi. Reuters states that questions now arise about how someone known to the intelligence system for his radical tendencies was able to orchestrate the massacre on Wednesday.