Paris Terror Suspect Update: Brother of Salah Abdeslam Calls For Him To Surrender

The brother of Salah Abdeslam, the fugitive who has prompted an international manhunt due to his suspected involvement in the Paris attacks, issued a call for him to surrender to authorities Sunday, BBC News reported.

“We would rather see Salah in prison than in a cemetery,” Mohamed Abdeslam told Belgian broadcaster RTBF. “We would like Salah to hand himself in ... so that he can give us the answers that we are waiting for.”

Mohamed and Salah’s other brother Ibrahim was purportedly one of the suicide bombers who detonated in a series of coordinated bombing and shooting attacks across Paris on Nov. 13 that killed 130 and wounded hundreds more. The Islamic State group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, have claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Mohamed said he believes his brothers were manipulated and that Salah would have decided to “turn back” -- if he had been involved in the attacks at all. Mohamed was also detained and questioned in Belgium but was released shortly afterward, NBC reported. He told local media that his siblings “do not represent” the family, which has lived in Belgium for years.

Salah is described by authorities as 26 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall and “dangerous.” He is thought to have helped the attackers with logistics and likely rented one of the cars used in the attacks.

Brussels has been on a maximum terror alert throughout the weekend as authorities continued their manhunt for Salah and deemed the city at risk of “weapons and explosives” attacks. The city’s metro has been shut down, events have been canceled and authorities have advised citizens against attending areas with large gatherings of people, such as at airports, train stations or concert venues. Authorities are also hunting for Salah in France and the Netherlands.