# The Trial of Inass Touloub: Seeking Justice for the A10 Martyr Decades after her death, the trial of her parents struggles to reveal her life. - **Source:** [20 Minutes](https://www.20minutes.fr) - **Published:** 2026-11-05 - **Topic:** [politics](https://brifing.si/c/politics) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/b4b3686e-fba0-408b-ad54-838dfa6b922a ## The A10 Martyr's Identity In August 1987, the body of a four-year-old girl was discovered on the A10 motorway. It took nearly thirty years for investigators to identify the child as Inass Touloub. Her parents, Halima El Bakhti and Ahmed Touloub, are currently standing trial at the Blois Assizes Court for torture and complicity. ## A Life Overshadowed by Death While the court has meticulously analyzed the physical evidence of her death, Inass’s life remains an enigma. There is only one known photograph of her alive, compared to numerous autopsy images. The trial highlights a tragic reality where the victim’s existence is defined solely by the extreme abuse she suffered. ## Invisible Family Dynamics The family lived in a cramped 20-square-meter space behind the father's grocery store in Puteaux. Despite having six children, they remained largely invisible to neighbors and social services. Investigators confirmed that no neighbors from that era could provide insights into the family's daily life or the child's personality before her death. ## Institutional Failures Exposed Questions regarding why social services never intervened remain unanswered. Inass was not declared as having left the household to the CAF until 1997, ten years after her death. Her absence from school and social records suggests a systemic failure to protect a vulnerable child living in total isolation from society. ## Medical Evidence of Suffering Forensic experts have described the injuries inflicted on Inass as among the most painful imaginable. A non-treated fracture of her left forearm caused permanent physical deformation. Medical testimony suggests that her frequent crying and vomiting were physiological reactions to the chronic, severe pain caused by the abuse she endured daily. ## The Defendants' Silence Halima El Bakhti and Ahmed Touloub have remained largely unresponsive during the proceedings, citing memory lapses. They have only minimally acknowledged that the child found in the blue blanket was their daughter. Their lack of cooperation continues to obscure the truth about the events leading to the tragic death. ## Trauma and Family Secrets The court heard testimony from one of Inass's siblings via videoconference. Due to potential traumatic amnesia, the sibling provided very little information about the victim. The court granted a closed-door session, reflecting the persistent nature of the family secrets that have surrounded this case for nearly four decades since 1987. ## A Legacy of Unanswered Questions This trial serves as a somber reminder of the limitations of justice when decades of silence erode memory. While the legal process aims to measure the severity of the crimes, the essence of who Inass Touloub was remains lost. The case underscores the profound tragedy of a life completely erased by violence. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.20minutes.fr/justice/4260476-20261105-martyre-a10-mort-inass-touloub-decortiquee-analysee-mesuree-vie-reste-enigme?at_medium=display&at_campaign=149 — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._