Paris attacks: The latest developments

Agence France-Presse

The Paris attacks that killed 130 people have sparked sweeping searches, a maximum-level alert in Brussels and an intensified military operation against the Islamic State group that has claimed responsibility for France's worst terror strike.

These are the latest developments:

Investigation

French police have conducted nearly 300 searches since the November 13 massacre and deployed 10,200 police in the greater Paris region.

They have also released a photo of the third man to blow himself up outside France's national stadium.

The suspected ringleader, Belgian jihadist Abdelhamid Abaaoud, was killed along with his 26-year-old female cousin Hasna Aitboulahcen, in a massive raid by police Wednesday.

French investigators are working to identify a third person, believed to be a male, who blew themselves up during the raid.

In Brussels, which remained in lockdown for a third day Monday in a state of maximum alert, police have arrested 21 people but key Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam is believed to still be on the run.

Prime Minister Charles Michel has said Brussels faces a "serious and imminent" threat of attacks similar to the Paris carnage.

Military

France has stepped up strikes on Islamic State targets after President Francois Hollande pledged a merciless response to the attacks.

Warplanes took off from the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, newly deployed to the eastern Mediterranean, for operations over areas held by IS in Iraq and Syria.

The Charles De Gaulle has 26 fighter jets, more than doubling France's strike capacity in the US-led mission against the brutal extremist group.

Russia has also intensified its bombing campaign in Syria after confirming that a Russian passenger plane that crashed in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula last month, killing all 224 people on board, was brought down by a bomb. IS had claimed responsibility for the attack.

Diplomacy

Hollande has begun a flurry of intense diplomatic activity, securing strong support from British Prime Minister David Cameron whom he met in Paris Monday as part of global efforts to crush the IS group.

The two leaders agreed to step up cooperation to counter international terrorism including increased data-sharing.

Hollande is due to meet leaders from all five members of the UN Security Council in the coming days to iron out several issues, including fine-tuning military coordination.

Cameron has said he will make his case to the British parliament on Thursday about joining air strikes on Syria and has offered France the use of a strategically-located British airbase in Cyprus for strikes in Iraq.

US Secretary of State John Kerry also travelled to Abu Dhabi on Monday hoping to forge a coalition of Syrian opposition groups for peace talks, while Russia's President Vladimir Putin visited Tehran to discuss a range of issues including Syria.

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