A senior Belgian counterterrorism official has told CNN that Abdelkader Merah first came to their notice during a joint investigation in 2008 with French police into a Brussels , Belgium-based jihadist recruitment network . French police are probing Mohammed Merah 's background . Merah was shot dead last week after a standoff with police . They are looking into Merah 's connections to Afghanistan and Pakistan .
French police are probing Mohammed Merah 's background . Merah was shot dead last week after a standoff with police . They are looking into Merah 's connections to Afghanistan and Pakistan .