Brussels station terror suspect ‘neutralised’
Explosion after attacker wearing ‘suicide vest’ shot dead by soldiers
A SUSPECTED terrorist who appeared to be armed with explosives was shot dead by soldiers last night as he attacked a Brussels train station.
Commuters cried for help as they fled the explosion after the suspect was heard to shout ‘Allahu Akbar’.
Officials said the attacker had been ‘ neutralised’ shortly after shots rang through Brussels Central Station and there were no other casualties.
Some witnesses said that the attacker had an explosive vest, with wires protruding from his clothing, though there were also claims that he had tried to blow up a device on a luggage trolley.
Railway worker Nicolas Van herrewegen said: ‘i went down to the mezzanine level, someone was shouting. Then he cried “Allahu Akbar”, and he blew up a trolley.
‘i was behind a wall when it exploded. i went down and alerted my colleagues to evacuate everyone. [ The suspect] was still around but after that we didn’t see him.’
he described the suspect as well-built and tanned with short hair, wearing a white shirt and jeans. Mr Van herrewegen added: ‘i saw that he had something on him because i could see wires emerging, so it may have been a suicide vest.’ Witnesses said that the impact caused by the explosion was minimal.
The incident unfolded just over a year after the Belgian capital was devastated by a series of islamist terror attacks.
Since the co-ordinated attacks on a metro station and its airport the city has been placed on high alert and armed patrols have manned its streets. images online appeared to show a small blast taking place inside the station next to a suspicious device.
Police and soldiers formed a ring of steel around the building.
Tourists in the Grand Place, the main square adjacent to the transport hub, were also told to flee as panic spread shortly after 8.30pm local time. The city’s transport system ground to a halt as the alert broke out, with roads left choked with traffic and trains stopped.
Police said the situation had been brought ‘under control’ half an hour after the alert was raised.
Beglian federal prosecutor Eric Van Der Sypt said: ‘At about 8.30pm there was an explosion in the Central Station, relatively small in size. The suspected perpetrator was neutralised by the soldiers present. There were no further victims. We consider this a terrorist attack.’
it came after a terrorist linked to islamic State blew himself up on the Champs Elysee in Paris on Monday as he tried to kill french police officers.
Adam Lofti Diaziri, 31, drove his Renault Megane into a group of officers, causing an explosion that killed himself, but no one else.