2 shot dead in Brussels ‘terrorist attack’ with suspect on the run

BRUSSELS — A shooter killed two people near the center of Brussels on Monday evening, in what senior Belgian officials have condemned as a “terrorist attack.”

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said that he had passed on condolences to his Swedish counterpart “following tonight’s harrowing attack on Swedish citizens.”

Police said a suspect fired gunshots near Place Sainctelette and Boulevard du Neuvième de Ligne shortly after 7 p.m. and patrols were immediately dispatched to the scene. A third person was also injured by gunfire. The shooter remains at large.

Two people were confirmed dead, said Brussels police spokesperson Ilse Van de Keere. “The investigation is ongoing,” she added.

Sweden was playing Belgium in a football match at the national stadium in northern Brussels, with hundreds of supporters following their team. The game has now been abandoned. Sweden has been on the front line of blowback from hard-line Islamists, due to repeated Quran burnings — including a spate this summer which led Stockholm to increase the country’s security threat level.

Late Monday night, Eric van Duyse, spokesperson for the federal prosecutor’s office, said on Belgian TV: “During the evening, a statement was posted on social networks and recorded by a person claiming to be the assailant. He claimed to be inspired by the Islamic State [ISIS].

“In the same statement, the victims’ Swedish nationality was mentioned as a probable motive for the act. At this stage, there is no evidence of any connection with the Israeli-Palestinian situation,” van Duyse added, referring to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

A third person, a cab driver, was also injured and is now out of danger, van Duyse said. He added that the shooter was still on the run.

According to Belgian public broadcaster RTBF, police in the early hours of Tuesday were carrying out raids in municipality of Schaerbeek, where the suspected gunman is reportedly living. Belgian media have identified the suspect as a 45-year-old man known as Abdesalem L., who has Tunisian origins.

With the suspect still at large, European and some Flemish schools will be closed in the capital on Tuesday, while there’s “no decision” yet for French speaking schools, Caroline Désir, the education minister of the French-speaking Community of Belgium, told RTBF.

Sweden-Belgium football match abandoned

Brussels raised its terror threat level to four, the maximum on the scale, according to the Belgian National Crisis Center. The organization asked people to avoid unnecessary travel and show “increased vigilance.”

De Croo added: “My deepest condolences to the relatives of this cowardly attack in Brussels. We are monitoring the situation and ask the people of Brussels to be vigilant.”

Belgian’s Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib said she was “horrified” by the “terrorist attack,” adding, “All necessary means must be mobilized to combat radicalism.”

In a statement regarding the game, European football’s governing body, UEFA, said, “Following a suspected terrorist attack in Brussels this evening, it has been decided, after consultation with the two teams and the local police authorities, that the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match between Belgium and Sweden is abandoned.”

France toughens border controls

Tobias Billström, Sweden’s foreign minister, said: “Devastated by the news of two Swedish football supporters murdered in Brussels tonight and a third person being seriously wounded. All my thoughts are with their families and loved ones.”

Reaction has come in from EU leaders, too. French President Emmanuel Macron said “Our Europe is shaken,” while Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, “Italy strongly condemns all forms of violence, fanaticism and terrorism and expresses its deepest condolences to the victims and their families.”

Following the attack, French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced France would strengthen its border controls with Belgium, according to AFP.

Belgium’s Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden, Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne and De Croo were at the National Crisis Center, near the prime minister’s office in the Belgian capital, on Monday night.

Brussels Mayor Philippe Close said: “Following the shooting in Brussels, the police services are mobilizing to guarantee safety in and around our capital” in collaboration with Verlinden’s ministry.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said: “Terror and extremism cannot infiltrate in our societies. People must feel safe. Hate will not win.”

The story is being updated.

Elena Giordano contributed reporting.