By Robert Becker and Michael Engelberg
Terror alert in Brussels: two people were shot in an attack.
According to initial information, the incident occurred around 7:15 p.m. near Sainctelette Square in the city center.
Footage from a resident shows a man in an orange jacket with a white baseball cap arriving on a scooter and stopping on the sidewalk.
He then shoots two people, storms into the entrance hall of a building and repeatedly shoots people at close range. The perpetrator was armed with a long gun. He then apparently shot at two people in a car.
The investigation is ongoing, a police spokeswoman said in the evening. According to the Belgian news agency Belga, there were initially no arrests. The highest terror alert level was declared in Brussels.
The perpetrator is also said to have shot at the occupants of a black Mercedes Photo: Sylvain Plazy/AP
A witness told the daily Het Nieuwsblad: “I saw the victim less than five meters away from me. A man around 40 years old. And then a black Mercedes Vito with two or three bullet holes in the car. Inside, the driver was dead. The injured passenger was half covered in blood but conscious.”
Those killed are said to be two Swedes. And: Both are said to have worn jerseys from the Swedish football team.
The Belgian national team will play against the Swedish national team in Brussels on Monday evening. The game was abandoned after halftime.
According to Sudinfo, security measures have also been tightened around the King Baudouin Stadium, where the football match will take place. Since the perpetrator is still on the run, all Swedish fans are advised not to take to the streets in their country’s colors.
The Belgian newspaper “Sudinfo” writes that the perpetrator spread a video message on Facebook. In it he says he is an ISIS member and brags about killing infidels. He says he shot three people to “avenge the Muslims.” The man in the video is also wearing an orange jacket and a white baseball cap.
Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (47) expressed his condolences. He wrote on X: “My deepest condolences go out to the relatives of the cowardly attack in Brussels.”
Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden (45) wrote on X: “Terrible shooting in Brussels. The perpetrator will be tracked down.”