Two people have been killed in a shooting in the center of Brussels, police report. According to Belgian media, the victims wore T-shirts of the Swedish football team, which will play against Belgium in Brussels on Monday evening. That match has now been stopped. The terror level has been raised to four, the highest level.
The suspect first shot at a van, the occupant of which did not survive. He then entered the building in Ieperlaan and killed his second victim there. The man also shot a third person. After the shooting, the gunman fled.
‘Three infidels’
According to Het Nieuwsblad, the suspect shared a video on Facebook in which he said in Arabic that he had killed “three infidels”. At this moment there are two dead, the third victim is still alive. The man says in the video that he is a member of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group. “Whether people like it or not, we live and die for our faith,” the video says. “I gladly approach God, if I have wronged someone, He will forgive me.” The circumstances of the shooting are not yet clear.
Belgium-Sweden international match canceled after two Swedish football fans were shot dead in Brussels
The European Championship qualifier Belgium – Sweden in Brussels was stopped at halftime. The reason for this is the shooting earlier in the day in the center of Brussels that left two Swedish people dead.
According to Belgian media, the victims wore T-shirts of the Swedish football team. After the shooting, which also reportedly resulted in injuries, the gunman fled. The circumstances of the shooting are not yet clear.
The match was tied 1-1 at halftime after Viktor Gyökeres’ opening goal and Romelu Lukaku’s equalizer from a penalty. The stadium announcer announced in the King Baudouin Stadium that there will be no more football.
The newspaper Le Soir also says that the police are thinking of a terrorist act. A video is circulating on social media in which a man says in Arabic that he avenges the deaths of Muslims and that he has shot three Swedes.
Couple of shots
The man in that video appears to be the same as seen in images taken by a local resident. They show a man in a fluorescent orange jacket and a white helmet with a Kalashnikov-like weapon arriving on a scooter. He fires a few shots and chases fleeing people into an apartment building, shooting.
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Justice are in the National Crisis Center for consultations. The players of the Swedish national football team announced during halftime of the Belgium-Sweden match in the King Baudouin Stadium that they no longer want to play the second half. The match is therefore stopped. It is not yet clear what the supporters should do now.
Watchful
Prime Minister Alexander De Croo expresses his condolences on X to the relatives of the “cowardly assassination attempt in Brussels.” “I am monitoring developments together with the Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs from the National Crisis Center. We are monitoring the situation and would like to ask the residents of Brussels to be vigilant,” the Prime Minister reports on X.
Minister of the Interior Annelies Verlinden speaks on X of a “terrible shooting” and says that the “perpetrator is being tracked down.” “An investigation by the police and the public prosecutor’s office is underway. I am monitoring the situation and the measures to be taken from the National Crisis Center,” said Verlinden. De Croo has now expressed his condolences to the relatives on X.