Two people wearing the yellow and blue jerseys of the Swedish national team have been killed in Brussels, as the valuable challenge for the Euro2024 qualifiers between Belgium and the Scandinavian country is being played at the “King Baudouin” stadium.
According to reports, the armed attack took place about 5 kilometers from the stadium. According to Het Laatste newspaper, the shooting was recorded near Sainctelette Plein, north of the city center.
International media reports that the gunman, after shouting “Allahu Akbar”, opened fire with a suspected Kalashnikov weapon on a crowd of people, killing two people and wounding another.
As seen in a video published on the X platform, the aggressor is wearing a fluorescent orange jacket, black pants and wears a white helmet on his head.
He appears standing, gun in hand, and starts shooting anyone on the sidewalk in front of him. People, as soon as they hear the shots, start to run in panic, while the gunman closes in on two people, who tried to take shelter in a building.
#BREAKING | A man has just shot dead several people in Brussels, with what appears to be a Kalashnikov. The suspect is believed to be on the run. (concordant sources)#Bruxelles #Belgium #Belgium pic.twitter.com/slHYVW9rj6
— Ratnesh Mishra (@Ratnesh_speaks) October 16, 2023
After trapping them, he shoots at them again. So far, no suspect has been arrested, but the police have surrounded the scene.
A video is circulating on social networks in which a man, suspected of being the author of the attack, says in Arabic that he is taking revenge for the death of Muslims and that he shot three Swedes.
In it, according to ‘Sudinfo’, he claims to be a member of the Islamic State ISIS and boasts that he has killed infidels.
“We live and die for our religion,” he says.
The spokesman of the national crisis center, Antoine Iseux, contacted by Le Soir, claimed that the institution had been informed directly by the Brussels police area about the attack.
“We are monitoring the situation. At the moment, the case is still being followed by the Brussels public prosecutor’s office”, he explains.
Another video of Shooting this Monday evening in the center of Brussels: There were 2 dead and several injured” #bruxelles #attack #arras #Belgium
— Ratnesh Mishra (@Ratnesh_speaks) October 16, 2023
So the Prime Minister of Belgium, along with the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Justice are currently at the scene to closely monitor the situation.
The gun attack comes at a time when the global community is on heightened alert due to Hamas terror attacks in Israel.