Suspected Gunman in Brussels Attack Dies in Police Shootout

“The perpetrator of the terrorist attack in Brussels has been identified and died,” Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden announced on social media platform X, shortly after Prime Minister Alexander De Croo described the shooting on Monday as a brutal “terrorist attack.”

This incident unfolded amidst heightened security concerns in several European countries, partly linked to the ongoing Israel-Hamas. However, Belgian authorities have emphasized that there is no evidence connecting the attacker to the renewed conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants.

In August, Sweden raised its terrorism alert to the second-highest level due to an increase in threats against Swedes at home and abroad, triggered by incidents such as Quran burnings that had outraged Muslims and led to threats from jihadists.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, addressing the press on Tuesday, called for enhanced security measures and emphasized the need for stronger border controls within Sweden and the European Union. He stated, “This is a time for more security; we can’t be naive.”

The suspected attacker, who had unsuccessfully sought asylum in Belgium in November 2019 and was residing in the country illegally, was already known to Belgian police in connection with people smuggling, as mentioned by Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne.

The gunman had fled the scene following the attack on Monday, which occurred as a football match between Belgium and Sweden was about to commence. This triggered a massive manhunt and prompted Belgium to elevate its terrorism alert level in the capital.

Belgian authorities confirmed that the perpetrator specifically targeted Swedish supporters who were in Brussels to attend a Red Devils soccer match. The attack resulted in the loss of two Swedish lives, with a third person recovering from severe injuries. The football match between Belgium and Sweden was subsequently abandoned at halftime.

In response to the situation, Belgium has heightened its police presence in the capital, particularly around Swedish individuals and institutions. The public has been urged to exercise extra vigilance and avoid unnecessary travel.

French President Emmanuel Macron expressed solidarity with Europe and announced the deployment of 7,000 extra troops onto the streets of France following a recent attack in which a teacher was fatally stabbed, an incident he condemned as “barbaric Islamic terrorism.”

Video footage of the Brussels attack, posted on the Het Laatste Nieuws newspaper website, depicted a man in an orange jacket on a scooter at a street intersection, firing multiple shots before entering a building and firing again. It has been reported that police are now searching for an accomplice who filmed the attack.

A media transcript of the video message recorded by the self-declared perpetrator revealed that he claimed to have taken revenge in the name of Muslims by killing Swedes.

In response to the heightened security situation, the European Commission, based in Brussels, has urged its staff to work from home, and some schools in the area were closed as a precaution.

Belgium has sadly been the target of several Islamist attacks in recent years, with the deadliest being the 2016 attack on Brussels airport and the city’s metro, in which 32 people lost their lives. Notably, some of the Islamist gunmen involved in the 2015 attack on Paris, which claimed the lives of 130 people, were Belgian nationals or residents of Brussels.