Belgian police have shot dead a suspected terrorist accused of gunning down two Swedish soccer fans on a Brussels street after a nationwide manhunt, according to reports.
“The perpetrator of the terrorist attack in Brussels has been identified and is dead,” Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden posted at X, formerly Twitter.
The 45-year-old Tunisian suspect was shot by law enforcement on Monday in a cafe in the Schaerbeek neighborhood, not far from where the rampage had taken place hours earlier.
The man was hit in the chest and rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to local media.
“The weapon used to carry out the attack was found this morning where the man was arrested,” Verlinden said.
Belgium’s Interior Minister shared that authorities are doing their due diligence to ensure the man is the suspected gunman who eluded police following the brazen shooting.
Police officers at the scene after shooting dead the suspected terrorist behind Monday night’s attack in Brussels on Oct. 17. 2023.REUTERS Police officers work after a police operation against a fatal shooting suspect, in Schaerbeek, Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 17. 2023 REUTERS A police car is seen near the Schaerbeek area of Brussels on Tuesday, where the suspected perpetrator of the Brussels attacks was shot after being attacked by police in a cafe.REUTERS
“We are checking the fingerprints to be 100% sure,” he said.
Verlinden also revealed he could not rule out whether the suspect had accomplices who helped him in the attack.
Last Monday’s attack that left two Swedes dead and another injured in the center of Brussels sparked fear across the country.
The suspect quickly fled the scene after the brutal shooting, which sparked a massive manhunt and prompted the government to raise the terror alert level to 4 — the highest level.
The gunman was seen riding a moped while holding an assault rifle.Politicando/Facebook The suspected shooter, Abdesalem Lassoued, took to social media after bragging about the shooting.slayemslouman/facebook
Identifying himself as an Islamic State member named Abdesalem Lassoued, the suspect claimed responsibility for the shooting on behalf of the brutal terrorist organization and said he was a fighter for God in a video posted on social media.
In a video of the shooting posted on social media, a man wearing an orange fluorescent jacket is seen pulling up on a scooter, pulling out a large gun, and firing at passers-by before chasing them into a building to continue the massacre.
The attack was allegedly in retaliation for the killing of a 6-year-old Muslim boy in Illinois over the weekend.
Joseph M. Czuba, the 71-year-old Chicago-area landlord accused of stabbing the boy and his mother, has been arrested and charged with murder and hate crimes.
During Monday’s hearing, prosecutors told the court that Czuba had been closely monitoring the coverage of violence in Israel and was convinced his Muslim tenants would harm him as part of Hamas’ “day of jihad” last Friday.
The alleged shooter identified himself as a member of the Islamic State.slayemslouman/facebook In a video posted online after the shooting, Lassoued said he was a fighter for Allah.slayemslouman/facebook
“The attack launched yesterday was carried out with complete cowardice,” said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo during a press conference.
De Croo said the three shooting victims had just left a “lovely football party” before they were shot – two of them fatally.
“Their lives were cut short in full flight, cut short by extreme cruelty,” he said.
The shooting happened three miles from the King Baudouin Stadium as a Euro 2024 qualifying football match between Belgium and Sweden was underway.
A police officer is seen standing upright after the gunman who killed two Swedes in Brussels was shot and killed by police.REUTERS Police patrol as a van is pulled from the scene of a shooting in central Brussels, on Tuesday, Oct. 17. 2023 .AP
The match was stopped at half-time, but the Swedish and Belgian national teams chose not to continue in the wake of the tragedy.
“Following the suspected terrorist attack in Brussels this evening, it has been decided after consultation with both the team and the local police authorities, that the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifier between Belgium and Sweden is abandoned,” UEFA said in a statement on Monday.
More than 35,000 football fans were locked in the national stadium for hours as the terror alert level was high and as the suspect was still on the run and considered armed and dangerous.
Swedish fans react at half-time as the UEFA EURO 2024 European qualifier between Belgium and Sweden is abandoned at the King Baudouin Stadium on Oct. 16. 2023, in Brussels, Belgium.Getty Images
The suspected gunman had allegedly sought asylum in Belgium in November 2019 and was known to authorities as a suspected human trafficker, Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne said during a press conference.
In recent years, Belgium has been the target of several Islamist attacks — the deadliest being the 2016 attacks on Brussels airport and the city’s commuter rail tracks that left 32 people dead.
“Let us continue to be united in the terrible challenge of this terrorist attack. We will never be swayed by violence,” said De Croo after the shooting.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
