Two football fans dead after armed gunman launches terror attack - live updates

Overnight manhunt ends in gunman being shot after night of horror

An overnight manhunt for a man suspected of killing two Swedes on the evening of a European Qualifiers game in a terror attack has ended with the suspect being shot dead.

The Belgium vs Sweden fixture at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels was abandoned at half-time as news began to emerge of the killings.

A man who identified himself as a member of the Islamic State group posted a video online claiming responsibility.

Authorities in Belgium searched for a 45-year-old suspected Tunisian extremist, who was known to police and was living in the country illegally.

He was shot by police at a cafe in Brussels this morning and died on the way to hospital.

Brussels terror suspect dies on way to hospital after being shot in cafe

A man suspected of killing two Swedish nationals in Brussels overnight has been shot dead by police and a weapon has been recovered, Belgium's interior minister said.

Annelies Verlinden told VRT radio that "we have the good news that we found the individual". Amateur videos posted on social media of Monday's attack showed a man wearing an orange fluorescent vest pull up on a scooter, take out a large weapon and open fire on passers by before chasing them into a building to gun them down.

The suspect - who has been named by Belgian media as Abdesalem L - was shot in a cafe in Schaerbeek and arrested - but died on the way to hospital. Police are said to have also searched a property in the municipality linked to the gunman.

US state votes against banning children from carrying guns in public

(Twitter)

Active police presence in area

Police vehicles have been seen around the Schaerbeek area of Brussels this morning as the man suspected of gunning down two people from Sweden last night was shot dead.

(Belga/AFP via Getty Images)

Aftermath as terror suspect shot dead in Brussels

Police have cordoned off a street where officers shot a man suspected of killing two Swedish nationals in Brussels last night. The suspect died of his injuries.

(REX/Shutterstock)

Suspect shot dead

A man suspected of killing two Swedish nationals in Brussels overnight has died on the way to hospital after being shot by police in a cafe.

Authorities had been searching for a 45-year-old suspected Tunisian extremist, who was known to police and was living in Belgium illegally.

Suspect was spotted inside cafe before police opened fire

The arrest took place in a café in the Brussels district of Schaerbeek, after the police searched the building in which it is located.

Prosecuting source Eric Van Duyse said: "The police opened fire after the suspect was spotted inside at around 8am on Tuesday.

"An ambulance was later seen taking the wounded man to hospital, while his scooter was towed away by a tow truck.

"Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo said: ‘This is a man of Tunisian origin who was staying in our country illegally."

Brussels terror suspect that killed two shot and arrested in a cafe after huge manhunt

A man suspected of carrying out a terror attack in Brussels which left two people dead has been arrested, according to reports.

The suspect - who has been named by Belgian media as Abdesalem L - was reportedly shot in a cafe in Schaerbeek.

However, it's understood he has not been killed and has been detained.

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Suspect 'posted on Facebook about murder of Palestinian boy in the US'

Before the attack, the suspect had posted a message on Facebook referring to the murder in the US of a Palestinian boy, who had been stabbed by his mother’s landlord.

Joseph M. Czuba, 71, has been arrested and charged in the gruesome murder of Wadea Al-Fayoume, a Muslim, Palestinian-American child, who was found dead with 26 stab wounds in Plainfield, Illinois.

The incident is considered a hate crime, police said, revealing disturbing messages that the 32-year-old mother, Hanaan Shahin, sent to Wadea's father.

Joseph Czuba was arrested after Wadea Al-Fayoume was killed

Suspect's social media shows interest in anti-Muslim conspiracy theories

Police sources have told the Times that social media accounts linked to the suspect showed an interest in anti-Muslim conspiracy theories about Sweden.

Qurans have been burnt several times in Sweden in recent months, provoking violent protests in Muslim countries.

Taxi driver also injured during attack

Some media reports have aired amateur videos showing a man arriving near the Boulevard d’Ypres to the north of the city centre on a scooter in an orange fluorescent vest, dropping the vehicle and immediately taking out a large weapon and opening fire on passersby.

Apart from the two Swedes who were killed, a local taxi driver was hurt but his life was not in danger.

The attacker then picked up his scooter and sped off into the gathering darkness.

Even though only two people died in the attack, compared to dozens and dozens in extremist attacks in past years in Europe, the return of a sense of dread was immediate.

Shooting comes amid heightened tension and drug trafficking increase

The shooting came at a time of increased vigilance linked to the Israel-Hamas war which has heightened tension in several European nations.

At the same time, the Belgian capital has been the scene of increased violence linked to increasing international drug trafficking.

Police and inspectors work in an area where a shooting took place in the centre of Brussels (AP)

Belgium PM says attack 'shakes the foundations of our peaceful societies'

Beligium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has said on X: "Belgium sends its sincere condolences to the people of Sweden. This terrorist attack shakes the foundations of our peaceful societies.

"We offer our unwavering solidarity in the face of this blind hatred. We will counter terrorism together with even greater determination."

Belgium sends its sincere condolences to the people of Sweden.

This terrorist attack shakes the foundations of our peaceful societies.

We offer our unwavering solidarity in the face of this blind hatred.

We will counter terrorism together with even greater determination.

— Alexander De Croo (@alexanderdecroo) October 17, 2023

People should 'avoid any unnecessary travel' with gunman on the loose, say officials

The OCAD anti-terror centre has said the terror alert for the rest of the country had been raised to its second-highest level.

Laura Demullier of the OCAD said the highest priority for authorities had been to get thousands of football fans attending a Belgium-Sweden football match safely out of the the King Baudouin Stadium where the match was abandoned at half-time.

The attacker is still at large and the killings happened three miles from the stadium, where more than 35,000 fans were held for more than two hours.

"The population needs to be actively vigilant and avoid any unnecessary travel," Ms Demullier said. Raising the terror level to the top 4 rating means the threat is "extremely serious". It previously stood at 2, which means the threat was average.

Suspect 'is targeting Swedish people'

The authorities believe that the suspect is targeting Swedish people.

Officials say he requested asylum in November 2019 but was rejected. He reportedly threatened someone at an asylum centre at the beginning of the year.

Police in Tunisia were allegedly set to have a meeting with Antwerp Police about the suspect on Tuesday in relation to terrorism offences.

Suspect is 'seriously armed' and on the run

The suspect is still on the run and is seriously armed, officials have warned.

Sudinfo reports that searches took place at his home in Schaerbeek, but they yielded nothing.

Schools and nurseries remain open in Brussels, even if the threat level remains at 4, the highest level but the European Commission, which employs thousands of people, has told employees to work from home and says it will keep the schools and day care centre's for staff’s children closed.

Police cordon off an area where a shooting took place in the centre of Brussels (AP)

Two dead and one seriously injured

One victim remains seriously ill in hospital, while two football fans 'died in a brutal terrorist attack'.

The PM says their lives were cut short in a brutal terrorist attack - and says he has spoken to the Swedish PM about their citizens that died. He has dubbed the perpetrator a 'coward' and says the pair were probably targeted over the burning of the Quaran in Sweden over the summer.

Suspect 'was staying illegally' in Belgium

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has said that the suspect is "a man of Tunisian origin who was staying illegally" in Belgium

During a press conference this morning, PM Alexander De Croo confirmed that "two lives were taken”.

"The attack which was committed yesterday was carried out with total cowardice” by a man "of Tunisian origin who was staying illegally” in Belgium, he added

Press conference expected shortly

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo is expected to give an update on the ongoing situation.

Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Spate of Quran burnings in the summer

Sweden hiked up its threat alert to the second-highest level in the summer, after a spate of Quran burnings outraged Muslims and led to threats from hardline groups.

Security service Sapo warned that the incidents had badly affected the country's image abroad and led to a deterioration of the security situation at home in July.

Many Muslim-majority countries have expressed outrage, and incidents sae protesters set fire to Sweden's embassy in Iraq after hearing police in Stockholm had given permission for more book burning.

The Nordic nation scrapped its blasphemy laws in the 1970s.

'Targeted because they were Swedish', claims prosecutor

The football fans shot dead in Brussels on Monday night in a terror attack were possibly targeted because they were Swedish, the Belgian prosecutor has said.

In a video posted on social media, a man identifying himself as the attacker claimedd "he was inspired by the Islamic State" (IS) extremist group, the spokesman for the federal prosecutor's office, Eric Van Duyse, said on the LN24 news channel.

Van Duyse added there appears to be no links with the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Middle East.

‘I was frozen, I didn't move’

In a horror video published by Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws, the shooter can be seen with an automatic weapon on his shoulder, as he flees on a motorbike. Four gunshots are heard.

A witness who spoke to LN24 channel described their shock during the incident.

“I stood there frozen, I didn’t move. I was shocked by what happened, even now I am still in shock. It was a man who came, pushed me, told me to stop running if I wanted to stay alive,” said the witness, who gave his name as Sulayman.

Football fans emotional cheers as they awaited updates

Fans chanted "All together, All together," with thousands from both sides also shouting "Sweden, Sweden!" as they waited inside Belgium's national stadium. The 35,000 supporters were eventually allowed to leave in groups just after midnight local time.

The gunman remains on the loose.

Players asked for the match to be abandoned

Sweden manager Janne Andersson confirmed the players had asked for the game to be abandoned when they heard about the shooting at half-time.

“I felt it was completely unreal,” he told a press conference. “What kind of world do we live in today? I was supposed to have a good chat with the players but I heard it and almost started crying.

Janne Andersson, Head coach of Sweden (Getty Images Europe)

“When the team started talking, we agreed 100 per cent that we didn’t want to play on out of respect for the victims and their families.”

Sweden captain Victor Lindelof, the Manchester United defender, said security put the team “at ease”.

“They explained that this is the safest place to be in Brussels,” he said.

Macron: 'Europe is being shaken’

French President Emmanuel Macron has claimed Brussels was hit by an "Islamist terrorist attack", while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has described what hapened as a "despicable attack". She added: "Together, we stand united against terror."
Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander de Croo wrote on X: "I have just offered my sincere condolences to the Swedish Primer Minister Ulf Kristersson following tonight's harrowing attack on Swedish citizens in Brussels. Our thoughts are with the families and friends who lost their loved ones. As close partners, the fight against terrorism is a joint one."

Man believed to be suspect filmed chilling video after attack

A man believed to be on the on-the-run gunman posted a chilling video across social media after an attack in Brussels left two Swedish football fans dead.

In the video, the man says "Allahu Akbar" and introduces himself as Abdesalem Al Guilani - the suspect named by Belgian authorities. He then claims to be from the Islamic State and makes reference to Allah. Then he claims to have killed "three Swedes".

Swedish supporters react during the abandoned football game between them and Belgium in Brussels (BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images)

But he says this is "so far" raising the worrying prospect he may strike again. He finishes the video off, signing off before it ends.

In the footage he is dressed in the same clothes as a man in other footage on social media that seemingly shows the shooting itself.

Third victim - a taxi driver - believed to be 'out of danger'

Alongside the two dead, a third person was believed to have been shot.

In an update on Belgian TV from the federal prosecutor's office, they said a third man, a taxi driver, was "out of danger".

Brussels residents advised to stay home as gunman remains at large

Residents and locals in Brussels are advised to remain in their home as the gunman continues to elude authorities.

"The population needs to be actively vigilant and avoid any unnecessary travel," anti-terror center spokeswoman Laura Demullier said,

In an update televised on Belgian TV, the federal prosecutors office said the alleged attacker spoke of Islamic State in a video posted online.

Police cordon off an area where a shooting took place in the centre of Brussels (AP)

Terror attack 'has no apparent link to Israel-Hamas conflict'

The terror attack has no apparent link to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas.

Eric Van Duyse, spokesman for the federal prosecutor's office, told reporters the investigation was centering on "a possible terrorist motivation for the shooting."

"During the evening, a claim of responsibility was posted on social media, having been recorded by a person claiming to be the assailant. This person claims to be inspired by Islamic State," Van Duyse said. "The Swedish nationality of the victims was put forward as the probable motive for the act. At this time, no element indicates a possible link with the Israeli-Palestinian situation."

Supporters wait to leave after suspension of the Euro 2024 group F qualifying soccer match between Belgium and Sweden (AP)

Suspect formally identified

The suspect in the killing of two Swedish football fans has been identified by the Belgian federal prosecutors’ office as Abdesalem L, 45 - Les News 24 reported, airing a statement from the body.

The man is believed to have lived in an apartment in the Schaerbeek area of Brussels, which is just a 10-minute drive from the scene of the shooting.

Priority for Belgium officials is getting thousands of footy fans home safely

Laura Demullier of the OCAD said the highest priority for authorities was to get thousands of football fans attending a Belgium-Sweden football match safely out of the stadium where the match was abandoned half-way through.

The attacker was still at large and the killings happened three miles from the stadium, where more than 35,000 fans were watching the game.

“The population needs to be actively vigilant and avoid any unnecessary travel,” Ms Demullier said.

Raising the terror level to the top 4 rating means the threat is “extremely serious”. It previously stood at 2, which means the threat was average.

At least two people have died so far (OLIVIER HOSLET/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)