News / EU

Brussels police detain six people over terrorist bombing attacks

Friday, 25 March 2016 1:16 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 25 March 2016 1:15 AM ]

Special police forces stand guard outside the Council Chamber of Brussels on March 24, 2016 during investigations into the Paris and Brussels terror attacks. (AFP)

Police in Belgian capital have arrested six people in a series of operations two days after bomb attacks claimed by the Daesh terrorist group left 31 dead and some 300 others injured in Brussels.

Three of the suspects were arrested "outside the door of the federal prosecutor's office" in the city center on Thursday evening, said Eric Van Der Sypt, a spokesman for the federal prosecutors.

Two further people were reportedly arrested in the Schaerbeek district in northern Brussels and the sixth was detained in Jette, a neighborhood west of the capital.

The identities of the detained people have not been revealed yet.

"It will be decided tomorrow if an arrest warrant (charges) are brought against these people," the spokesman said.

Soldiers control the bag of commuters at the entrance of De Brouckere subway station in Brussels, on March 23, 2016, one day after the attacks on Brussels airport and at a metro station. (AFP)

On Tuesday, two explosions ripped through the international departure hall of the Zaventem Airport in Brussels. One blast hit near the American Airlines check-in desk and the other one near a coffee shop.

An hour later, another bomb went off at the Maelbeek metro station, 10 kilometers away, and close to European Union buildings.

Belgian police has identified three of the bombers, but at least two other suspects are still on the run.

The three identified suspects behind the bombings were reportedly linked to the last November attacks in Paris that claimed 130 lives.

Belgium is observing three days of national mourning over the carnage. A minute of silence was also observed for the victims on Thursday. The bombings in Brussels have led to intensified security measures across Europe.

A number of intelligence officials have said Daesh has a network of semi-autonomous interlocking terror cells comprised of more than 400 Takfiri terrorists trained and prepared to target European cities.

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