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Blasts leave ‘scores’ dead at Brussels airport and metro station Blasts leave ‘scores’ dead at Brussels airport and metro station
(35 minutes later)
BRUSSELS — Apparently coordinated terrorist explosions rocked Brussels Airport and a metro station Tuesday, leaving at least 26 dead and raising fears that attackers carried out retaliatory strikes after the arrest of a key suspect in last year’s Paris massacres. BRUSSELS — Three deadly terrorist blasts rocked the Belgian capital Tuesday, leaving more than 30 dead at the Brussels airport and a metro station and striking fear in the heart of the European Union just days after a manhunt captured a key suspect in last year’s Paris massacres.
The full casualty count remained unclear hours after the attacks, but various Belgian reports and officials said it reached at least 26. More than 135 people were injured. The apparently coordinated explosions — including at least one by a suicide bomber at the airport — created a renewed sense of threat that spilled far beyond Brussels, as authorities boosted police patrols in cities such as Paris, London and Washington.
“We are talking about scores of dead,” said Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel without giving clearer estimates after blasts brought down roof panels at the airport’s departure hall and an explosion on the Maelbeek metro platform shrouded it in smoke and littered it with debris.
[Scenes from the airport carnage]
The Belgian prosecutor’s office described at least one of the airport blasts as part of a suicide attack — the latest apparent terrorist bloodshed in Europe and another sign that militant networks remain able to strike despite widespread crackdowns and investigations across the continent.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but European leaders wasted no time in linking to other attacks by Islamist militants. “We are at war,” said French Prime Minister Manuel Valls.
“We have been subjected for the last few months in Europe to acts of war,” he added. Hours early, Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw said the city had come under “terrorist attacks.”
Brussels’s public transportation agency said the subway blast alone left at least 15 dead and 55 injured “so far.”
The Belgian Health Ministry said that 11 people were killed and 81 were wounded in the attack at the airport, Belgium’s Le Soir newspaper reported.
“What we had feared has happened,” Michel said. “This is a black moment for our country.”
The Belgian capital was ordered locked down and was put on a maximum terror alert, with all of the city’s public transportation shut down. The fallout immediately spread beyond Belgium’s borders, displaying the increased worries and security cooperation since November’s Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
[Live blog on Brussels attacks][Live blog on Brussels attacks]
The latest bloodshed also made clear that European capitals remain perilously vulnerable despite attempts to dismantle the militant network that perpetrated the worst terrorist attack in Paris in generations last November. It also raised fears of further reprisal attacks for the arrest of the fugitive suspect last week.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but European leaders wasted no time in referencing other attacks by Islamist militants. “We are at war,” said French Prime Minister Manuel Valls.
“We have been subjected for the last few months in Europe to acts of war,” he added. Hours early, Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw said the city had come under “terrorist attacks.” His office said at least one of the airport blasts was carried out by a suicide bomber.
Belgian leaders warned that the Brussels perpetrators may still be at large, and Brussels was largely shut down.
Feeding fears that the danger has not subsided, Belgian media reported that security forces were conducting raids around the capital, but then said that law enforcement agencies had asked them to stop reporting on the raids to avoid tipping off suspects.
The attacks started just before 8 a.m. Brussels time, when one blast ripped through the departure hall of the Brussels airport, followed shortly by another one near the other end of the terminal, where people had already started to run for cover.
The blasts collapsed ceilings in the departure hall, sent passengers fleeing and left pools of blood amid splintered signs and abandoned luggage.
Just over an hour later, another explosion tore open a metal subway car at the bustling Maelbeek metro station, where European Union diplomats, government employees and other international workers routinely crisscross on their way to work.
The station was clogged with smoke as panicked people streamed onto the streets and rescue workers raced toward the mayhem.
[Watch: Passengers race from airport blast site]
The attacks came just four days after French and Belgian leaders celebrated the capture of Salah Abdeslam, 26, believed to be the lone remaining at-large direct participant in the Paris attacks, who was discovered hiding in a Brussels apartment building in the Molenbeek neighborhood near the center of the city.
Last week’s sense of triumph turned quickly to outrage and grief Tuesday, as Belgian leaders said they were contending with the worst attack on their soil since World War II.
“What we had feared has happened,” said Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel. “This is a black moment for our country.”
Michel said that there were “scores” of dead, without offering specifics.
The mayor of Brussels, Yvan Mayeur, said the subway blast alone left at least 20 dead. Earlier reports said at least 55 people were injured in that explosion.
The Belgian Health Ministry said 11 people were killed and 81 wounded in the attack at the airport, Belgium’s Le Soir newspaper reported.
The fallout immediately spread beyond Belgium’s borders, displaying the increased worries and security cooperation since November’s Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that an additional 1,600 people were deployed in France and that security was boosted at border posts and major transportation hubs.French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that an additional 1,600 people were deployed in France and that security was boosted at border posts and major transportation hubs.
“Through the attacks in Brussels, all of Europe is hit,” French President François Hollande wrote on Twitter. On social media, an image soon appeared: A figure draped in the colors of the French flag embracing another tearful figure in the black, yellow and red of Belgium’s banner.“Through the attacks in Brussels, all of Europe is hit,” French President François Hollande wrote on Twitter. On social media, an image soon appeared: A figure draped in the colors of the French flag embracing another tearful figure in the black, yellow and red of Belgium’s banner.
London and other cities, including New York and Washington, also put additional police on the streets. London and other cities, including New York and Washington, also put additional police on the streets. The FBI and other U.S. agencies opened channels with Belgian officials to assist in the investigation.
In Washington, the FBI and other U.S. agencies opened channels with Belgian officials to assist in the investigation. The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, who was in Jordan meeting with that country’s foreign minister, choked back tears at a news conference after learning of the Brussels attacks.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, who was in Jordan meeting with the country’s foreign minister, choked back tears at a news conference after learning of the Brussels attacks.
“We are experiencing the darkest day in the history of our country since the Second World War,” said Bart de Wever, mayor of Antwerp and the leader of Belgium’s largest political party, the Flemish nationalist Vlaams Belang, the broadcaster VTM reported.“We are experiencing the darkest day in the history of our country since the Second World War,” said Bart de Wever, mayor of Antwerp and the leader of Belgium’s largest political party, the Flemish nationalist Vlaams Belang, the broadcaster VTM reported.
At the Brussels Airport, located in the suburb of Zaventem, the blasts collapsed ceilings in the departure hall, sent passengers fleeing, and left pools of blood amid splintered signs and abandoned luggage.
The metro station was clogged with smoke as panicked people streamed onto the streets and rescue workers raced toward the mayhem.
[Belgium: Paris terror suspect was planning new attacks][Belgium: Paris terror suspect was planning new attacks]
Amateur video taken immediately after the airport attack showed streams of panicked passengers running out of the airport. Large clouds of smoke bellowed from the blown-out windows of a terminal building.Amateur video taken immediately after the airport attack showed streams of panicked passengers running out of the airport. Large clouds of smoke bellowed from the blown-out windows of a terminal building.
The airport was closed, as well as the major roadway leading to the airport. Flights were diverted to Liege Airport, about 50 miles east of Brussels Airport, radio reports said.The airport was closed, as well as the major roadway leading to the airport. Flights were diverted to Liege Airport, about 50 miles east of Brussels Airport, radio reports said.
The bombing comes just four days after the arrest of Salah Abdeslam, the last known living participant in the November attacks on Paris. Abdeslam, 26, was arrested in Brussels’s Molenbeek neighborhood.
About 75 minutes after the blasts at the airport, another explosion ripped through the Maelbeek metro station, Belgian media reported. That station, near the heart of the European Union, serves a busy stretch of E.U. office buildings, embassies and international organizations. The explosion happened near the end of the morning rush hour, when many subway trains are packed with commuters.About 75 minutes after the blasts at the airport, another explosion ripped through the Maelbeek metro station, Belgian media reported. That station, near the heart of the European Union, serves a busy stretch of E.U. office buildings, embassies and international organizations. The explosion happened near the end of the morning rush hour, when many subway trains are packed with commuters.
[Gallery: The hunt for the Paris attack fugitive][Gallery: The hunt for the Paris attack fugitive]
Brussels Airport tweeted news of the explosions, imploring people to stay away.Brussels Airport tweeted news of the explosions, imploring people to stay away.
One person, who was in a taxi pulling up to the departures terminal, said she felt and heard two explosions in short succession, “one farther away, one closer.”One person, who was in a taxi pulling up to the departures terminal, said she felt and heard two explosions in short succession, “one farther away, one closer.”
“We saw a few people injured. We saw the glass front of the building had exploded, glass flying around,” said Daniela Schwarzer, head of the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, who was leaving Brussels after a weekend conference there.“We saw a few people injured. We saw the glass front of the building had exploded, glass flying around,” said Daniela Schwarzer, head of the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, who was leaving Brussels after a weekend conference there.
Deane reported from London, and Murphy from Washington. Michael Birnbaum in Moscow and Anthony Faiola in Berlin contributed to this report. Amid the crisis, some basic Belgian utilities appeared to be under stress. Belgium’s official crisis center called on Brussels residents to avoid streaming video and music to avoid taxing the Internet. It asked people to communicate by text message or social network, rather than voice calls, so as not to overload phone lines.
Birnbaum reported from Moscow, and Murphy from Washington. Daniela Deane and Karla Adam in London and Anthony Faiola in Berlin contributed to this report.
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