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| Brussels attacks: el-Bakraoui brothers 'named as suicide bombers' – live | Brussels attacks: el-Bakraoui brothers 'named as suicide bombers' – live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 8.44am GMT | |
| 08:44 | |
| Angelique Chrisafis | |
| Angelique Chrisafis in Brussels has more on the third possible suspect in the airport attack. | |
| Najim Laachraoui, 24, who Belgian media reported grew up in the Brussels neighbourhood of Schaerbeek, was well-known to police. | |
| He is believed to have travelled to Syria in 2013 and was thought to have been key in a recruitment ring of Brussels youths for jihad. | |
| In 2014 an international arrest warrant was issued against him, but this appears not to have stopped him returning to Belgium. Since December, police investigating the Paris attacks have been looking for a man under the alias of Soufiane Kayal who it recently emerged was Laachraoui. His DNA was found in two hideouts used by Paris attackers and also on explosive material. | |
| The state broadcaster RTBF reported that he could have been one of the bombmakers involved in November’s Paris attacks. | |
| 8.40am GMT | |
| 08:40 | |
| Anushka Asthana | |
| Home Secretary Theresa May has argued that membership of the EU helps Britain to fight terrorism, saying it allows countries to “stand together” against the threat, writes Anushka Asthana. | |
| In an interview before the atrocity in Brussels but published today in the Times, she suggested that tackling the security threat was what convinced her to back the Remain camp and added that the terrorists “will not win”. | |
| “I think this is an issue people should look at more broadly, but on the security front there are good reasons for us to be members of the European Union,” she said. | |
| “The UK threat level is at severe, which means a terrorist attack is highly likely. We know that since November 2014 seven terrorist plots have been disrupted in the UK. What’s important is that we work with others to ensure that we can respond.” | |
| May, who will attend a Cobra meeting this morning with colleagues to discuss the UK’s reaction to the attacks in Brussels, talked about how rejoining the European arrest warrant paved the way for a “quicker... smooth” process that didn’t rely on a series of bilateral agreements. And she said the EU was able to share fingerprints and DNA information, which was an “important tool” to help catch criminals. | |
| The interview comes amid controversy after leading UKIP figures were accused of using the terror attacks to boost their case for leaving the EU. Nigel Farage, the party leader, retweeted a message from a newspaper columnist that said Brussels was the “jihadist capital” of Europe and “Remainers dare to say we’re safer in the EU”. Today it has emerged that Lord Howard, speaking before the attacks, claimed that the EU’s open borders were encouraging terrorists into the continent. | |
| “The second is a consequence of the Schengen agreement which, according to the former Head of Interpol ‘is like hanging a sign welcoming terrorists to Europe’,” the former Tory leader said on Tuesday. | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.46am GMT | |
| 8.34am GMT | |
| 08:34 | |
| Trump accuses Muslims of 'protecting each other' | |
| US presidential candidate Donald Trump has urged British Muslims to do more to report extremism. | |
| In an interview with Piers Morgan on ITV’s Good Morning Britain he said: “It’s like they are protecting each other. They have to open up to society, they have to report the bad ones.” | |
| Speaking in the aftermath of the Brussels attacks, said: “I would say this to Muslims ... when they see trouble they have to report it. They are not reporting it.” | |
| 8.12am GMT | 8.12am GMT |
| 08:12 | 08:12 |
| The el-Bakraoui brothers can be added to a long list of brothers involved in terrorism. | The el-Bakraoui brothers can be added to a long list of brothers involved in terrorism. |
| The Guardian’s Jason Burke, wrote about “jihad by family” in the wake of November’s Paris attacks which included the brothers Ibrahim Abdeslam – who blew himself up outside the Comptoir Voltaire restaurant – and Salah Abdeslam who was captured in Brussels on Friday. | The Guardian’s Jason Burke, wrote about “jihad by family” in the wake of November’s Paris attacks which included the brothers Ibrahim Abdeslam – who blew himself up outside the Comptoir Voltaire restaurant – and Salah Abdeslam who was captured in Brussels on Friday. |
| He wrote: | He wrote: |
| Ten years ago, US military intelligence officials in Iraq identified having a close family member already involved as the greatest predictor of an individual becoming involved in violent militancy, Islamic or otherwise. | Ten years ago, US military intelligence officials in Iraq identified having a close family member already involved as the greatest predictor of an individual becoming involved in violent militancy, Islamic or otherwise. |
| This may be a brother, or it may be a father. Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary, a British aspiring rapper turned Isis recruit, is the son of Adel Abdel Bary, an Egyptian militant who came to the UK in 1991 and was later convicted in New York for his role in al–Qaida’s attack on US embassies in east Africa in 1998. In the UK more recently, along with siblings, parents of jihadis have been detained and some charged with Syria-related offences. | This may be a brother, or it may be a father. Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary, a British aspiring rapper turned Isis recruit, is the son of Adel Abdel Bary, an Egyptian militant who came to the UK in 1991 and was later convicted in New York for his role in al–Qaida’s attack on US embassies in east Africa in 1998. In the UK more recently, along with siblings, parents of jihadis have been detained and some charged with Syria-related offences. |
| Research by New America, a nonpartisan thinktank in the United States, showed that more than a quarter of western fighters have a familial connection to jihad, whether through relatives who are also fighting in Syria and Iraq, through marriage or through some link to other jihads or terrorist attacks. | Research by New America, a nonpartisan thinktank in the United States, showed that more than a quarter of western fighters have a familial connection to jihad, whether through relatives who are also fighting in Syria and Iraq, through marriage or through some link to other jihads or terrorist attacks. |
| Related: 'Jihad by family': Why are terrorist cells often made up of brothers? | Related: 'Jihad by family': Why are terrorist cells often made up of brothers? |
| Updated | |
| at 8.22am GMT | |
| 8.00am GMT | 8.00am GMT |
| 08:00 | 08:00 |
| The family of a missing British man, who has not been seen since leaving for work in Brussels on Tuesday morning, have been talking about the agonising wait for news. | The family of a missing British man, who has not been seen since leaving for work in Brussels on Tuesday morning, have been talking about the agonising wait for news. |
| David Dixon, a former British Airways employee from Hartlepool, is believed to have been on a metro train at the time of the attack on Maelbeek station. | David Dixon, a former British Airways employee from Hartlepool, is believed to have been on a metro train at the time of the attack on Maelbeek station. |
| Marie Sutcliffe, sister of Dixon’s partner, said her sister Charlotte had spent much of yesterday going to various hospitals in Brussels looking for him. | Marie Sutcliffe, sister of Dixon’s partner, said her sister Charlotte had spent much of yesterday going to various hospitals in Brussels looking for him. |
| “Understandably she’s very very distressed,” Sutcliffe said. | “Understandably she’s very very distressed,” Sutcliffe said. |
| Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, she added: “It’s just waiting, which is heartbreaking and very worrying.” | Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, she added: “It’s just waiting, which is heartbreaking and very worrying.” |
| She said the family had been struggling with the communication network in Brussels which was overwhelmed in the wake of Tuesday’s attacks. | She said the family had been struggling with the communication network in Brussels which was overwhelmed in the wake of Tuesday’s attacks. |
| “There’s no phone network. I’ve tried to phone him and other people have,” she said. | “There’s no phone network. I’ve tried to phone him and other people have,” she said. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.14am GMT | at 8.14am GMT |
| 7.51am GMT | 7.51am GMT |
| 07:51 | 07:51 |
| Third 'suspect' named | |
| Matthew Weaver | Matthew Weaver |
| The Brussels airport attacker still at large has been tentatively identified by the Belgium media as Najim Laachraoui. | The Brussels airport attacker still at large has been tentatively identified by the Belgium media as Najim Laachraoui. |
| He is described by DH.be as a possible suspect based on an apparent resemblance to a photo of Laachroui released by police last night. | He is described by DH.be as a possible suspect based on an apparent resemblance to a photo of Laachroui released by police last night. |
| Laachraoui was already wanted by the police after his DNA was been found in houses used by the Paris attackers last year, prosecutors said on Monday. | Laachraoui was already wanted by the police after his DNA was been found in houses used by the Paris attackers last year, prosecutors said on Monday. |
| He had traveled to Hungary in September with Paris attacks prime suspect Salah Abdeslam. | He had traveled to Hungary in September with Paris attacks prime suspect Salah Abdeslam. |
| #TERRORISME A rechercher - Najim LAACHRAOUI https://t.co/8WCyCZdJP9 pic.twitter.com/S4UZnG3XYf | #TERRORISME A rechercher - Najim LAACHRAOUI https://t.co/8WCyCZdJP9 pic.twitter.com/S4UZnG3XYf |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.29am GMT | |
| 7.35am GMT | 7.35am GMT |
| 07:35 | 07:35 |
| What we know so far | What we know so far |
| Claire Phipps | Claire Phipps |
| Here is a round-up of the latest key developments: | Here is a round-up of the latest key developments: |
| Related: First Brussels bombings victims named as stories of survival emerge | Related: First Brussels bombings victims named as stories of survival emerge |
| 7.24am GMT | 7.24am GMT |
| 07:24 | 07:24 |
| Angelique Chrisafis | Angelique Chrisafis |
| The Belgian state broadcaster RTBF is reporting that two of the suspected terrorist suicide-bombers at Brussels airport were Khalid and Ibrahim el-Bakraoui. | The Belgian state broadcaster RTBF is reporting that two of the suspected terrorist suicide-bombers at Brussels airport were Khalid and Ibrahim el-Bakraoui. |
| The Belgian el-Bakraoui brothers were well-known to the police as longstanding criminals in the Belgian capital and more recently it emerged they had clear links to November’s Paris attacks. | The Belgian el-Bakraoui brothers were well-known to the police as longstanding criminals in the Belgian capital and more recently it emerged they had clear links to November’s Paris attacks. |
| This connection to the Paris attacks and to recent police raids in Brussels, in which some suspects escaped from police, is a very significant development. If the Brussels bombers prove to be part of the same cell as the Paris attackers, this will raise serious questions about potential police and intelligence failings. | This connection to the Paris attacks and to recent police raids in Brussels, in which some suspects escaped from police, is a very significant development. If the Brussels bombers prove to be part of the same cell as the Paris attackers, this will raise serious questions about potential police and intelligence failings. |
| The el-Bakraoui brothers are from Brussels and have a long history in organised crime in Belgium. They were among the suspects on the run and being hunted by Belgian police since the police raids of recent days. | The el-Bakraoui brothers are from Brussels and have a long history in organised crime in Belgium. They were among the suspects on the run and being hunted by Belgian police since the police raids of recent days. |
| One of the brothers had rented the flat in Forest, south west Brussels which was raided by police last Tuesday, exactly a week before the Brussels attacks, and where Salah Abdeslam, the Paris suspect had been present. In that Forest raid, heavy weapons and an Islamic State flag were found and one member of the Paris attacks cell, an Algerian Mohamed Belkaïd, was shot by a police sniper. | One of the brothers had rented the flat in Forest, south west Brussels which was raided by police last Tuesday, exactly a week before the Brussels attacks, and where Salah Abdeslam, the Paris suspect had been present. In that Forest raid, heavy weapons and an Islamic State flag were found and one member of the Paris attacks cell, an Algerian Mohamed Belkaïd, was shot by a police sniper. |
| One of the el-Bakraoui brothers is also known to have rented one of the hideouts of the Paris jihadist team, in Charleroi in Belgium, where two of the attackers met before heading to Paris in November to carry out the attacks that killed 130 people: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the ringleader, and Bilal Hadfi, one of the Stade de France suicide bombers. | One of the el-Bakraoui brothers is also known to have rented one of the hideouts of the Paris jihadist team, in Charleroi in Belgium, where two of the attackers met before heading to Paris in November to carry out the attacks that killed 130 people: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the ringleader, and Bilal Hadfi, one of the Stade de France suicide bombers. |
| One of the el-Bakraoui brothers is also believed to have provided ammunition and weapons for the Paris attacks in which gunmen opened fire on bars and at a rock concert at the Bataclan, RTBF reported. | One of the el-Bakraoui brothers is also believed to have provided ammunition and weapons for the Paris attacks in which gunmen opened fire on bars and at a rock concert at the Bataclan, RTBF reported. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.28am GMT | at 7.28am GMT |
| 7.11am GMT | 7.11am GMT |
| 07:11 | 07:11 |
| Airport suicide bombers identified | Airport suicide bombers identified |
| Belgium’s state broadcaster RTBF has named Khalid and Ibrahim el-Bakraoui as the two men who detonated suitcase bombs, killing themselves and several others, at Zaventem airport. | Belgium’s state broadcaster RTBF has named Khalid and Ibrahim el-Bakraoui as the two men who detonated suitcase bombs, killing themselves and several others, at Zaventem airport. |
| The brothers were already being sought by police, suspected of hiring properties as hideouts for the Paris terrorist team. | The brothers were already being sought by police, suspected of hiring properties as hideouts for the Paris terrorist team. |
| The Guardian cannot immediately verify this identification. | The Guardian cannot immediately verify this identification. |
| 7.04am GMT | 7.04am GMT |
| 07:04 | 07:04 |
| Soldiers have been checking people’s bags as they entered Brussels’ metro network this morning, Press Association reports. | Soldiers have been checking people’s bags as they entered Brussels’ metro network this morning, Press Association reports. |
| The public transport network is partially reopening today, although some stations remain closed. | The public transport network is partially reopening today, although some stations remain closed. |
| Every person was asked to open their bags by armed troops before they were allowed to descend the steps at a station at de Brouckère. | Every person was asked to open their bags by armed troops before they were allowed to descend the steps at a station at de Brouckère. |