‘Brussels has turned into a city of sirens and a centre of fear

‘Brussels has turned into a city of sirens and a centre of fear,’ says BBC reporter

More than 30 have been killed and dozens more injured in terrorist attacks in the Belgium capital

By Dan Wooding, Founder of ASSIST News Service

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (ANS -- March 22, 2016) – Following the terrorist attacks in Brussels in which more than 30 people have been killed and dozens more injured in explosions at Brussels airport and a metro station, BBC reporter, Katya Adler, has said, “Brussels has turned into a city of sirens and a centre of fear.”

And, of course, she was correct as fear not only spread around Belgium’s capital city, but also around the world, where people are asking if their town or city could be the next place for an Islamic State attack.

The attacks began when twin blasts struck the main terminal of Zaventem international airport, in the north-east of the city.

Another explosion then hit the Maelbeek metro station in the city centre, close to several European Union institutions.

According to the BBC, the so-called Islamic State group has said it was behind the attacks, which came four days after the capture in Brussels of Salah Abdeslam, the main suspect in the jihadist attacks in Paris on November 13, 2015.

An online statement from the group said the locations were “carefully selected” and warned of worse to come for “Crusader states allied against the Islamic State.”

The airport attack:

Two explosions, moments apart, tore through the check-in area of Zaventem airport at about 08:00 local time (07:00 GMT) on Tuesday.

An eyewitness reported hearing gunshots and shouts in Arabic just before the explosions.

The Belgian federal prosecutor said one of the blasts was “likely” to have been a suicide bomb.

One witness said people ran from the site of the first blast, only to be caught in the second, near the main entrance.

The metro station attack:

Just over an hour later, a further blast happened at the Maelbeek metro station in the city center, close to several EU institutions.

A three-carriage train was just leaving the station in the direction of Arts-Loi, the next stop a short distance away, when the blast happened, Brussels transport company STIB told broadcaster RTBF.

The bomb was apparently detonated in the middle carriage, which was running along the platform at the time. The driver immediately halted the train and evacuated the first and last carriages.

Why has Brussels been attacked?

The BBC reports that Belgium’s Interior Minister Jan Jambon said on Monday that there was a threat from revenge attacks after the capture of Salah Abdeslam.

Abdeslam, a suspect in last year's Paris attacks, was wounded and arrested in a police raid on an apartment in the Molenbeek suburb of Brussels last week. The Belgian-born French national is said to be co-operating with police and is fighting extradition to France.

Mr. Jambon told Belgian radio: “We know that stopping one cell can... push others into action. We are aware of it in this case.”

Is Molenbeek a hotbed of extremism?

Belgian police have now issued a wanted notice for a suspect after bomb attacks at Brussels' main airport and a metro station left more than 30 people dead. The man was seen walking with two other suspects shortly before twin explosions tore through Zaventem airport.

Both men died in the attacks after detonating suicide devices, a Belgian prosecutor said.

The US State Department has urged US citizens of “potential risks” of travelling to Europe.

“Terrorist groups continue to plan near-term attacks throughout Europe, targeting sporting events, tourist sites, restaurants and transportation,” a statement said.

Belgian prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw said police were seeking a man wearing a hat and light-colored jacket.

He said searches were taking place “in several parts of the country”, adding that an explosive device containing nails, chemical products and an IS flag were found in an apartment in the Schaerbeek area of Brussels.

The Zaventem mayor, Francis Vermeiren, told the AFP agency the suicide attackers used bombs hidden in their suitcases.

One eyewitness, Nils Liedtke, who was in the airport when the explosions took place, described the scene to BBC Radio 4's Today program, saying, “It was basically like a big bang - it felt like your neighbor’s upstairs are throwing something big on the floor. “And everything was shaking, some smoke.

“It took me a second or two to realize what was going on. Everybody was screaming and running out into the taxi area, so that's what I did as well... I'm still shaking.”

Another man, who preferred to remain anonymous and who had been inside the airport told the BBC: “I heard two explosions and then the ceiling fell on us. I saw a woman going down the escalator - her leg was bleeding because of the shattered glass.

“I heard one shot fired, then someone shouted some words in Arabic, followed by a huge explosion. And then people started to flee towards the lifts [elevators] and escalators.”

Jef Versele, 40, from Ghent, told the UK Press Association: “I was on my way to check in and two bombs went off - two explosions.

“I didn't see anything. Everything was coming down. Glassware. It was chaos. It was unbelievable. It was the worst thing. People were running away. There were lots of people on the ground. A lot of people are injured.

“The bomb was coming from downstairs. It was going up through the roof. It was big. About 15 windows were just blown out from the entrance hall.”

Steven Woolfe, an English Member of the European Parliament [MEP] for the UK Independence Party, was in an office near the metro station, and said: “I heard a very loud bang that was like a car exhaust exploding. The building shook a little bit. As we opened the door you could start hearing car horns going off and see people moving away from the metro. Within a short period of time the police were on the ground in their distinctive uniforms, ushering people away.

“There were a couple of people with cameras trying to take photos but the police were firm in pushing them away. “Here in the parliament area we have numbers of policemen with AK-47 style weapons.”

As you have read this, I wonder what your response is to what has been going on in Brussels? Are you full of fear that your town or city might be next? If so, can I point you to Matthew 14:27 [NIV] which says, “But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.”

Remember, it is quite normal to be afraid, to not feel in control of our circumstances, but if we are true believers, please take comfort in the fact that God is!

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Picture captions: 1) A boy holds a placard expressing sympathy for the victims of the terror attacks in Brussels during a protest at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border, near the village of Idomeni, March 22, 2016. 2) Belgian soldiers patrol on the Grand Palace of Brussels (Reuters). 3) The two men to the left are believed to have blown themselves up (AFP). 4) The aftermath in the departures hall at Brussels Zaventem airport following the explosions (PA). 5) A victim receives first aid by rescuers near the metro station in Brussels, after a blast at this station near the EU institutions caused deaths and injuries. (Photo: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images)6) Norma and Dan Wooding on a reporting assignment for ANS in Los Angeles. (Bryan Seltzer).

About the writer: Dan Wooding, 75, is an award-winning winning author, broadcaster and journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for more than 52 years. They have two sons, Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. Dan is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS), and is also the author of some 45 books.

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