Explosive Terror Attacks in Belgium Claim Dozens of Lives, Nearly 200 Injured; "We Are At War" Says French President

News Staff : Mar 22, 2016
CBN News, AP

ISIS has claimed responsibility for Tuesday's terror attacks in Brussels.

(Brussels)—[CBN News] Explosions, at least one likely caused by a suicide bomber, rocked the Brussels airport and subway system Tuesday, prompting a lockdown of the Belgian capital and heightened security across Europe. At least 28 people were reported dead. (Photo: Belgian authorities released a photo of three possible suspects connected in the bombings/via Fox News)

A spokesman for the Brussels Metro said 15 people were killed and 55 injured in an explosion on a train, and Belgian media reported at least 13 dead in two explosions at the airport, with many others injured.
 
Belgium raised its terror alert to the highest level, diverting planes and trains and ordering people to stay where they were. Airports across Europe immediately tightened security.
 
"We are at war," French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said after a crisis meeting called by the French president. "We have been subjected for the last few months in Europe to acts of war."
 
European security officials have been bracing for a major attack for weeks, and warned that the Islamic State group was actively preparing to strike. The arrestFriday of a key suspect in the November attacks in Paris heightened those fears, as investigators said many more people were involved than originally thought, and that some are still on the loose.
 
Terrorism analyst Erick Stakelbeck earlier told CBN News about the growing threat in Brussels and other parts of Europe.
 
"There's this tiny neighborhood called Molembeek on the [edges] of Brussels that has really become a problem spot, not only for Belgium but for Europe as a whole. It's really become an incubator for radical jihad and we've seen several residents from that neighborhood... it has become a real hotbed for radical Imams and ISIS sympathizers who go to Syria and join ISIS and now they're coming back and we're seeing the bitter fruit."
 
Read more here.