BRUSSELS — A vast police operation was under way in Brussels on Wednesday after a Kalashnikov-wielding assailant was killed and four officers wounded during an anti-terror search linked to the Paris attacks.
Federal prosecutors were to hold a news conference at 0930 GMT amid widespread media reports that two suspects were either arrested or still on the run, possibly brothers with links to terrorism.
“The investigation continues and the danger remains,” Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel told the broadcaster RTL, though he refused to provide any further details concerning an ongoing investigation.
Michel said operations had continued throughout the night. He did not rule out that the terror alert in Brussels could be raised to the highest level after a meeting of the national security council later in the day.
A team of Belgian and French police were taken by surprise as they carried out a routine search on Tuesday on a property in the quiet suburb of Forest, or Vorst by its Dutch name.
The police intervention sparked a series of gun battles that wounded four officers and left children trapped in nearby schools.
Michel thanked residents for their “composure” as bursts of gunfire erupted in the streets and dozens of heavily-armed police with balaclavas and sub-machine guns patrolled the area.
The mayor of Forest, Marc-Jean Ghyssels, told RTBF radio that all schools and nurseries in his jurisdiction were open on Wednesday and that life was back to normal. “There wasn’t a direct threat to the public, it’s a search that turned badly,” he said. — AFP
