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An unknown gunman killed two Swedes in a shooting late Monday(16th of October, 2023) in central Brussels, Belgium.
The reports said that Belgium's government was prompted to call up an emergency meeting to figure out the perpetrator. The incident could not be understood at first, if linked to terrorism, or to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas that has caused global uproar.
“A horrible shooting in Brussels, and the perpetrator is actively being tracked down,” said Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden, adding that she is joining the government talks at the National Crisis Centre.
There were pieces of evidence from amateur Media video broadcasts revealing a man shooting several times near a station using a large weapon. Also, there was a police official who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to reporters, said the two victims were Swedes.
The major football competition, the European Championship qualifier that was earlier scheduled at Heysel Stadium on Monday evening between Belgium and Sweden was postponed after the attack.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said the attack was “despicable” and vowed unity against terrorism.
Belgian authorities raised the terror alert to its highest level in the capital as Prime Minister Alexander De Croo suggested the attack was linked to “terrorism”.
Raising the terror level to the top 4 rating means that a “threat is extremely serious”. It previously stood at 2, which means the threat was average.
“I have just offered my sincere condolences to @SwedishPM following tonight’s harrowing attack on Swedish citizens in Brussels,” De Croo said. He added on X, formerly known as Twitter. “As close partners, the fight against terrorism is a joint one.”
The OCAD anti-terror centre also said the terror alert for the rest of the country was raised to its second-highest level.
OCAD’s Laura Demullier said in an interview that the highest priority for authorities now was to get thousands of football fans attending the football match safely out of the stadium.
“The population needs to be actively vigilant and avoid any unnecessary travel,” Demullier said.
Source: AFP
布魯塞爾槍手殺死2名瑞典人 引發恐怖主義警報
週一（2023 年 10 月 16 日）晚間，比利時布魯塞爾市中心發生槍擊事件，一名身份不明的槍手殺死了兩名瑞典人。
報道稱，比利時政府被迫召開緊急會議以查明肇事者。 這事件一開始無法理解是否與恐怖主義有關，或與以色列和哈馬斯之間持續不斷的戰爭有關，這場戰爭引起了全球的軒然大波。
內政部長安妮莉絲·韋爾林登表示：「布魯塞爾發生了一起可怕的槍擊事件，正在積極追查肇事者。」她補充說，她正在國家危機中心參加政府會談。
業餘媒體視訊廣播的證據顯示，一名男子使用大型武器在車站附近多次開槍。 此外，一名不願透露姓名的警察官員表示，兩名受害者是瑞典人，因為他無權接受記者採訪。
襲擊事件發生後，原定於週一晚上在海瑟爾體育場舉行的比利時和瑞典之間的歐洲盃預選賽這一重要的足球比賽被推遲。
歐盟主席烏蘇拉·馮德萊恩表示，這次襲擊是“卑鄙的”，並誓言團結一致打擊恐怖主義。
比利時當局將首都的恐怖警報提升至最高級別，總理亞歷山大·德克羅暗示此次襲擊與「恐怖主義」有關。
將恐怖等級提升至前四級意味著「威脅極為嚴重」。 之前為 2，這意味著威脅處於中等水平。
德克魯說： “在今晚布魯塞爾瑞典公民遭受慘痛襲擊後，我剛剛向@SwedishPM 表示誠摯哀悼。” 他在 X（以前稱為 Twitter）上補充道。 “作為親密夥伴，反恐鬥爭是一場共同的鬥爭。”
OCAD反恐中心也表示，該國其他地區的恐怖警報已提升至第二高階。
OCAD 的 Laura Demullier 在接受採訪時表示，當局現在的首要任務是讓數千名觀看足球比賽的球迷安全離開體育場。
德穆利爾說： “人們需要積極保持警惕，避免任何不必要的旅行。”
資料來源：法新社
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