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Coordinates: 50°51′29″N 4°20′47″E / 50.85806°N 4.34639°E / 50.85806; 4.34639
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| fatalities = 2
| fatalities = 2
| injuries = 1
| injuries = 1
| weapons = [[Automatic rifle]]
| weapons = [[Automatic rifle]]{{Citation needed|reason=Sources have yet to specify any details about the weapon.|date=October 2023}}
| perpetrators = Abdesalem Lassoued{{efn|Killed by police the morning after the attack}}
| perpetrators = Abdesalem Lassoued{{efn|Killed by police the morning after the attack}}
| motive = [[Islamic extremism]]
| motive = [[Islamic extremism]]

Revision as of 14:11, 17 October 2023

2023 Brussels shooting
Part of Islamic terrorism in Europe
A view of the Pont Sainctelette, close to where the shooting happened
LocationBrussels, Belgium
Coordinates50°51′29″N 4°20′47″E / 50.85806°N 4.34639°E / 50.85806; 4.34639
Date16 October 2023 (2023-10-16)
19:15 CEST (UTC+2)
TargetSwedes
Attack type
Mass shooting
WeaponsAutomatic rifle[citation needed]
Deaths2
Injured1
PerpetratorsAbdesalem Lassoued[a]
MotiveIslamic extremism

The 2023 Brussels shooting was an Islamist terrorist attack in Brussels, Belgium, in which two Swedish football supporters were killed and a third was injured. The shooting took place at about 7:15 pm on 16 October at the crossing of two boulevards next to the Place Sainctelette, in the City of Brussels. The victims were on their way to a football match at the King Baudouin Stadium. The gunman, identified as 45-year-old Tunisian Abdesalem Lassoued, fled the scene and posted a video to social media claiming to have been inspired by Islamic State. The following morning he was tracked down to a café in Schaerbeek where he was shot by Belgian police and died in hospital.

Following the attack the terror threat level for Brussels was raised from 2 to 4, the highest level. Over the rest of the country it was raised from level 2 to level 3.

Attack

At around 7:15 pm on 16 October 2023, Lassoued opened fire at Swedish football supporters next to the Place Sainctelette, at the junction of the Boulevard de la Neuvième de Ligne and the Boulevard d'Ypres, in the City of Brussels. The supporters were on their way to the King Baudouin Stadium, about 5 km (3.1 mi) away, where the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier between Belgium and Sweden was being played.[1][2] One victim was shot in the foyer of a building, while the other was shot in a taxi. A third Swedish football supporter was also shot and was left in a serious, but not life-threatening, condition.[3][4] The gunman, who was wearing a fluorescent orange jacket and armed with an automatic rifle, then fled on a motorcycle.[5]

The football match, which had started at 8 pm, was called off at half-time as news of the attack spread. The Swedish players said they did not want to play the second half of the match and the Belgium team agreed.[6] The 35,000 spectators were held in the stadium before being evacuated a little before midnight, with the Swedish fans being the last to leave.[3] Swedish fans were reported to have removed their supporters gear in order to avoid being identified as Swedish.[7] The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs advised Swedes in Brussels to be vigilant.[8]

Soon after the attack a video of a man speaking Arabic and claiming responsibility for the shooting was circulating on social media.[5] The man said he was inspired by Islamic State.[1] A spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor's office said that the investigation was concentrating on a terrorist motive, with Swedish nationals having been targeted, possibly on account of recent Quran-burnings in Sweden.[1] The attacker was identified as Lassoued.[4]

As a result of the attack, the terror threat level for Brussels was raised from 2 to 4, the highest level, and raised to the second-highest level in the rest of the country.[1]

Perpetrator's death

Following a manhunt during the night, Lassoued was seen on a bus in the morning wearing orange clothing. As the bus driver recognised Lassoued from images released by police, he called the police and Lassoued fled the bus. He then fled to a café in nearby Schaerbeek where he is known to have had a flat. A witness there recognised him and called police who, upon arrival, ended up shooting him. Ambulance rescuers tried to revive him and took him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 09:38 am.[9][10][11] His death was confirmed by Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden on the social media X.[12] His weapon was found in a bag of clothes left at the café.[13]

Investigation

Alleged perpetrator

On the morning of 17 October, Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden reported that the suspected perpetrator had been shot by law enforcement in the Brussels municipality of Schaerbeek during his attempted arrest, and died on the way to hospital.[14] He was identified as Abdesalem Lassoued (Arabic: عبدالسلام لسود), a 45-year old Tunisian citizen.[15] The automatic firearm used in the terrorist attack was found in the suspect's possession. It was also reported that police assumes the man was a lone wolf inspired by the Islamic State.[16]

At around 11 am the following day, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson held a press conference stating that he has received information that Lassoued had previously been to Sweden and had been the suspect of terrorist activities in Tunisia,[17] but was not known by Swedish police.[18]

Motive

Belgian authorities have said that a motive behind the killing was that the victims were Swedish,[19] and potentially a revenge for the 2023 Quran burnings in Sweden.[20] The victims were wearing Sweden men's national football team shirts when they were shot.[21] In a video released after the attack, the perpetrator claimed to be directly targeting Swedes.[6] Lassoued had followed an account on the social media application TikTok that spread conspiracy theories about Muslim children being kidnapped by the Swedish social authorities.[22]

Reactions

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Killed by police the morning after the attack

References

  1. ^ a b c d Plazy, Sylvain; Casert, Raf (16 October 2023). "Gunman kills two Swedes in Brussels, prompting terror alert and halt of Belgium-Sweden soccer match". AP News.
  2. ^ "Attentat à Bruxelles : "Je suis resté figé", un témoin raconte l'attaque". RTBF (in French). 17 October 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Attentat à Bruxelles : match Belgique-Suède définitivement arrêté, public confiné... Le récit d'une soirée glaçante au stade Roi Baudouin". Le Figaro (in French). 16 October 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Direct - Abdesalem Lassoued, l'auteur de l'attaque à Bruxelles, est décédé, un autre individu encore recherché". rtl (in French). 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Suspect on the run after killing at least two in Brussels shooting". France 24. 16 October 2023.
  6. ^ a b c "Brussels shooting: 'Europe shaken' after two Swedes shot dead". BBC News. 16 October 2023.
  7. ^ ""Folk tar av sig sina Sverigetröjor"". Sydsvenskan (in Swedish). 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  8. ^ "Bryssel höjer terrorhotnivån – Terrorattack i Bryssel". SVT (in Swedish). 16 October 2023.
  9. ^ "Direct – Attentat dans le centre de Bruxelles : 'On cherche toujours la meilleure solution pour évacuer les supporters' dit le parquet fédéral, suivez notre émission spéciale". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  10. ^ NWS, VRT (17 October 2023). "Neergeschoten dader is overleden, parket sluit link met conflict in Gaza niet meer uit". vrtnws.be (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  11. ^ "Brussels attacker dies after being shot by police". Le Monde.fr. 17 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  12. ^ Blenkinsop, Philip; Overstraeten, Benoit Van (17 October 2023). "Brussels shooting: Suspected gunman who killed two Swedes dies after being shot by police". Reuters. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  13. ^ "Brussels: Suspected gunman who killed two people before football match dies after being shot by police". Sky News. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  14. ^ AFP (17 October 2023). "Brussels attack suspect dies after being shot by police". Le Monde. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  15. ^ Plazy, Sylvain; Casert, Raf; Cook, Lorne (17 October 2023). "Police shoot dead suspected extremist accused of killing 2 Swedish soccer fans on a Brussels street". AP News. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  16. ^ Decré, Hanne (17 October 2023). "Verdachte zou overleden zijn op weg naar het ziekenhuis, zegt minister Verlinden: "Gaat effectief om dader"". VRT News (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  17. ^ Nyheter, S. V. T.; Wikén, Johan; Jönsson, Oskar; Alshawish, Kovan (17 October 2023). "Han misstänks för attacken mot svenskar i Bryssel". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  18. ^ Laursen, Henrik Haug (17 October 2023). "Medier: 45-åring la ut video om drap på svensker i Brussel". NRK (in Norwegian Bokmål). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  19. ^ a b "To svenskere dræbt inden landskamp i Belgien – TV 2". nyheder.tv2.dk (in Danish). 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  20. ^ "Deux supporters suédois tués à Bruxelles : voici l'auteur présumé, il se revendique membre de l'État islamique". La Libre Belgiqie. 16 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Brussels 'on highest terror alert' and football fans told to stay in stadium after two shot dead". Sky News. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  22. ^ Nyheter, S. V. T.; Wikén, Johan; Jönsson, Oskar; Alshawish, Kovan (17 October 2023). "Han misstänks för attacken mot svenskar i Bryssel". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  23. ^ Forsberg, Emil; Kronstrand, Nelly; Dawood, Lina; Flinck, Johan; Österman, Hans (16 October 2023). "Terrordåd i Bryssel – personer i svenska landslagströjor döda". www.aftonbladet.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  24. ^ "Sweden says killing of two Swedes in Brussels is terrible news". Reuters. 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  25. ^ "To personer dræbt i Bruxelles – trusselsniveauet er hævet til sit højeste". DR (in Danish). 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  26. ^ "Attentat terroriste à Bruxelles : deux morts, l'assaillant, qui était connu pour radicalisation et en séjour illégal en Belgique, est toujours en fuite, perquisitions en cours à Schaerbeek, les fans suédois escortés (direct)". sudinfo.be (in French). 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
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