wo people have been killed in a shooting in Belgian capital Brussels, police said.
Shots were fired by an unidentified suspect who was reportedly travelling on a moped, at roughly 7.15pm on Monday near Place Sainctelette, in the city centre.
The two people shot dead were reportedly Swedish football fans who had travelled to Belgium to watch a match.
An investigating source said the suspect – who remains at large – was “screaming about carrying out a revenge attack”.
“He was shooting at various people, and hit a number of them,” said hte source. “This had all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack.
“Two Swedish football fans died in a taxi, after being attacked by the man, who then got away on his moped,’ said the source.
Belgium police stand at the site of a shooting incident in the Ieperlaan – Boulevard d’Ypres, in Brussels, on October 16
/ Belga/AFP via Getty ImagesThe suspect, who was wearing a crash helmet and fluorescent jacket, was brandishing a ‘Kalashnikov-style’ weapon, and had also fired at man in the lobby of a nearby building.
The emergency services arrived in large numbers within minutes, but no suspect has yet been arrested.
The Swedish national football team was playing a Euros qualifier international against Belgium at the King Baudouin stadium in Brussels on Monday night.
A Brussels police spokesman said: “We are talking about two people dead, and they are believed to be Swedish.”
Police spokeswoman Ilse Vande Keere said officers arrived soon at the scene, and sealed off the immediate neighbourhood, according to the Associated Press news agency.
She declined to elaborate on the circumstances of the shooting.
The shooting came at a time of increased vigilance linked to the Israel-Hamas war which has heightened tension in several European nations.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
