Terror attacks on Brussels

Two explosions ripped through the Brussels airport departure hall and a third rocked a downtown subway station on Tuesday morning, causing deaths and injuries, according to initial Belgian news reports.


Air passengers said the bombs went off in rapid succession around 8 a.m., the peak check-in hour for morning flights within Europe. Belgian police said there was at least 26 dead, while VTM news put the toll at more than 30, citing a local fire department. An hour later, an explosion hit a subway station a short walk from European Union headquarters.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel convened national security advisers and said the incidents are being treated as possible terrorist attacks.

Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi said the attacks in Brussels today act as a reminder to Malaysians that war on terror will never end without full commitment from all.

The attacks in Brussels, Belgium today act as a reminder to Malaysians that war on terror will never end without the full commitment from all, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Read More : http://www.nst.com.my/news/2016/03/134456/attacks-brussels-reminder-malaysians-zahid

He conveyed his condolences to the Belgians and those affected by the bombings.
"My sympathies are with the victims and their families affected by the attacks.
"All Malaysians and myself included are deeply saddened by the shocking attacks in Brussels today," he said in a statement.
The attacks, he added, were similar to the incidents in Paris, Jakarta and Turkey, which were believed to be terror acts.
Zahid hoped those involved in the attacks would be held responsible for their crime.
Meanwhile, Wisma Putra said no Malaysians were reported to be among the casualties in the bomb blasts.
The Malaysian Government, it added, strongly condemned the attacks that had claimed 28 innocent lives so far.
"Our Malaysian Embassy in Brussels will continue monitoring the situation.
"In this hour of grief Malaysia stands united with the families of the victims, the Government of Belgium, and the Belgian people," it said.

Takeoffs and landings were suspended and public transport was halted to the airport, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from central Brussels. Incoming flights were diverted to other Belgian airports.

Panicked travellers were shown fleeing toward the airport parking garage in television images.

“Soldiers are pushing us back, people are running in every direction,” a witness named David told RTL television.

Belgium is on high alert after the capture of Paris terror attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam, believed to be the only surviving participant of the November massacre that left 130 people dead. Abdeslam faces a Brussels court decision on Wednesday on whether to extend a Belgian arrest warrant issued on Saturday.

TV images of Brussels airport showed collapsed ceiling tiles littering the departure hall. A fire department spokesman told RTL there were more than 10 “seriously” wounded by the “very violent explosion.”

Smoke poured out of the Maelbeek metro station, one stop from the main offices of the European Commission. At least two seriously injured, soot-covered people were seen taken out on stretchers as police cordoned off the station.

The Brussels subway network was shut down.