A SUSPECT has been shot dead in Belgium following the killing of two Swedish football fans in Brussels last night.
The Euro 2024 qualifier between Belgium and Sweden had to be abandoned at half-time last night as two fans wearing Sweden shirts were shot dead close to the King Baudouin Stadium venue of the match just before kick-off.
Belgian prosecutors confirmed today that the person suspected of the killings in Brussels has been shot dead.
Brussels police had earlier announced today that they arrested a suspected gunman accused of shooting dead the two Swedish fans in what Belgium’s prime minister condemned as an act of “terrorist madness”.
Officials said police opened fire and the suspect was ‘neutralised’ during the arrest, which followed an overnight manhunt in the Belgian capital for an assailant armed with an automatic rifle, AFP reported.
Prime Minister Alexander de Croo earlier said the detained man was of Tunisian descent and had been living in Belgium illegally.
He added that someone claiming responsibility for the killings had posted on social media that he was inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.
“The terrorist attack that happened yesterday was committed with total cowardice, the attacker chose as a target two Swedish football fans,” de Croo told a news conference, adding that a third person — a taxi driver — was seriously wounded.
“Terrorism strikes indiscriminately,” he said. “It aims to sow fear, mistrust and division in our free societies. Terrorists must know that they will never achieve their goals.
“They will never make us bend. Their hatred and violence only prove their powerlessness.”
Several Belgian media outlets named the suspect as 45-year-old Abdesalem L.
The players from both sides had refused to resume for the second half after hearing of the killings at half-time, and the match was then officially suspended by UEFA, European football’s governing body.
“I am terribly sad. We agreed 100 percent not to play the second half because of the conditions and out of respect for the victims and their families,” Sweden coach Janne Andersson told Swedish news agency TT.
