A massive manhunt is under way for a suspect
seen with two supposed suicide bombers shortly
before they struck Brussels' Zaventem Airport in
the first of two attacks that also hit the city's
metro, killing at least 30 and wounding more than
200.
Belgian broadcaster RTBF named two of the
suspects as brothers, Khalid and Brahim
Bakraoui, who were known to police for their
involvement in organised crime.
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL,
also known as ISIS) claimed responsibility for
Tuesday morning's attacks.
"This is a day of tragedy, a black day," Belgian
Prime Minister Charles Michel said, describing
the bombings as the "deadliest attacks we have
ever seen in Belgium".
But as Belgium began three days of national
mourning on Wednesday, he insisted the country
would not be cowed by the "blind, violent and
cowardly" attacks.
Belgian authorities released pictures of two of the
suspects pushing trolleys with their bombs
through the terminal and said they were "actively
searching" for a third man whose explosives did
not to go off.
Police helicopters hovered over the city late into
the night and raids were under way across
Belgium, prosecutors said, adding that a bomb, an
ISIL flag and chemicals had been found in one
apartment.
Local media said authorities had followed a tip
from a taxi driver who believed he may have
driven the bombers to the airport.
Police were going door-to-door throughout
Brussels searching for suspects or others
planning attacks. The interior minister said 600
additional police were deployed.
Brussels residents held a candlelit vigil in the
Place de la Bourse square on Tuesday night,
where they sang songs and waved the Belgian
flag, while on social media thousands of people
shared images of beloved Belgian cartoon
character Tintin in tears.
"This is an attack against our values, our
freedom, and our democracy," Brussels Mayor
Ivan Mayeur said at a press conference. "We
won't let anyone attack our values in a cowardly
way."
'Fabric of Europe'
Al Jazeera's Dominic Kane, reporting from
Brussels, said many in the country were asking
whether the attacks represented a continuing
threat.
"Belgians feel this is something they'll now have
to get used to...the editor of a prominent Belgian
news outlet yesterday was writing that she
believed this was something that was becoming
part of the system.
"[She said] this was something people have to
get used to and have to explain to their children
that there is a threat and life has changed."
Kane said there was also a sense that the blasts
were a calculated attack on European insitutions
and the "fabric of Europe".
The explosions struck the heart of European
officialdom where NATO headquarters is based,
along with the European Union, and European
Commission.
Witnesses at the airport and metro station
described scenes of terror immediately after the
bombings.
"When I heard the first explosion, lots of people
started screaming and running," Tom, an intern
working at the airport, told Al Jazeera.
"When I heard the second explosion, which was
about 30 seconds after the first one, everything
got chaotic. I could see panic on everyone’s
face, blood on their bodies."
The interior ministry raised the country's
terrorism alert to the highest level after the
blasts.
Belgium has been on high alert since the arrest in
Brussels last week of Salah Abdeslam , a key
suspect in last November's Paris attacks that left
130 people dead.
Governments in Europe and beyond quickly
responded to the Brussels attacks, calling
emergency national security meetings and
stepping up controls at airports and other
sensitive sites.
www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/03/brussels-attacks-manhunt-suspect-airport-video-160323032248510.html