The extremist group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for Monday’s attack in Brussels. One of its fighters committed the crime in which two Swedish citizens were shot, IS announced late Tuesday evening via its channel on the Telegram courier service. After the fatal shooting of two Swedish football fans, the suspected perpetrator was shot dead by the police.
Authorities said he was a 45-year-old Tunisian. Shortly after the crime, investigators said they were looking into evidence of an Islamic motive, particularly in connection with the Quran burnings in Sweden. The alleged perpetrator allegedly claimed in an internet video that he was close to IS and that he had killed the Swedes to take revenge on behalf of the Muslims.
Shortly after the crime, a confession video circulated online in which the perpetrator identified himself and claimed to be a jihadist and supporter of Islamic State. Calling himself Abdeslam Jilani, he said he wanted to ‘take revenge on the Muslims’. Other videos of the Islamist in which he spreads radical statements are also circulating online.
The suspected murderer was in Swedish prison
According to previous information from Minister of Justice Vincent van Quickenborne, the alleged perpetrator was a 45-year-old Tunisian who applied for asylum in Belgium in November 2019. The State Secretary for Asylum and Migration, Nicole de Moor, said his application was rejected and he was officially removed from the national register in February 2021. According to Quickenborne, the justice minister, the man had come to the attention of the police in connection with human trafficking, illegal residence and endangering state security. As it became known in the evening, the man was already in a Swedish prison about ten years ago.
Terror level reduced from 4 to 3
In the evening, the terror level for the Belgian capital was lowered again. Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said that it is currently not believed that there is a network, but an individual perpetrator. After the deadly shots on Monday evening, the highest level of terror was declared for Brussels. Now only the second highest level should apply to the capital – just like the rest of the country. The Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against non-essential travel to Brussels. In total, 5,500 to 6,000 Austrians live in the Belgian capital.
Source: Krone
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