Last night, two Swedish football supporters were murdered in a terrorist attack in Brussels and another person was injured. The perpetrator has been identified as Tunisian Abdesalem Lassoued and on Tuesday morning reports are pouring in that the terrorist himself has now been shot dead by Belgian police.
According to Belgian media, the terrorist was shot in a café in the Scharbeek area of Brussels and died on the spot. In addition, the weapon used in the terrorist attack was also found at the scene.
A private citizen reportedly recognized the 45-year-old terrorist and called the police, and when they arrived, a short gunfight between Lassoued and the police took place.
At the time of writing, the police are working to establish the identity of the deceased man, including through fingerprints.
Illegal immigrant
Lassoued, who also called himself Slayem Slouma, was Tunisian and allegedly applied for asylum in Belgium at the end of 2019 but was rejected.
– The suspect is of Tunisian origin and was in our country illegally, said Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo at a press conference.
He is reportedly known by Belgian intelligence for many years as a radical Islamist and is also said to have been tried in his home country for terrorist crimes.
Attack in Brussels with AK-47. Dead and injured. pic.twitter.com/SleVJrm2qm
— RadioGenoa (@RadioGenoa) October 16, 2023
“Revenge” on Sweden
In video clips circulated on social media, viewers have seen the terrorist, wearing an orange reflective jacket and a white helmet, fire an automatic weapon at a car and then run after several people into a building and continue shooting. Witnesses also describe the man shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ in the aftermath of the attack.
– We live for religion. Your brother Abdulsalam is taking revenge for Muslims and now I have killed three Swedes. I will meet God and the Prophet with joy, he declared in a video clip uploaded to Facebook after the attack.
According to the Belgian authorities, the terrorist targeted Swedes as “revenge” for the high-profile Koran burnings that took place here.
– He specifically targeted Swedish supporters, Prime Minister De Croo confirmed.
Lassoued is also identified as a supporter of the Islamic State terrorist group, but it is unclear whether he was actually organized in the group or just “inspired” by the terrorists’ ideology and methods.
