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Brussels Remains on Lockdown as Number of Arrests Rises to 21 Brussels Remains on Lockdown as Number of Arrests Rises to 21
(about 4 hours later)
BRUSSELS — The capital of Belgium entered the third day of a siegelike lockdown on Monday: Schools, shopping malls, public transit and food markets remained closed, and hotels and bars were desolate, as the total number of arrests in a sweeping counterterrorism operation rose to 21. BRUSSELS — On what normally would be a bustling Monday, empty streets and an eerie silence attested to the reality that this capital city, the heart of the European Union, had been paralyzed by a terrorist cell answering to the leaders of the Islamic State.
The authorities searched five homes in the Brussels area and two in the Liège region overnight, seized 26,000 euros, or about $27,600, and arrested five people, in addition to the 16 who were detained on Sunday, according to Eric Van der Sijpt, a magistrate and a spokesman for the federal prosecutor’s office. As universities, shopping malls, museums, food markets, the subway system and even a nursery school shut their doors, the city remained jittery after a number of false alarms involving hotels and even City Hall, which was closed on Monday.
But one of the chief targets of the raids — Salah Abdeslam, a 26-year-old Frenchman who is believed to have taken part in the terrorist attacks in Paris on Nov. 13 — remained at large. A BMW that was pulled over on Sunday night around Liège, which was seized upon by some on the Internet, has “no link at all with the ongoing operation,” Mr. Van der Sijpt said in a statement. The central square, known as the Grand Place or Grote Markt, was all but deserted, except for a few tourists ambling around a giant Christmas tree. Soldiers patrolled an area normally thronged with shoppers, and armored personnel carriers rolled over cobble-stoned streets usually choked with cars.
Some of the rhythms of daily life resumed on Monday, the first weekday since the authorities put the Brussels region on the highest level of alert — Level 4 — out of fear of a “serious and imminent” attack like the one in Paris. At least four of the attackers in Paris had lived in Belgium, including Mr. Abdeslam and the suspected organizer, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who was killed in a police raid outside Paris last week. The level of anxiety was so high that the authorities felt compelled to remind people that they were free to leave their houses, even in Brussels, although still recommending they “avoid unnecessary travel to busy places and comply with any potential security check.”
In Brussels, security was tightened around the buildings that house the European Commission, while NATO advised some employees to work from home. The central square, known as the Grand Place or the Grote Markt, usually bustling with shoppers preparing for Christmas, was relatively empty. Many large stores were closed. “It’s a very strange atmosphere,” said Guy Egerickx, 60, a retiree, who had come out to shop. “It’s something that I’ve never experienced before.”
The subways and schools are set to reopen on Wednesday, Prime Minister Charles Michel said in a news conference, but in other respects, “the situation remains the same as yesterday.” Of the investigation he said only that the police “are working hard,” and he called on the public to “remain vigilant.”
For many people, it was one thing to be locked down on a weekend, but quite another on a weekday when jobs and chores were supposed to be done. “We feel as if we’re taken hostage by the security situation because we’ve had to change our habits, because everything’s closed,” said Deborah Mix, who manages a Bruyerre chocolate shop. “I can’t go do my shopping. I need to be careful when I leave the house. At the same time I feel like the security measures are adding to this climate of fear.”
The greatest fear for Charlie Attar, who runs a shop specializing in winter clothes, was not so much a terror attack as a lockdown that extended into the Christmas shopping season. “Usually I get a lot of tourists from Switzerland, the Netherlands, from Scandinavian countries,” he said, puffing nervously on a cigarette. “It’s going to be a catacomb. I need to pay rent. It’s going to get a lot more difficult.”
He added: “We’re going to have to start getting used to the idea of living with the army.”
In the third day of high alert, the authorities continued their manhunt for, Salah Abdeslam, a participant in the Paris terrorist attacks, searching five homes in the Brussels area and two in the Liège region overnight. While the suspect remained at large, the police seized 26,000 euros, or about $27,600, and arrested five people, in addition to the 16 who were detained on Sunday.
Later Monday the Federal Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that a judge had placed in custody one of the 16 on charges of participating in the terrorist attack in Paris and had released the others. Two of the five arrested this morning have been released, the prosecutor said, while the judge will decide on the others tomorrow.
The lawyer for one of the 21 individuals arrested since Sunday said that they were friends and relatives of Mr. Abdeslam, and that police were looking to question them on their conversations with him before the Paris attacks.
Michel Vankeerberghen, an official with the Tourism Bureau for Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, said the city was “playing a waiting game,” one that tested the nerves. “On a psychological level, it’s very hard,” Mr. Vankeerberghen said.
The annual Brussels Christmas market was scheduled to open on Friday, he said, but it was unclear whether the security lockdown would allow that to happen. For now, the stalls that look like little gingerbread houses were all shuttered.
The market normally attracts 1.5 million visitors, 300,000 of them tourists, said Olivier Mees, who organizes the event. Workers were putting up large decorations for the Christmas market on the Boulevard Anspach, in front of the city’s old stock exchange, as soldiers in camouflage looked on.
“We’re making preparations, even if we don’t know the market will go on,” said a disgruntled worker, half his face covered to protect from the biting cold.
A soldier nearby, who overheard the conversation, quipped, “We don’t even know if we’ll be here tomorrow.”
Abdel Messaoudi, who manages a Pizza Hut, said that revenues have fallen at least 75 percent since Saturday, when the authorities put the Brussels region on the highest level of alert.
“I’ve never, ever seen Brussels this quiet,” said Mr. Messaoudi, who told his employees not to bother to come to work on Monday because the subway was not operating. Usually this part of the city is teeming with tourists and workers, he said, but the size of crowds has shrunk by at least two-thirds.
The authorities urged citizens not to discuss police operations on Twitter for fear of tipping off the suspects they were seeking. Many Belgians complied by posting pictures of cats with the hashtag #BrusselsLockdown.The authorities urged citizens not to discuss police operations on Twitter for fear of tipping off the suspects they were seeking. Many Belgians complied by posting pictures of cats with the hashtag #BrusselsLockdown.
The level of anxiety was so high that the authorities felt compelled to remind people that “you can leave your house of course (in Brussels, too),” while adding that “we recommend you avoid unnecessary travel to busy places and comply with any potential security check.” The chief target of the police raids — Mr. Abdeslam, a 26-year-old Frenchman who is believed to have taken part in the terrorist attacks in Paris on Nov. 13 — remained at large. A BMW that was pulled over on Sunday night around Liège, which was seized upon by some on the Internet, has “no link at all with the ongoing operation,” according to Eric Van der Sijpt, a magistrate and a spokesman for the federal prosecutor’s office.
Those who did venture out of their homes strolled in sunny weather on thoroughfares like the Boulevard Anspach, in front of the old stock exchange, just a few streets away from the scene of an intensive raid the previous night. They said they felt safe seeing so many police officers and soldiers in the streets. At least four of the attackers in Paris had lived in Belgium, including Mr. Abdeslam and the suspected ringleader, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who was killed in a police raid outside Paris last week.
“It’s a very strange atmosphere,” said Guy Egerickx, 60, a retiree, who came out to shop. “It’s something that I’ve never experienced before.” In France, where the threat level has abated somewhat in recent days, the health minister said that 169 people were still hospitalized from the attacks, including 34 in intensive care.
Mukando Fortuna, 20, said the police presence was reassuring. “I’m usually stopped and searched by the police, which really irritates me,” he said, wearing hip sunglasses and chatting with a group of friends. The country’s finance minister, Michel Sapin, said that France would tighten rules for the use of prepaid bank cards, which can be used anonymously under certain thresholds and were used by the attackers who killed 130 people in Paris and neighboring St.-Denis on the evening of Nov. 13.
“But this time, they haven’t. They’re cool,” he said. “We’re not scared because of a group of idiots.”
Abdel Messaoudi, who manages a Pizza Hut, said that revenues have fallen at least 75 percent since Saturday because clients have stayed away. He said he told his employees not to bother to come to work on Monday because the subway was not operating.
“I’ve never, ever seen Brussels this quiet,” he said, taking a cigarette break. Usually the city is teeming with tourists and workers in this part of the city, he said, but the size of crowds has shrunk by at least two-thirds.
A staff member at an upscale Novotel said that the hotel has been dealing with “cancellations one after the other.” The employee, who asked not to be named because he was not permitted to talk to the news media, said that more than half of the hotel’s guests canceled at the last minute. “We’ve never seen anything like it,” the employee said, adding that the hotel is almost always full.
In France, the country’s finance minister, Michel Sapin, on Monday announced measures to restrict access to financing for people who are planning or carrying out terrorist attacks.
Mr. Sapin said that France would tighten rules for the use of prepaid bank cards, which can be used anonymously under certain thresholds, by early next year.
Current rules do not require ID checks for the use of nonrechargeable prepaid bank cards for sums below €250, or for the use of rechargeable cards for sums below €2,500 over a year.
Prepaid cards were used by the attackers who killed 130 people in Paris and neighboring St.-Denis on the evening of Nov. 13, Mr. Sapin said, but he did not elaborate on where or how the cards were used.
Mr. Sapin also said that French authorities combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism would be given direct access to the police database of wanted or suspected individuals. He added that the government would introduce legislation to expand the authorities’ ability to freeze the financial assets of terrorism suspects to include vehicles and real estate.Mr. Sapin also said that French authorities combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism would be given direct access to the police database of wanted or suspected individuals. He added that the government would introduce legislation to expand the authorities’ ability to freeze the financial assets of terrorism suspects to include vehicles and real estate.
For Belgians living with the constant threat and uncertainty, the police presence was reassuring, even for Mukando Fortuna, a young black man, who says he is usually wary of the authorities.
“I’m usually stopped and searched by the police, which really irritates me,” he said, wearing hip sunglasses and chatting with a group of friends. “But this time, they haven’t. They’re cool,” he said. “We’re not scared because of a group of idiots.”
Not everyone was succumbing to the climate of fear. Philippe Bornauw, runs the oldest cigar shop in Brussels, just off La Grande Place, called La Tête d’Or, acknowledged the drop-off in sales but said he was defiant.
“We can’t let us ourselves be taken over by this psychosis,” he said. “I’m going to smoke a cigar and drink Belgian beer, yes, that’s what I’m doing to do right this second,” he said, taking out a cigar and lighting it up.
He brought out cheese and poured himself and a friend dark Belgian beer in two silver tumblers as Frank Sinatra played in the background. “A cigar, jazz, and beer, what else?” He chuckled, “Us, we blow ourselves up a cigar.”