This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/17/world/europe/belgium-terrorism-suspect.html
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Belgium Says Algerian Killed in Raid May Have Had Links to Radical Islam | Belgium Says Algerian Killed in Raid May Have Had Links to Radical Islam |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| PARIS — Belgian prosecutors on Wednesday identified the man who was killed during a counterterrorism raid the day before as an Algerian with potential links to radical Islam, while two other suspects from the raid, which left four police officers wounded, remained on the run. | PARIS — Belgian prosecutors on Wednesday identified the man who was killed during a counterterrorism raid the day before as an Algerian with potential links to radical Islam, while two other suspects from the raid, which left four police officers wounded, remained on the run. |
| The man, Mohamed Belkaid, a 35-year-old who was in Belgium illegally, tried to open fire on police officers and was shot and killed by a special forces sniper, according to Eric van der Sijpt, a spokesman for the federal prosecutor’s office. | The man, Mohamed Belkaid, a 35-year-old who was in Belgium illegally, tried to open fire on police officers and was shot and killed by a special forces sniper, according to Eric van der Sijpt, a spokesman for the federal prosecutor’s office. |
| The raid on a building on Rue du Dries in the Forest section of Brussels took place around 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday. | The raid on a building on Rue du Dries in the Forest section of Brussels took place around 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday. |
| Six police officers — four Belgian and two French — had been sent to the building as part of the investigation into the Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in Paris and in the northern suburb of St.-Denis. | Six police officers — four Belgian and two French — had been sent to the building as part of the investigation into the Nov. 13 terrorist attacks in Paris and in the northern suburb of St.-Denis. |
| “From the moment the door of the flat was opened, at least two persons, armed with a riot gun and a Kalashnikov, opened fire toward them,” Mr. van der Sijpt said. “In the short but very intense shootout, three of the six officers suffered slight injuries, among them a French female police officer.” | “From the moment the door of the flat was opened, at least two persons, armed with a riot gun and a Kalashnikov, opened fire toward them,” Mr. van der Sijpt said. “In the short but very intense shootout, three of the six officers suffered slight injuries, among them a French female police officer.” |
| He added, “The police officers present at the scene returned fire immediately and were able to retreat safely.” | He added, “The police officers present at the scene returned fire immediately and were able to retreat safely.” |
| A fourth officer sustained a head wound during subsequent gunfire between the police and the suspects, he said. | A fourth officer sustained a head wound during subsequent gunfire between the police and the suspects, he said. |
| During the gunfire, Mr. Belkaid was killed. In the apartment where he died, the police found a flag of the Islamic State, 11 cartridge clips and numerous shell casings; near his body, they found a book on the Salafist school of Islam and a Kalashnikov rifle, Mr. van der Sijpt said. | During the gunfire, Mr. Belkaid was killed. In the apartment where he died, the police found a flag of the Islamic State, 11 cartridge clips and numerous shell casings; near his body, they found a book on the Salafist school of Islam and a Kalashnikov rifle, Mr. van der Sijpt said. |
| Mr. Belkaid was not previously known to the police, except for one case of theft in 2014. It was unclear whether he had any connection to the Nov. 13 attacks, which killed 130 people. | Mr. Belkaid was not previously known to the police, except for one case of theft in 2014. It was unclear whether he had any connection to the Nov. 13 attacks, which killed 130 people. |
| The Belgian federal prosecutor’s office said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon that two men who had been arrested after the raid had been released without charges. | |
| One of them had been brought to hospital in Halle, about eight miles southwest of Forest, on Tuesday evening, by a man who had fled when the police arrived at the scene. The other had been arrested after an overnight search in a house in Forest. | |
| Additional searches of houses were conducted in Forest on Tuesday, Mr. van der Sijpt said. Two full Kalashnikov cartridge clips and a black article of clothing were found near a house on Rue de l’Eau, and a Kalashnikov rifle was found inside. | Additional searches of houses were conducted in Forest on Tuesday, Mr. van der Sijpt said. Two full Kalashnikov cartridge clips and a black article of clothing were found near a house on Rue de l’Eau, and a Kalashnikov rifle was found inside. |
| Searches in two more houses on Rue de l’Eau, in about 30 enclosed parking spaces and in a storage facility did not yield any results, Mr. van der Sijpt said. Neither did a house search in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, southwest of Brussels, the prosecutor’s office said. | |
| After a national security meeting on Wednesday, Belgium’s prime minister, Charles Michel, announced that the country’s terrorism alert would remain at its second-highest level. | After a national security meeting on Wednesday, Belgium’s prime minister, Charles Michel, announced that the country’s terrorism alert would remain at its second-highest level. |
| Earlier on Wednesday, Mr. Michel told RTL radio that police forces, in planning the raid, had not expected an “armed, violent reaction,” which occurred “immediately” at the start of the raid. | Earlier on Wednesday, Mr. Michel told RTL radio that police forces, in planning the raid, had not expected an “armed, violent reaction,” which occurred “immediately” at the start of the raid. |
| “I think that there was a surprise because, according to the federal prosecutor’s office, there was no need to mobilize the special forces for this raid,” Mr. Michel said, “which shows that we were not expecting to find resistance, and certainly not resistance of that nature.” | “I think that there was a surprise because, according to the federal prosecutor’s office, there was no need to mobilize the special forces for this raid,” Mr. Michel said, “which shows that we were not expecting to find resistance, and certainly not resistance of that nature.” |
| Belgian authorities have conducted over 100 house searches and arrested 58 people since the November attacks, Mr. van der Sijpt said, adding that 23 people had been arrested in connection with related investigations. | Belgian authorities have conducted over 100 house searches and arrested 58 people since the November attacks, Mr. van der Sijpt said, adding that 23 people had been arrested in connection with related investigations. |
| French and Belgian authorities have detained nearly a dozen men suspected of helping the Paris attackers either before or after the Nov. 13 assault, but others are still the targets of international manhunts. | French and Belgian authorities have detained nearly a dozen men suspected of helping the Paris attackers either before or after the Nov. 13 assault, but others are still the targets of international manhunts. |
| The chief fugitive is Salah Abdeslam, a 26-year-old French citizen who is believed to have participated in the Paris attacks. Mr. Abdeslam, who was born in Brussels to parents who had emigrated from Morocco, fled to Belgium afterward. | The chief fugitive is Salah Abdeslam, a 26-year-old French citizen who is believed to have participated in the Paris attacks. Mr. Abdeslam, who was born in Brussels to parents who had emigrated from Morocco, fled to Belgium afterward. |