Brussels on high alert as police surround 'bomb suspect'

 

Brussels Police and bomb disposal teams carried out a major operation after a man was seen wearing a long coat with wires hanging out on Wednesday in Belgium capital. It is +32C in Brussels at the moment so the winter coat grabbed security guards' attention.


The suspect is seen surrounded and on his knees while two policemen kept their guns at his head. The streets were cordoned off, traffic stopped and local shops and library evacuated.

"Following police intervention, a cordon has been established" around part of the Place de la Monnaie and adjoining streets, Brussels police said in a tweeted message.

Brussels has remained on high alert since suicide bomb attacks at the airport and in the metro on March 22  and claimed by Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) that left 32 people dead and many wounded.

Belga news agency, quoting a police spokesman, said the suspect was under control as the bomb squad waited to check if he had any explosives concealed under his coat. Local media footage showed troops, police and firemen in and around the cordoned-off area.