- Title: Troops surround Brussels station after blast
- Date: 20th June 2017
- Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JUNE 20, 2017) (REUTERS) ARMED ARMY OFFICER AND SECURITY VEHICLES NEAR BRUSSELS CENTRAL STATION POLICE OFFICER TYING CORDON TAPE TO CAR, SOLDIER SPEAKING TO LADY ARMED SOLDIERS TALKING TO EACH OTHER POLICE VEHICLES BLOCKING ROAD VARIOUS OF CIVILIANS BEING LED AWAY FROM AREA VARIOUS OF ARMED SOLDIER STANDING GUARD FIREMEN STANDING AT ROADSIDE ARMY VEHICLE DRIVING UP ROAD POLICE OFFICERS WALKING DOWN STREET POLICE VEHICLES IN ROAD, SOLDIER WALKING PAST
- Embargoed: 4th July 2017 21:12
- Keywords: Brussels station blast police army explosive belt shot explosion
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- City: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice
- Reuters ID: LVA0016M346DJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Belgium's police and army secured the area around Brussels Central Station on Tuesday (June 20) after troops had "neutralised" a person following a small explosion in the building, a police spokesman said.
The spokesman could not confirm media reports that the person had been wearing an explosive vest and it was not clear whether the person shot was still alive, adding that there were no other casualties and the situation was under control.
Prime Minister Charles Michel urged people via Twitter to follow instructions from the authorities.
The station and adjacent historic downtown area, including the baroque Grand Place city square were packed with tourists and locals on a hot summer evening, were evacuated as police set up a security cordon, witnesses told Belgian media.
The city has been on high alert for more than 18 months since Brussels-based Islamic State militants carried out attacks in Paris that killed 130 people there in November 2015 and later bombed Brussels airport and the city's metro in March last year.
Those bombings killed 32 people. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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