Residents of the Stockel area of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre were yesterday ordered to remain inside their homes, as police in the zone dealt with a suspect vehicle. The affair is being treated as a possible terrorist incident.
The suspect vehicle was the reason for the curfew, but the investigation, it has now been revealed, also included searches at various addresses in the neighbourhood. No details were given by the federal prosecutor's office, which deals with terrorist matters.
It was, however, confirmed that the vehicle which gave rise to the initial alarm was not equipped with any sort of explosive device. Local police had called out Dovo, the Army’s bomb disposal experts (photo). Witnesses said they heard an explosion, which has not been confirmed by local authorities, police or Dovo. More information could be released on Sunday, or not.
A camera crew from the Flemish broadcaster VRT said it had seen a robot from the bomb disposal outfit first visit the suspect car, followed by an officer in protective clothing.
The mayor of the commune was on the spot: “We hope these measures can be lifted as soon as possible, but we don’t play around with safety,” said Benoit Cerexhe. “We’ll keep the measures in place until the time the police tell us the risk is over.”
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
