Arjun Walia – As you’ve probably heard, three explosions recently hit Brussels, one at Zaventem airport and another approximately one hour later on the subway right next to the European Union headquarters. 26 people lost their lives, and many others were injured.
According to TIME, Belgian Federal Prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw called all three explosions ‘terrorist’ attacks, and as a result Brussels has gone on complete lockdown, closing the airport, metro stations, international train services, and more; residents were told to remain at home or at their place of work for the day.
The blasts at the airport occurred at approximately 8am, and, according to Van Leeuw, it has been confirmed that one of them was carried out by a suicide bomber in the departure hall. It is believed that there were shouts in Arabic and gunshots right before the bombs exploded. Belgian Health Minister Maggie De-Block reports that 11 people were killed and 81 injured.
Here is a witness account from the airport:
I was sleeping and I was woken up by people screaming and running. I just followed the crowd. People came running down the stairs. People left their luggage and kept running. We were given no information in the terminal.
At the subway (Maelbeek) station, the blast hit at around 9:10 am, killing “about 20,” according to Brussels Mayor Yvan Mayeur, and injuring over 100 people.
Another witness offers these observations: