Attacks on Brussels airport, metro kill 34 (Live Video)

BRUSSELS, March 22 (Reuters) – Thirty-four people have been killed in attacks on the Brussels airport and a rush-hour metro train in the Belgian capital on Tuesday.

Federal prosecutors believe at least one of the explosions was probably triggered by a suicide bomber. A witness said he heard someone shouting in Arabic and gun shots shortly before two blasts struck a packed airport departure lounge at Brussels airport. A witness said the blasts occurred at a check-in desk.

Live coverage of blasts in Brussels:

The attack occurred four days after the arrest in Brussels of a suspected participant in November militant attacks in Paris that killed 130 people. All public transport in Brussels was shut down.

VRT police found a Kalashnikov assault rifle next to the body of an attacker at the airport. An unused explosive belt was also found in the area, the public broadcaster said. Police were continuing to scour the airport for any further bombs or attackers.

VRT said 20 were killed in the metro train and 14 at the airport. Many of the dead and wounded at the airport were badly injured in the legs, one airport worker told Reuters, suggesting at least one bomb in a bag on the floor.

“We are at war and we have been subjected to acts of war in Europe for the last few months,” French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said. Public broadcaster VTM said the Tihange nuclear power plant had been evacuated as part of the security clampdown.

Brussels airport canceled all flights until at least 6 a.m. (0500 GMT) on Wednesday and the complex had been evacuated and trains to the airport had been stopped. Passengers were taken to coaches from the terminal that would remove them to a secure area.

All three main long-distance rail stations in Brussels were closed and train services on the cross-channel tunnel from London to Brussels were suspended.

European stocks fell after the explosions, particularly travel sector stocks including airlines and hotels, pulling the broader indices down from multi-week highs. Safe-haven assets, gold and government bonds rose in price.

The attacks appeared to be linked to the arrest of French citizen Salah Abdeslam – the prime surviving suspect for November’s Paris attacks on a stadium, cafes and a concert hall – who was captured by Belgian police after a shootout on Friday.

It was not clear what failings if any allowed the plan for Tuesday’s operation to go ahead and whether the double attack was planned in advance or put together at short notice.

“We know that stopping one cell can … push others into action. We are aware of it in this case,” Jambon said.

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