France has intensified its aerial bombing in Syria and Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which has been sent to the Mediterranean, will be “operational” from Monday and “ready to act”. The suspected Islamist militant has been on the run since the attacks in the French capital.
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The prosecutor said it was not immediately clear if the person injured in the vehicle, which was eventually stopped in the centre of Brussels, was linked to the Paris attacks case.
British Prime Minister David Cameron says he will seek parliamentary approval this week for Britain to join U.S. led airstrikes against Islamic State extremists in Syria.
Belgian officials would not release details about the identities of those detained, nor specific charges against the suspects, “in the interest of the investigation” while security operations are continuing.
The massive operation saw 19 raids carried out late on Sunday across Brussels, plus three search warrants carried out in the city of Charleroi. No other weapons or explosives were found as officers executed search warrants.
The man in the picture passed through Greece with one of the other suicide bombers, carrying a Syrian passport in the name of Mohammad al-Mahmod, a source close to the investigation said.
“We have to stress that no firearms or explosives were discovered… during the raids”, he said”.
The Belgian capital of Brussels in under a state of lockdown after officials raised the city’s terror alert to the highest level possible following their detection of a “serious and imminent threat” to the city.
A tense Brussels was locked down for a second day on Sunday with armed police and troops patrolling near deserted streets amid fears jihadists planned a repeat of the Paris attacks which left 130 people dead on November 13.
Belgian interior minister Jan Jambon said that Abdeslam “must have a lot of support on our territory”.
“We’re looking at more things. That’s why we’ve put in place such a concentration of resources”.
He said possible targets are commercial centers, shopping streets, or public transport.
The metro, museums and schools, many shops and cinemas will stay shut on Monday in the usually bustling European Union capital where many staff will stay to work from home.
Salah Abdeslam, one of the suspected masterminds of Paris attacks, still remains free as Brussels continue with its raid amid high alert. “Apart from the closed metro and schools, life goes on in Brussels, the public sector is open for business today, many companies are open”, Jambon said on Monday morning.
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Residents were bracing for the impact that the continued clampdown would have on this city of more than 1 million as the workweek began.
