A police spokesman said: “A man was arrested at 5.30am this morning, possibly in possession of explosives”. Prosecutors said he had a criminal record and a history of psychiatric problems.
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Authorities sealed off the streets around the City2 shopping centre after the suspect was seen acting suspiciously early today.
Belgium’s crisis center, which coordinates security measures, said it was holding a meeting, with Prime Minister Charles Michel and Interior Minister Jan Jambon present, to discuss the incident. “The security services remain extremely vigilant”, Michel said later in a statement. “There were no explosives”.
The suspect, named as JB, born in 1990, was previously known to authorities and has a history of mental illness. He recently contacted the police claiming he had been encouraged to join Isis in Syria.
It says six people have been taken in for questioning and that an investigating judge would decide later Monday whether they should be kept in detention.
Authorities are now determining whether to treat the incident as terror-related or as a hoax.
Rogier Metro station and surrounding roads were temporarily closed as a security cordon was established around the shopping centre while the operation continued. Some have also been linked to the March 22 attacks on the Brussels subway and airport which killed 32.
This was the day before Belgium played Ireland in a Euro 2016 tie attracting an audience of hundreds of thousands, including many watching in the Brussels fanzone.
Three Belgian nationals were charged on Saturday with attempted terrorist murder, according to the federal public prosecutor’s office.
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Belgian authorities have detained six people in connection with last year’s foiled attack on a Thalys express train to France.
