- Shouts 'in Arabic' heard before two explosions went off near the American Airlines check-in desk at 8am (7am GMT)
- Terrified passengers covered in blood ran for their lives after explosion sent 'shockwaves' through terminal building
- Reports of another explosion at a Metro station near the EU headquarters in the Maelbeek area of central Brussels
- Evacuated passengers are being ferried onto buses and are being driven to a 'crisis centre' away from the airport
- Comes a day after Belgium minister warned of revenge attacks after arrest of Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam
At
least 23 people have been killed and dozens injured in Brussels after a
series of terror attacks struck the city's airport and a metro station
near the EU headquarters. Witnesses
described scenes 'like the apocalypse' with blood and 'dismembered
bodies everywhere' after two blasts rocked the American Airlines
check-in desk at Brussels Airport at 8am (7am GMT) in a suspected
suicide bombing.
Around
90 minutes later, ten people are believed to have died when an
explosion hit a Metro station just 400 metres from the EU headquarters
in the city centre in another suspected terror attack. The
explosions come just a day after the Belgium Interior Minister warned
of possible revenge attacks after the arrest of Paris massacre suspect
Salah Abdeslam in the city last week.
At
the airport, shouts in Arabic were reportedly heard before the
explosions which sent shockwaves through the terminal building,
shattering windows, knocking roof tiles off the ceiling and sending
terrified passengers running for their lives.
Samir Derrouich, who works at a restaurant in the airport, told MailOnline: 'The two explosions were almost simultaneous.
'They
were both at check-in desk. One was close to the Starbucks. It was
awful. There was just blood. It was like the apocalypse.'
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| Carnage: At least eleven people have died and several injured after two explosions rocked Brussels Airport in a suspected terror attack |
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| A soldier walks through debris after two explosion rocked a terminal building at Brussels Airport |
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| Two explosions have been heard at Brussels Airport |
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| Injured passengers are covered in blood and dust after the explosions in the terminal building |
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| A man lies injured on the floor after two explosions rocked the the American Airlines check-in desk |
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| Hundreds of terrified passengers ran from the terminal, some of them covered in blood (left), after the blasts rocked the building at 8am |
Photographs
from inside the arrivals hall showed the floor covered in fallen tiles
and dust as bloodied people hobbled out of the airport. Others injured
were photographed lying on the floor.
Firefighters
who entered the terminal to search for survivors are said to have found
a third unexploded device, while armed police in protective clothing
combed the building for more wounded travellers and suspicious bags.
In
the aftermath, thousands of people waiting for flights this morning
were penned inside the terminal as police sealed off the shattered
arrivals hall. People
already checked in were then slowly evacuated through emergency exits –
but were told to leave all their hand luggage as police checked bags
for more explosives.
Evacuated
passengers are being ferried onto buses and are being driven to a
'crisis centre' away from the airport, with women and children being
moved first.
Dries Valaert, 30, was waiting to get his boarding pass from a check in desk when the blast struck.
He
told MailOnline: 'There was a first blast and then ten seconds later a
second explosion. It was a big, big blast, the ceiling went down. It was
just 30 metres from where I was.
'I
saw people down on the ground and I just went running. I jumped over
the security fences towards the departure gates as I thought it would be
safer.
'My
first intuition was to get out in case their were attackers with guns. I
saw a woman around 18 years old with a hole in her hand with blood
pouring out and a man with an injured ankle and two people down. There
was lots of panic. People were running all over the place.'
Mr
Valaert, who was flying to a business meeting in Berlin, said he
believed the bombs were hidden in suitcases that had just been checked
in. He
said: 'The explosions were just behind the service desks, they were
blown towards us. To me it is the most realistic possibility. I don't
think it was someone with a suicide vest.'
All flights are being diverted from the airport this morning as it remains on lockdown.
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| Bravery: People are treated, comforted and given water by the emergency services as they help the wounded |
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| Aftermath: A man lies stricken on the pavement as survivors kiss in relief after surviving the bombing, which has killed at least ten |
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| Second attack: A person lies injured on the floor after an explosion was heard at the Metro station in the centre of Brussels |
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Evacuation: Those on the tube network
were evacuated from smoke-filled tunnels and walked along the tracks to
the nearest station
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|
| Second attack: Around 90 minutes after the airport blasts, there were reports of an explosion at a station (pictured) in the centre of the city |
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Flights
due to land at Brussels-Zaventem, which handles 21million passengers a
year, were sent to Antwerp, Liege, and Brussels Charleroi airports.
Europe's
biggest airports are all increasing their security today. Heathrow
confirmed it had stepped up its own 'visible' security in the wake of
the attacks – with large units of armed police patrolling the airport
this morning.
The
Belgian Interior Minister has raised the country's security level to
'maximum' this morning as it prepares itself for more terror attacks in
the wake of the airport bombings.
British
Prime Minister David Cameron offered his support to victims and called a
COBRA emergency committee meeting to address the events in Brussels.
He tweeted: 'I am shocked and concerned by the events in Brussels. We will do everything we can to help.
'I will be chairing a COBRA meeting on the events in Brussels later this morning.'
The
incident came as the Belgian capital was on a state of high alert
following the arrest of Paris terror attack suspect Salah Abdeslam in
the city last week.
Belgium's
Interior Minister, Jan Jambon, said the country was on high alert for a
possible revenge attack following the capture of 26-year-old Salah
Abdeslam in a flat in Brussels on Friday.
'We know that stopping one cell can... push others into action. We are aware of it in this case,' he told public radio.
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| Pictures show the terminal windows blown out from the force of the explosion and smoke rising into the sky |
Passengers evacuated to the tarmac
France
is seeking Abdeslam's extradition so he can stand trial for his alleged
role in the November 13 rampage of gunfire and suicide bombings that
killed 130 people in Paris.
Belgium
is under great tension, with its federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw
saying yesterday that last year the country worked on 315 new
anti-terror cases and nearly 60 so far this year.
Indeed,
many witnesses at Brussels Airport today immediately jumped to the
conclusion that there had been a terrorist attack, which reflects the
nature of the country.
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