Washington

A sense of terror and concern gripped Brussels city of Belgium after a gunman claiming to be a member of ISIS went on a rampage and killed two Swedish nationals who were on their way to watch a match at King Baudouin Stadium, where Sweden were playing Belgium.

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The assault took place on Monday (Oct 16) on Boulevard d'Ypres, 5 kilometres (3 miles) from the stadium.

The attacker was identified by local media as 45-year-old Abdesalem Lassoued, of Tunisian origin. He was said to be carrying a Kalashnikov-style assault rifle when he saw a group of football fans heading to see the Euro 2024 qualifier.

Following 12 hours of manhunt, the terrorist was caught and shot during a stop-and-search in a cafe as authorities searched Belgium’s capital.

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Interior minister Annelies Verlinden said the terrorist died on the way to hospital in an ambulance.

Sought revenge for Quran burnings 

“The perpetrator of the terrorist attack in Brussels has been identified and died," Verlinden posted on X, hours after Prime Minister Alexander De Croo called Monday's shooting a brutal "terrorist attack".

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The shooting comes in the backdrop of rising tensions over the Quran burning protests in Sweden that widened the rift between the Arab nations and the European country.

Several countries had objected to the protests and terrorists had even threatened to eliminate Swedes at home and abroad.

“The perpetrator targeted specifically Swedish supporters who were in Brussels to attend a Red Devils soccer match. Two Swedish compatriots passed away. A third person is recovering from severe injures," PM de Croo said.

Attacker celebrated killings 

Shortly after the attack, the gunman uploaded a video of himself on Facebook boasting about the murders.

In the video, the attacker used the name 'Slayem Slouma' and said in Arabic that he sought to avenge the killing of a six-year-old US-Palestinian boy.

The six-year-old boy, Wadea Al-Fayoume, was knifed to death in Plainfield, Illinois, on Saturday morning.

Also read | Brussels shooting: Suspected attacker shot dead by police after chase

His mother, Hanaan Shahin, was also stabbed over a dozen times, by a man allegedly screaming 'You Muslims must die!'

Also read | ISIS terrorist kills 2 in Brussels to 'avenge' murder of 6-year-old Illinois boy

Celebrating the assault, he said, "Islamic greeting Allahu Akbar. My name is Abdesalem Al Guilani and I am a fighter for Allah. I am from the Islamic State. We love who loves us and we hate who hates us. We live for our religion and we die for our religion.”

He further said that he has “killed three Swedes so far” and also claimed he had carried out the attack in “revenge in the name of Muslims”.

Notably, the third victim survived and is said to be undergoing treatment at a hospital.

Who is Abdesalem Lassoued?

Abdesalem Lassoued is a 45-year-old man from Tunisia. He was reportedly a failed asylum seeker and was living illegally in the Schaerbeek area, which is about a ten-minute drive from the shooting site.

Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborn said Lassoued was convicted in Tunisia ‘for common law offences’, but was not reported for a terrorist risk.

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