Terrorist group strikes Europe again
Terror struck Europe yet again last week. Only four months after the terror attacks on Paris, Brussels was hit with seemingly no mercy.
The terror started early in the morning of March 22, 2016, at approximately 8:00 a.m., when explosions rung off in Brussels Airport. About an hour after the airport explosion, at approximately 9:10 a.m., a second blast was reported on a train at Maalbeek metro subway station—near the headquarters of the European Commission.
In total, there were 31 deaths and several injuries. Not long after the attacks, ISIL took responsibility for the bloodshed.
Belgium and its people were quick to retaliate. Soon after the attacks, security images of the three men suspected of bombing Brussels Airport were released. A taxi driver who supposedly drove the attackers to the airport led Belgian police to the area where he picked them up. This led to a raid in the Schaerbeek and Jette neighborhoods of Belgium, resulting in six arrests.
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One of the arrested individuals was initially identified as Faycal Cheffou. Cheffou was the man identified in the security images of the airport bombers—he had allegedly escaped while his two accomplices detonated suicide belts. Cheffou’s alledged accomplices in the airport bombings were identified as Brahim el-Bakraoui and Najeem Laachraoui, while Khalid el-Bakraouin was identified as the metro station bomber.
Cheffou was released from police custody on March 28, 2016, due to a lack of evidence to support suspicions.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, and Foreign Minister Stephane Dion pledged solidarity with Belgium and the EU. Goodale noted that the threat level to Canada had not increased.
Despite increased security at Parliament Hill, Canada’s threat level has been at medium since the attacks on Parliament Hill in October 2014.
On Wednesday, March 23, 2016, Prime Minister Trudeau stated: “This cannot and will not be tolerated.”
Despite these statements, Prime Minister Trudeau still remains persistent that Canada is not at war with ISIL—yet with our European allies being targeted this ferociously, that could change in the near future.