Brussels fears 'gun and explosives' attack

Belgian PM Charles Michel i has said intelligence of a terrorist attack, using “guns and explosives,” prompted the security crackdown in Brussels.

He added, in a press briefing on Saturday (21 November), that he has “information of the risk of an attack similar to the one in Paris … potentially by several individuals in several places.”

He urged the public “not to give in to panic, to stay calm,” noting: “We have taken the necessary [security] measures.”

He spoke after authorities, in the small hours of Saturday morning, raised the terrorist alert level from three to the maximum four, indicating a “serious and imminent” threat.

Authorities warned people to avoid large crowds and commercial centres, as well as to avoid “spreading rumours.”

Metros and some trams have stopped running. Trains reduced the number of stops in the city and parking restrictions were imposed at the Belgian national airport, on the outskirts of town.

Shopping centres - in the Avenue Louise, Port de Namur, and Woluwe St-Lambert areas - closed their doors. The Filigranes bookshop chain stayed shut, with its owner, Marc Filipson, saying in a statement that “ideologically speaking, I feel like crying.”

Some tourist attractions, such as the Atomium centre, also closed.

Rock star Johnny Hallyday cancelled his performance at the Heysel venue. The Ancienne Belgique venue in the city centre also put off its Sound/Check concert and basketball games have been rescheduled.

The Belgian soccer league initially ignored government warnings and opted to play games. But it changed its mind at noon, local time, and cancelled all weekend matches.

The US embassy, for its part, said it “urges everyone to shelter in place and remain at home. If you must go out, avoid large crowds."

Foreign minister Didier Reynders, earlier the same day, noted: “When there's a search on, it's easier for the police if there aren't too many people walking around on the streets.”

Rudi Vervoort, the Brussels City mayor, told people to stay “vigilant” but “calm.”

Vincent De Wolf, the mayor of the Etterbeek district, which houses several EU institutions, said the measures are designed to “prevent large gatherings.”

Kristalina Georgieva i, an EU commissioner, tweeted: "Please stay safe and follow advice of public authorities."

The alert comes after Belgian police, on Friday night, intercepted a cache of weapons in a raid near the Vierwindenstraat in Molenbeek - a poor district in Brussels with a large concentration of Muslims, which is said to have sheltered a number of the attackers involved in the Paris atrocity.

The police says it found guns, but not explosives or suicide belts.