Brussels terror attack updates: 31 dead, 260 injured

Najim Laachraoui was one of the suicide bombers at Brussels Airport on Tuesday, a U.S. official said. He has previously been linked to explosives used in the Paris attacks in November.

“We have no reason to doubt� reports that he was killed, the official said.

Police announced on March 21 that they were searching for Laachraoui in connection with the Nov. 13 Paris attacks. The announcement followed the arrest of Salah Abdeslam, who is accused of playing a key role in the Paris plot.

Laachraoui’s DNA has been linked to explosives used in Paris, the official said. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss internal matters. Laachraoui’s exact role in producing the Paris bombs is unclear, the official said, and he may not have been the only bombmaker.

The Islamic State militant group has trained at least 400 fighters to target Europe in deadly waves of attacks, deploying interlocking terrorist cells like the ones that struck Brussels and Paris with orders to choose the time, place and method for maximum carnage, the Associated Press has learned.

The network of agile and semiautonomous cells shows the reach of the extremist group in Europe even as it loses ground in Syria and Iraq. Officials, including European and Iraqi intelligence sources and a French lawmaker who follows the jihadi networks, described camps in Syria, Iraq and possibly the former Soviet bloc where attackers are trained to attack the West. Before being killed in a police raid, the ringleader of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks claimed to have entered Europe in a multinational group of 90 fighters, who scattered “more or less everywhere.�

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A recap of our coverage.

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French newspaper Le Monde and Belgian newspapers De Standaard and La Libre are reporting that the second airport suicide bomber is Najim Laachraoui, whom police had been searching for in connection with the Nov. 13 Paris attacks.

— Braden Goyette

So far, we know the identities of two people confirmed dead in the attacks.

Adelma Tapia Ruiz, 36, from Peru.

Ruiz was at the airport with twin daughters and her Belgian husband, Christophe Delcambe, who was injured. She and the twins were going to visit her mother in New York.

She lived in Brussels for six years.

Leopold Hecht, 20. He was a law student at the Universite Saint Louis in Brussels.

“There are no words to describe our dismay in the face of this news,� Rector Pierre Jadoul wrote on Facebook. “All our thoughts go out to his family and loved ones.�

Many others have been reported missing. We’ll update as we get more information.

An official in the Turkish president’s office says the Brussels attacker who was deported from Turkey was Ibrahim El Bakraoui.

The official corrected Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s account, saying El Bakraoui, who was caught in June at the Turkish-Syrian border, was deported in July to the Netherlands, not to Belgium.

Turkey says it warned both Belgium and the Netherlands that he was a “foreign terrorist fighter.�

The official says Dutch authorities later allowed El Bakraoui to go free because Belgian authorities could not establish any ties to terrorism. The official cannot be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.

A Belgian prosecutor says El Bakraoui, a 29-year-old Belgian, blew himself up at the Brussels Airport on Tuesday.

President Obama derided the idea of monitoring Muslim neighborhoods or conducting a “carpet bomb� campaign against the Islamic State, saying Wednesday that such proposals – made by GOP presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz – would compromise American values while making “absolutely no sense� in the fight against terrorism.

Addressing ideas floated by Cruz since the bombings in Brussels, Obama said surveillance of Muslim neighborhoods would violate the principles of freedom that drew Cruz’s father to the U.S. from his home in Cuba – where Obama made a historic visit this week.

“I just left a country that engages in that kind of neighborhood surveillance, which, by the way, the father of Sen. Cruz escaped for America, the land of the free,� Obama said. “The notion that we would start down that slippery slope makes absolutely no sense … and it’s not going to help us defeat ISIL,� he said, using an acronym for the terrorist group.

Obama made his remarks in a news conference with Argentina’s president, Mauricio Macri, in Buenos Aires that was dominated by concerns about the attacks in Belgium. Obama said that fighting terrorism is his “number one priority,� insisting that the U.S. fight Islamic State “in an intelligent way.�

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says one of the Brussels attackers was caught in Turkey in June and deported to Belgium.

Erdogan says Wednesday that the Belgian authorities released the suspect despite Turkish warnings that he was “a foreign fighter.�

Erdogan did not name the attacker. He said the man was detained at Turkey’s border with Syria at Gaziantep and that Turkey formally notified Belgian authorities of his deportation on July 14.

Erdogan says “despite our warnings that this person was a foreign terrorist fighter, Belgium could not establish any links with terrorism.�

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, left, and Belgium’s Queen Mathilde and King Philippe visit a military hospital in Brussels on Wednesday where victims of the terror attacks are being treated.

Obama addressed the Brussels terror attacks in remarks from Argentina on Wednesday. “We can and will defeat those who threaten the safety and security of our people and of people around the world,� he said.

At a news conference Wednesday morning, Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw said the third suspect left behind a big bag that turned out to be “the heaviest load of explosives.�

After authorities arrived, they carried out a controlled explosion of the bomb and “luckily no one was hurt,� he said.

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The suicide bombers who blew themselves up in Brussels airport and on a crowded metro train were two brothers of Belgian nationality, the country’s prosecutor said Wednesday.

A third suspect who fled the scene, leaving behind a massive bag laden with nails and explosives, is now the subject of a massive manhunt. He and a second man who died at the airport have yet to be identified.

— Christina Boyle, Erik Kirschbaum and Sheldon ChadRead More

For months, Salah Abdeslam was Europe’s most wanted man. He was accused of helping plot the horrific November terrorist attacks carried out by a team of well-organized militants beneath officials’ noses in Paris.

But when Abdeslam was finally captured last week, he wasn’t caught with his alleged Islamic State associates in Syria. He was captured where he grew up, practically in plain sight of his hunters — in Brussels’ working-class, largely Moroccan neighborhood of Molenbeek St. Jean.

— Matt Pearce and Sheldon ChadRead More

Belgian police have identified two suicide bombers who blew themselves up at the Brussels Airport as brothers who had police records but until now had not been linked to terrorism, according to Belgium’s public television network RTBF.

Citing police sources, the network said brothers Khalid and Brahim El Bakraoui had been positively identified from images captured on a surveillance camera at the airport shortly before they detonated their bombs Tuesday morning. At least 30 people died and scores were injured in attacks on the airport and the Maelbeek metro station.

The third suspect in the airport attack, who was seen pushing a luggage cart at the airport next to the brothers, was still at large Wednesday morning.

Khalid El Bakraoui had used a false name to rent an apartment in Brussels where police killed a suspected terrorist in a raid last week, the network said. If confirmed, that would link Tuesday’s twin attacks on in the Belgian capital city to November’s terror attacks in Paris.

Police found an Islamic State flag in that apartment, an assault rifle, detonators and a fingerprint of the prime suspect in the Paris attacks: Salah Abdeslam, a breakthrough that led to his arrest three days later.

— Erik Kirschbaum

Google announced it is offering free calls via Hangouts, Hangouts Dialer or Google Voice to Belgium and Turkey to connect people with loved ones after the recent attacks.

Users can call people on Belgium’s biggest mobile carriers — Lycamobile, Mobistar, Proximus and Telenet — as well as all landlines in Turkey.

As the day came to an end in Belgium, newspapers throughout the country began to share Wednesday morning’s front pages.

Belgian newspaper Het Belang van Limburg tweeted a copy of its cover, emblazoned with the words ‘Our darkest day.’

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, under fire from groups such as the Anti-Defamation League, stood by his comments Tuesday calling for increased patrols of Muslim neighborhoods after the bombings in Brussels.

“If you have a neighborhood that has a high level of gang activity, the way to prevent it is you increase the law enforcement presence there and you target the gang members to get them off the street,� Cruz said Tuesday on CNN.

Cruz, who is one of three men still seeking the GOP presidential nomination, added that he’s “talking any area where there is a higher incidents of radical Islamic terrorism.�

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Authorities cannot yet give a precise death toll, Belgian federal prosecutor Frédéric Van Leeuw said in a news conference Tuesday. Conflicting death tolls were reported throughout the day, but more than 30 people are believed dead: at least 10 at the airport, and 20 at the metro station.

It took police some time to secure the scene at the airport because of concerns about explosives being hidden in other suitcases.

— Braden Goyette

A federal police helicopter shines a light on the rooftops of the Schaarbeek neighborhood in Brussels, as police search for a suspect wanted in Tuesday’s bombings.

The U.S. Air Force confirmed a service member stationed at Joint Force Command Brunssum, the Netherlands, was injured in Tuesday’s attack at Brussels Airport. The airman’s family also was present and sustained various injuries, which weren’t specified by the Air Force out of privacy concerns.

Thousands gathered spontaneously in front of the Belgian Stock Exchange in Brussels to mourn the victims, writing slogans of support on the sidewalk.

Travelers who have plans to fly to Belgium and other European cities after three deadly terrorist bombings Tuesday may be able to change or cancel flights without penalty.

In the aftermath, some airlines have eased rules that allow passengers to reschedule or cancel flights without additional charges.

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U.S. law enforcement should be empowered “to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized,� Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz said in a statement.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations expressed shock at his suggestion. “Does that mean checkpoints on every corner?� Ibrahim Hooper, the group’s national communications director, said in a statement. “Does that mean ‘your papers please’ requests for anyone who looks stereotypically Muslim? Does that mean kicking in the doors of Muslim homes and businesses?�

— Braden Goyette

Today, Rep. Janice Hahn (D-Los Angeles) released the following statement regarding the terrorist attacks in Brussels and the need for the Transportation Security Administration to expand security at airports:

“My prayers are with the survivors, the families of victims, and the Belgium people in the wake of these horrific attacks. While details are still coming out, these attacks raise concerns about security in American airports. Two of the deadly explosions occurred inside a Brussels airport in the area near check-in counters before people go through security. This morning, I called TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger to urge him to expand the current security perimeter at U.S. airports.

“As it stands now, airports remain a prime target for terrorism, but only half of the airport is protected by TSA security. In the wake of the attacks in Brussels, we must reconsider our current security and whether it can be strengthened to reduce soft targets and better protect the public.�

There are GOP primaries Tuesday in Arizona and Utah. Presidential candidates offered thoughts, prayers and policy suggestions in response to the Brussels attacks.

Within hours of the attacks, Donald Trump criticized Brussels as a city in decline.

He went on “Fox & Friends� on Tuesday morning and called Brussels a “disaster city� while renewing his call for closed borders. Later, he offered condolences to the victims.

Sen. Ted Cruz made a statement on Facebook, which “Fox & Friends� posted and he retweeted from his official account. He also tweeted videos about Islamic State and vowed to fight terrorism.

Gov. John Kasich tweeted a statement and then criticized President Obama for not immediately returning from his diplomatic trip to Cuba.

For more information on the 2016 election, check out our Trail Guide blog.

— Jessica Roy

(Martin Bureau / AFP/ Getty Images)

People gathered in front of the Hotel de Ville in Paris to pay tribute to the victims of the Brussels attacks. For many in the city, Tuesday’s events bring back memories of the Nov. 13, 2015, terror attacks in Paris, which killed 130 people.

— Braden Goyette

In December, a married couple who authorities said had been “self-radicalized� killed 14 people in San Bernardino in what has been described as the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil since 9/11.

Authorities found that the couple had bomb-making equipment in the garage of their townhouse and that one of them had plotted an earlier terror attack.

Still, experts say the terror attack in San Bernardino pales in comparison to the Paris and Brussels attacks due to those cities’ much more sophisticated and vast terror networks.

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President Obama defended his decision to attend an exhibition baseball game in Cuba after the deadly terrorist attacks in Brussels, saying it was important to show resolve in the face of terrorism.

“It’s always a challenge when you have a terrorist attack anywhere in the world, particularly in this age of 24-7 news coverage,� Obama told ESPN in a live interview during the game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cuban national team.

“You want to be respectful and understand the gravity of the situation. But the whole premise of terrorism is to try to disrupt people’s ordinary lives.�

Obama said one of the proudest memories he has as president was watching Bostonians return to Fenway Park for a Red Sox game just days after the 2013 marathon bombing. He recalled star player David Ortiz’s profane but resilient declaration that this was “our [expletive] city.�

Investigators found a new explosive device during the search of a house in Brussels’ Schaerbeek neighborhood.

“The searches that took place in Schaerbeek led to the discovery of a explosive device containing, among other things, nails,� the Belgian prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “Investigators also found chemicals and a flag of the Islamic State.�

— Christina Boyle

(Thibault Camus / Associated Press)

The Eiffel Tower was illuminated in the colors of the Belgian flag on Tuesday in solidarity with the victims of the Brussels attacks. People on Twitter used the hashtag #jesuisbruxelles (“I am Brussels�) to express their support.

— Braden Goyette

Elena Chad, an American who was waiting for a flight at Brussels Airport at the time of the attacks and was evacuated, took these photos from the scene.

Mourners add candles, flowers and other objects to a growing street memorial outside the Brussels stock exchange.

(Martin Meissner / Associated Press)

All flights in and out of Brussels have been canceled in the wake of the bombing Tuesday morning. The city’s transit system is also temporarily shut down. As a result, some people are stuck in Brussels without anywhere to go. Belgians are offering available space with the hashtags #PorteOuvert (“open door�) and #ikwilhelpen (“I want to help�).

— Jessica Roy

Among the victims of Tuesday’s attacks in Brussels were several Americans, including a group of Mormon missionaries and a U.S. service member and his family.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the three explosions, which left at least 31 dead and scores more injured.

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LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said Tuesday that police had increased patrols at the city’s “critical infrastructure� sites, along with transportation hubs in response to what he described as “horrific attacks� in Brussels. Beck told police commissioners that he had been in contact with his command staff as well as L.A. County Sheriff Jim McDonnell and the FBI’s David Bowdich.

Beck stressed that there were no initial indications that the Brussels attacks shared a “connection or nexus� to Los Angeles.

“We will continue to monitor the status of the investigation in Europe and try to make sure that the city is as safe as it can possibly be,� he said.

Hezbollah issued a statement condemning the increasing danger of “takfiri terrorist groups.�

“No place in the world is safe from its evil and crimes, crimes that are derived from its black venom towards humanity,� the group’s statement read. “The regional and international forces that stand behind [the bombers] and supply them with ideological, moral and financial support are responsible for these crimes that are moving across world cities.�

Police at LAX on Tuesday patrolled with automatic weapons.

(Brian Van Der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

U.S. cities have stepped up security measures in the wake of the deadly bombings in Brussels, although Department of Homeland Security officials said no credible threats have been detected against U.S. targets.

Airports and transit systems around the country were placed on heightened alert because of concerns about possible copycat attacks. Some cities added extra bomb-sniffing dogs and foot patrols to major transit hubs and airport terminals.

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“We are aware of one U.S. service member and his family who were caught up in this tragedy,� U.S. European Command said in a statement. “Due to privacy concerns, we are not releasing the status of their injuries at this time.�

Our correspondent in Beirut, Nabih Bulos, has translated Islamic State’s official claim of responsibility:

Statement on the blessed Brussels attack against Crusader Belgium

12th Jumada Al-Akhera 1437

By the grace of Allah and his will alone, a security group from the soldiers of the Caliphate, may Allah dignify it and support it, mobilized in targeting Crusader Belgium, which did not stop targeting Islam and its people, so Allah conquered through the hands of our brothers and cast in the hearts of the Crusaders fear and terror in the very heart of their land.

A group of the soldiers of the Caliphate, wrapped in explosive belts and carrying explosive canisters and machine guns, set out to target sites carefully chosen in Brussels the capital of Belgium, to go inside Brussels airport and the metro station and kill a number of Crusaders, before detonating their explosive belts in their midst, and the result of the attacks was the death of more than 40 and the wounding of no less than 210 of the citizens of the Crusader nations, and to Allah thanks and appreciation.

And we promise the Crusader nations allied against the Islamic State of dark days, in response to their aggression against the Islamic State, that what is coming is worse and more bitter, Allah permitting. Thanks be to Allah for his accuracy and success, and we ask Allah to accept our brothers among the martyrs.

The Syrian foreign ministry implicitly criticized Saudi Arabia in its statement on the attacks, as reported in the country’s state media agency, SANA:

“The terrorist attacks in Brussels and Paris, and other places of the world before it, confirm anew that terrorism has no borders and is the inevitable result of wrong policies, sympathizing with terrorism to achieve certain agendas, and legitimizing it by describing some terrorist groups as moderate. They are in the end offshoots of the Wahhabist takfiri creed.

“Syria, which has been defending against takfiri terrorism for the last five years, renews the call to combine all honest international efforts to thwart the danger of terrorism, rein in the behavior of the countries that sponsor it, and force them to stop giving any form of support to terrorist groups in order to preserve regional and international peace and stability.�

Facebook has set up a page to let users check on friends in Brussels, and to let people in the area quickly inform their friends that they’re OK.

Belgian authorities released a screen grab of security footage from Brussels Airport that shows three men suspected in Tuesday’s attacks.

Two of them are likely dead; one is still at large.

“A photo of three suspicious men was taken at Zaventem,� the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “Two of them were probably involved in a suicide attack. The third, dressed in a light jacket and wearing a hat is actively sought.�

A group of soldiers approached three young men outside the Gare du Nord rail station whom they apparently suspected of being involved in the terror attacks -- about an hour after the metro blast. Suddenly the three men raised their hands as the soldiers approached, prompting about 70 people flee in panic.

Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Tuesday condemned the “abhorrent� attacks in Belgium, “the very heart of Europe,� and offered U.S. help in the recovery and investigation.

Kerry said the U.S. Embassy in Brussels was attempting to track down and ensure the safety of U.S. citizens there.

Kerry telephoned Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders to offer support and said that he made clear that “the United States stands firmly with our ally Belgium and with all of Europe in the face of this tragedy.

“Attacks like these only deepen our shared resolve to defeat terrorism around the world,� Kerry said.

Amaq, the unofficial news agency of Islamic State, says that the militant group’s fighters carried out the attacks in Brussels.

Three Utah men in Europe to serve the Paris mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were seriously injured in this morning’s attack at the Brussels Airport, church officials said.

The men, identified as Richard Norby, 66, of Lehi, Joseph Empe, 20, of Santa Clara and Mason Wells, 19, of Sandy, were at the airport to accompany another missionary on her way to Ohio. A Mormon Church official in Brussels said all three men were close to the site of the explosion and had been hospitalized. The fourth missionary, a 20-year-old French woman, had already made it through the security line and was not injured.

Sen. Ted Cruz split open the GOP’s foreign policy divide Tuesday, saying the bombings in Brussels expose the limits of Donald Trump’s preference for a smaller U.S. footprint abroad.

“This is a war with radical Islamic terrorism,� Cruz told reporters in Washington.

“Donald Trump is wrong that America should withdraw from the world. Donald Trump is wrong that America should retreat from Europe, retreat from NATO,� Cruz said.

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The immediate aftermath of the explosion at the departure terminal at Brussels’ Zavantem airport was caught on camera on Tuesday.

The immediate aftermath of the explosion at the departure terminal at Brussels Airport was caught on camera Tuesday.

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter condemned the bombings in Brussels on Tuesday and pledged aid to the Belgian government.

“We’re continuing to monitor the situation, including to ensure that all U.S. personnel and citizens are accounted for,� he said Tuesday in an appearance on Capitol Hill before the House Armed Services Committee. “We also stand ready to provide assistance to our friends and allies in Europe as necessary.�

President Obama said the deadly attacks in Brussels are “yet another reminder that the world must unite� in the face of the threat of terrorism.

Speaking from Havana, where he ends his historic three-day visit to Cuba on Tuesday, the president said the U.S. would do whatever is necessary to support Belgium and bring the attackers to justice.

“We must be together, regardless of nationality or race or faith, in fighting against the scourge of terrorism,� Obama said.

“We can and we will beat those who threaten the safety and security of people all around the world.�

Obama’s comments, which lasted just over one minute, came at the beginning of the keynote speech of his trip to Cuba, the longtime Cold War adversary with whom he has worked to normalize relations.

The president was scheduled to travel to Argentina on Tuesday afternoon.

Hillary Clinton called shutting down U.S. borders “unrealistic� in light of the Brussels bombings on Tuesday.

Speaking to NBC, the Democratic front-runner sympathized with fears over the violence in Belgium, and called on the government to intensify efforts to protect the U.S. But she said Americans need to “stand in solidarity� with Europe.

“We’ve got to be absolutely smart and strong and steady in how we respond,� the former secretary of State said on NBC’s “Today.�

Security at Los Angeles International Airport will be more prominent Tuesday following the terrorist attacks in Brussels, officials said Tuesday.

Though there are no specific threats against the airport, police will make their presence known more than usual, said Airport Police Officer Alicia Hernandez.

“We take attacks on aviation very seriously and make constant adjustments to our deployment strategies,� she said. “As a precaution, we have increased the visibility of airport police officers at LAX.�

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Hours after two bombs detonated in Brussels on Tuesday, killing at least 28, Donald Trump pounced, arguing that the massacre is exactly why he argues for stronger border security.

“They’re just a city that used to be one of the finest and one of the most beautiful and one of the safest cities in the world, and now it’s a catastrophic, very dangerous city where the police have very little control,� Trump said on NBC’s “Today.�

Belgian officials reported at least 28 killed so far after two bombs — at least one reportedly from a suicide bomber — exploded inside the airport around 8 a.m. in the city. Another bomb detonated an hour later by a subway station.

Trump also reiterated his support of waterboarding as an interrogation tactic and demanded that government leaders tighten rules on accepting refugees from Syria and elsewhere. And he insisted he leads in polls because of his stance on border control.

“Today� said it also reached out to Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton for a comment on Brussels, but she declined.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich said in a statement that he’s “sickened by the pictures of the carnage, by the injuries and by the loss of life.�

Four days after one of the suspects in November’s fatal Paris terrorist attacks, Salah Abdeslam, was apprehended in Brussels, explosions hit Brussels Airport and the city’s Maelbeek metro station.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel asked people in the city to remain indoors as Brussels came to a standstill and armed police and emergency services moved into the streets. Officials raised the terrorist threat to its maximum level.

All flights at the airport were canceled until further notice, and the entire Brussels transportation system was shut down. International train travel into Belgium was also suspended.

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