Off the wire
Cristiano Ronaldo elected Portugal's best player of century  • Global economy faces strong headwind despite low oil prices, IMF  • Urgent: 2 killed in anti-terrorist action in Belgium  • Gulf stock markets consolidate as oil price stabilizes  • Spanish stock market rises 1.39 pct, closes at 9,982 points  • Spanish treasury places over 4 bln euros on market  • Sierra Leone Red Cross staff member dies of Ebola  • Euro to become Lithuania's sole currency for cash payments  • Spanish prices fall by 1 pct in Dec.  • British FTSE 100 rebounds 1.73 pct on Thursday  
You are here:   Home

1st LD-Writethru: 2 killed in anti-terrorist action in Belgium

Xinhua, January 16, 2015 Adjust font size:

Two people have been killed in an anti-terrorism operation in the east Belgian town of Verviers on

Thursday.

According to a source from the Mayor's office, a third person was injured in a raid on a house that was suspected of containing jihadist sympathisers.

According to unconfirmed reports, all three had recently returned to Belgium from Syria.

Witnesses have said that gunfire and explosions were heard at the scene of the raid, which took on a house in the center of the town.

A witness told the newspaper La Libre Belgique "I heard two explosions. I left and saw two young men run. They were 25 to 30

years, looked Arabic and were dressed in black and wore a hat. They walked towards the Pakistani and Afghan district."

The raid comes a week after the major terrorist incidents in Paris.

On Thursday, a major anti-terrorist operation was launched in Brussels, and aimed at those suspected of planning to carry-out

attacks in the Belgian capital. The operation was mainly directed at those who have recently returned to the country from Syria. Endit