So it would appear that certainly the Belgian Police are dealing with several incidents that are taking place this morning into an area that had already been in lockdown because of the tense situation over a highprofile arrest on friday. Lets talk a little bit about that arrest, Salah Abdeslam, one of the key figures in the paris terror attacks. Can you tell us about what happened on friday and how that all went down . Reporter yes. Well, we got news that there was a Major Police Operation taking place in the neighborhood of molenbeek in brussels. And there has been a fourmonth search for the last key surviving member of the paris attacks in november that killed 130 people. Salah abdeslam. He was the only one to get away. And theres been a manhunt that has been going on from this isisdirected attack, one that and thats an important thing to mention there. This is the only one that got away. Theyve been sevening for him for four months. They arrested him on friday. He tried to run out of the building. The Antiterror Police right there, he was shot in the leg. He was dragged into a car. And then he was taken to a highsecurity prison in bruge. Thats where we were last night reporting on that story. The concern after that arrest, and belgian authorities and french authorities put that warning out that this man has information on major isis players, key isis players. And there is a concern that once he started speaking to prosecutors and investigators, that he was going to he knows where everybody is. And there is a concern that those people might be going on the run. Most importantly, the key figure that theyre looking for now is najim laachraoui, the alleged bombmaker for the paris attacks. His dna was found at several and yesterday belgian and french authorities put out a sort of all points bulletin asking for the publics help in trying to find this alleged bombmaker. Obviously, the concern is not that he was involved in the paris attacks but that he may be involved in further attacks. I have to also add that when they arrested abdeslam, they also found that he had gone to a different location in some brussels neighborhoods where there were lots of weapons. That led them to believe that he was not only in hiding, but he was planning further attacks. So in that scenario, now were dealing with a heightened terror threat. You have police in the areas like the airport and the neighborhoods, molenbeek and belgium, and that atmosphere that these apparent attacks we have to say that apparent attacks have taken place not only at the airport but maybe even at the subway station here this morning. In fact, charlie, we do have a report that is confirming that molenbeek metro station in brussels. And that the area is now closed off. So yeah, it appears as if this morning three explosions, two at the airport, one at a metro station, a train station, if you will. You know, authorities in brussels must be coming under some sort of criticism at this point. I mean, not only were people concerned that Salah Abdeslam was able to leave france and go back into brussels, but that he essentially went back into his Old Neighborhood and was able to hide out for so long, but here we have what looks like now, we dont know if they were terrorist attacks, but we have three explosions taking place at a time when, you know, everyone would be on high alert, when authorities, you would think, would be would be ensuring that the public is safe. And somehow these explosions were able to be planned and pulled off. Reporter exactly. Molenbeek. Its outrageous. People here, belgians are outraged that theyre very high on intelligence and surveillance, wasnt able to flush out a man who not only slipped away from the paris attacks, having survived, crossed the border back into belgium and found his way back to his Old Neighborhood of molenbeek. Weve been in that neighborhood, obviously. We were here on friday just after the raid took place. It is walking distance from his family home. Its five blocks from the house he grew up in. But it also gives you an idea of this very tight community. Molenbeek itself has been a hotbed of islamic extremism and a birthplace of jihadis for at least a decade. There are several International Terrorist attacks that have led back to these streets of molenbeek. And as you said, if that is an molenbeek, it just shows you that that is ground central for this fight that theyre taking on. We spoke to french prosecutors and belgian prosecutors yesterday. I asked them directly, how big is this fight . How many more are out there when they announced they were looking for two more . They said we simply dont know. The french prosecutor told us that hes got 250 cases that are ongoing now, active cases, and they have 750 or so of people that are either in jail now, have been indicted, or are on the run, and theyre searching for them. That gives you a level of the scale of the threat that theyre dealing with in trance and in belgium. Indeed. You know, just more on that molenbeek metro station, it appears to be close to the eu close to eu headquarters or at least eu institutions, which may be part of the reason why it was targeted. Of course, it is in also molenbeek, so that would be in sort of, as you mentioned, you mentioned that Salah Abdeslam was making his way to an area where there were more weapons or other weapons. Do you have any idea what was being stored and just how many weapons were available . Reporter yeah, well, you know, we have to rewind the clock back to november. So they immediately start this international manhunt. And they thought he may have even gone to make his way back to not back to, i should stress, going to syria because, again, we have to underline that this is an isisdirected operation in paris. So as they started clearing out, and there were dozens of raids, many of the hundreds of houses in these areas are all around brussels, not just in molenbeek. It was on tuesday that they found they were going into a place that they didnt think anybody was in there. There wasnt any electricity or power or water going into it. They thought it was an abandoned building. So it was what they would call a routine raid. And they entered that location. And they were fired upon. Killed and two people got away. And they thought that that was abdeslam. They started tracing his phone apparently, were learning, then got to this other location friday. Thats when that raid took place. Now, on that tuesday raid, they found reps. There are even reports that they found detonators there. That led authorities to believe that abdeslam was not only in hiding, that he had gone to ground, but he is still very involved in what may be further attacks. So its in that environment, again, the search for the bombmaker, but when they went public for it yesterday, they clearly need help here. They havent been able to find this guy. Theyre asking for the publics help. Have you seen him . There are pictures that have been distributed to the media and other places looking for this man. Thats how an immediate a threat it is. And then this morning we wake up to find out that theres been two explosions at the airport, possibly one at a subway station. You can imagine that the belgian authorities are reeling with were showing some video of people running, just running from the airport. Just to bring everyone up to speed like charlie said, were looking at two explosions at the airport in brussels. The airport now is completely shut down. All flights to belgium have been diverted elsewhere. Also, the subway system, the metro system, has been shut down completely as well. Another report of an explosion at the molenbeek metro station, which is very close to eu buildings. So were continuing to monitor that. Essentially, the country has been shut down. A high state of alert, and authorities are trying to sort of get a hand on what has been unfolding all morning long. Charlie, youre on your way to brussels now. Im wondering, what is it like out there on the roads . I mean, can you see can you tell that something is occurring reporter well, were racing on a highway. So we are in between bruge and brussels itself. So we havent got into the city center so i can give you a flavor for whats going on there. But the reason that were in bruge is because Salah Abdeslam, the paris attacker who was arrested on friday, he was transferred to bruge, which is a highsecurity prison. They dont have one of that nature in brussels, so they transferred him to a highsecurity prison, the place for highprofile prisoners, specially trained guards. All of his furniture and equipment has been bolted to the floor, and that has been where hes been kept. And it was after that arrest that the place wasnt already on alert, they cranked it up even higher. And now, as you said, its at its highest threat level. And that will mean things like closing down the airport, things like closing down the public transport system. It would mean obviously a huge but as we said, annemarie, the place, after the arrest and after public warnings and after asking the publics help in the search for at least two highprofile isis suspects, it was already when we left brussels yesterday, last night, youd see police everywhere, certainly around all the train stations. I wasnt out at the airport itself, but i imagine they were there as well, including a huge presence around that specific area of molenbeek, a brussels neighborhood in central brussels. A bit run down in places. This has been a hotbed of islam islamic extremism. From that area in brussels. So were not just talking about belgium itself that has been attacked. Were talking about the paris attacks and others. Yeah, charlie, we are learning now at least from a. P. Is reporting that there were several injuries at the station which is near the eu. Were also hearing from American Airlines, there had been some reports, cbs news has yet to confirm, but there had been some reports that the explosion, at least one of the explosions, at the airport occurred near or around the American Airlines desk. American airlines has issued a statement saying that all of their employees and contractors are accounted for. So among those injured, among those injured or killed, at least, American Airlines is saying that none of their employees are part of that, but there have been injuries at the metro station as well. Can you remind us a little more about the suspects that brussels authorities had been searching for . They talked about this man who they believe was the primary bombmaker involved in the paris attacks. Can you tell us what we know about him . Reporter yes. Announcement came out from belgian authorities that there is now a manhunt under way. Public enemy number one is a man by the name of j najim laachraoui, after finding dna, they say, at several locations of those paris attacks where 130 people were killed. In addition to that, this comes after the arrest of Salah Abdeslam because it turns out that abdeslam was in a vehicle with laachraoui as they were traveling to parts of europe, notably hungary. I dont want to overcomplicate things, but where this all becomes connected is the migrant crisis that happened last summer when we saw so many people coming from syria. And i witnessed it myself. You know, one of those choke points was hungary. So when you start adding you know, connecting the dots, here survive the paris attacks, Salah Abdeslam, in the same car as the suspected bombmaker, najim laachraoui, headed down to hungary, it just gives you an idea of the network that they have to search for. But this is a person, not only was he the bombmaker, but he was clearly directed by isis, thats what they suspect. He clearly had strong ties to im sorry, im just getting he clearly had strong ties to the paris attackers. Right. Reporter and if hes the bombmaker, hes clearly dangerous. And hes on the run. And he also, we point out, is the person theyre looking for. Every one of those explosive devices in paris worked. And having covered this person for as long as i have, they dont always work. They are planned, so this man knows what hes doing. Yeah, indeed. And this has been a bit of a problem for authorities in brussels. The porousness of the borders, the ability for people to travel down through turkey into syria and then come right back without them being able to really keep track of them. Reporter this is one of the major concerns. And both the belgian and french prosecutors noted that yesterday in a press conference that you have thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of unaccounted people. We know that they come from syria. Weve interviewed them ourselves. And when you have Something Like 1. 1 million migrants and refugees who have flooded into germany alone, i was at those checkpoints. Theyre not counting these guys in. The people that dont want to register, that dont want to identify themselves, wont. And then you have the smugglers network. And then you have people that are making false passports. The one that theyre looking for including najim is thought to have been traveling under a different fame, a different forged belgian passport. This gives you an idea of the complexity and also the level of coordination from this isisdirected attack. I mean, they are taking advantage of everything. Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of unaccounted refugees, a highway stretching from syria to europe, and wellconnected groups in places like molenbeek here in brussels and in france where they can move people and weapons in and out of these areas. I should also note coming off a report over the weekend that they found crates full of, you know, cell phones. Just disposable cell phones. They know how to commute, disappear, move weapons back and forth, work detonators, they know how to make explosive the level of sophistication has shocked french and belgian intelligence officials. I can only imagine, now, we are getting reports now out of belgiums public broadcaster that the explosion at least one of the explosions at the airport was indeed a Suicide Attack which means that reporter okay. Somebody walked in with explosives, you know, possibly strapped to them. It wasnt a matter of planting a bomb and walking away. Just to bring everyone up to speed, what youre looking at now are images from Brussels Airport. There have been reports of two explosions there. Were now learning that one of those at least was the result of a Suicide Attack. Im sure we will learn about the other one. It occurred in the departure lounge. There have been some reports that it happened at the American Airlines desk. That has yet to be confirmed by cbs news. But American Airlines issued a their employees and their contractors are okay. Then later on, there was another explosion at the molenbeek metro station. The train station there. The airport has been shut down. The train station has been shut down. The photo that youre seeing right there is of the outside of the metro station. You can see theres some smoke billowing out. The metro station is also close to some eu buildings, possibly an eu headquarters there. This all is happening with the backdrop of a very highprofile arrest of a terrorist tekted ed connected to the paris terror attacks. And there was a concern that he as well as others were planning several other attacks when he was picked up on friday. He is now in custody. Salah abdeslam. But belgian Authorities Say that they were searching for others including a man who is known for Charlie Dagata is on his way to brussels right now. And weve been talking all morning long about the challenge that authorities are facing. It seems like this neighborhood, mollenbeck, has become a hotbed for jihadists who are able to move back and forth throughout the borders, across europe into syria and make their way back. And charlie, it has become very challenging for authorities to sort of break into this community. I mean, i think a lot of people would find it very surprising that, you know, this man, Salah Abdeslam, who was probably one of europes most wanted was able to cross back into belgium and go right back to his neighborhood. Reporter yeah. Exactly. Right under the noses of antiterror squads. This would have been one of the terrorist attacks that all lead back to mollenbeck. Now, we spoke to the mayor. They said, look, you cant search every house. There may be 100,000 people in that area itself. And in speaking to the home secretary, i asked what everybodys asking, what took so long . And he said, we really dont understand the complexity of the network here. That they are able to communicate without being surveilled, that the neighborhood itself is very tight. We spoke to Georgetown Professor who was featured in last nights report, and he said they do not snitch on their neighbors. And the reason is these are brutal people. These are people that killed 130 people in paris. Theyre not about to pick up the phone and call the police and say, yeah, hes down at the end of my street. I know where this person is. So you not only have an allegiance, a loyalty to the people in that neighborhood, but you also have a level of fear. But still, people here in that this person is the only one to get away from the attacks in paris, Salah Abdeslam, not only made his way back into belgium, but he was hiding out in an area that is five blocks from where he grew up. Now, i have to stress that the belgian prosecutor said we are just assuming that he was there the whole time. You know, hes been on the run for four months. Maybe he just reappeared. His fingerprints have shown up on a couple of residences in that area. But we dont know. As he said yesterday in his words, theres no gate on dna and fingerprints. We dont know when he was there or if he had been there for four months. But they think that he wasnt just in hiding, but he may have been planning further attacks, and that triggered this National International manhunt for najim laachraoui, the alleged bombmaker, obviously connected with abdeslam and connected to the paris attacks. And it was literally just help finding this man. And then today theyre dealing with what theyre dealing with. I guess the nightmare scenario for them is if this bombmaker is out there and he was making bombs, how many suicide vests are out there . Where are they . Indeed. Reporter how are they moving . Exactly. Just to bring people up to speed, what youre looking at here is the exterior of a metro station i believe in mollenbeck where an explosion has occurred. You can see the smoke coming out. And this is close to the eu headquarters. Were hearing that eu the eu has asked for its employees to stay home, not come to work today. Thats one ex plosion in brussels. What started this whole thing off, though, were reports of two explosions at the airport we are now learning that there was at least one suicide bomber at the airport. Youre watching video of people quite literally running for their lives out of the airport. Down. In terms of number of injuries and number of people dead, that still has yet to be confirmed. We know at least one person is dead at the airport, and there are several injuries. The a. P. Is reporting that at the metro station, people were seen with facial injuries. At least one person removed on a stretcher. Just a lot unfolding now in brussels. And in terms of security, they are on high alert. The airport is completely locked down. The metro station is completely locked down. And things are very, very tense. Just to bring you up to speed once more, two explosions at the airport. One explosion at a metro station close to the eu headquarters. And a lot of very, very, very tense, onedge people in brussels today. Charlie, you know, when i think about the fact that Salah Abdeslam is now in bruge in know how coordinated these attacks are, you know. Were still waiting to find out details. But i would think of him as hes called the mastermind, one of the masterminds of the paris attack. He would be the ringleader. Removing him clearly did not slow anything down if, in fact, these explosions are all connected. Which i would think would have authorities thinking, there are other people out there, other people who can pull the strings, other people who can take over in terms of ordering a suicide bomber to move into place like its believed a suicide bomber was at the airport or somebody else to plant a bomb. Reporter yeah. It just shows you the level of sophistication and coordination with this isis network. You know, the french and the belgian prosecutor both said that this is ongoing. Theyre not just dealing with this one terror cell. The one remaining survivor. No, theyre talking about multi terror cells. I think what came as a surprise to us and others here in belgium is not only was this man in hiding in that neighborhood, abdeslam, his fingerprints were found at a place where they found, in the words of the french prosecutor, lots of heavy weapons. They found detonators. So this wasnt a man who just went to ground. If hes on the run from authorities, you would imagine hed still be involved in isis operations. He would just be too hot. There would be too much attention on him. It seems that was the case. Certainly wherever he was hiding, further operations were being planned, thats what they believe. So yes, if you arrest somebody like abdeslam, the person hes identified hes running with, he was thought to have gotten the detonators for the paris attacks, shuttling fighters back and forth. He drove them to the stade de france. French prosecutors said he was supposed to blow himself up at the stade de france, but he according to abdeslam himself. The conversation that he had. So yes, you arrest somebody like that, highprofile person from a known isis cell directed from isis headquarters in syria, and then the next day, you have what appears to be another active cell ready to go that quickly. People that have suicide vests already in place and suicide bombers. Thats important, too. They have suicide bombers who are ready to attack. They have weapons. And they know how to get to places. And not only get to places, but annemarie, as you said, the whole place at a heightened level of security since the arrest on friday. So places like the airport, you would have thought, and places like the metro station and other areas, they have an increased security presence there. Even with that increased security presence, they know how to get around it, apparently. Apparently, thats whats happened today at the airport. Yeah. You know, ive heard people along the lines of you cut off the head of the monster, and another head sort of pops up. Just to give you a few more details here in terms of confirmation as were getting it in, belgian broadcaster vrt is saying that 13 are dead, 35 severely injured. Now, were not sure in terms of the location, but im going to presume that thats at the airport. The Belgian Crisis Center has confirmed that there were two explosions at the Brussels Airport with several victims. And also that the explosion happened at the departure hall. Charlie, i know that youre on your way. We may come back to you now. I just want to talk to suzanne lynch. Shes from the irish times. Suzanne, can you hear me . Yes, good morning. Give us an idea of what your location is, and what have you im here in central buflz russels just south of the city. Like all journalists, i got the story many morning, immediately tried to get to the airport. But as soon as this story started emerging, we began to hear other stories in the center of brussels. It looks like there are at least two parallel incidents going on now. At least 10, maybe 13 according to some reports now, people have been killed this morning in attack at Brussels Airport which is to the east of the city. But now theres also been incidents in some of the metro stations in the center of brussels, particularly a metro station thats just 500 meters away from the headquarters of the European Union institutions. So its very much a developing and very worrying story here this morning in brussels. So suzanne, are you hearing that more than one metro station may have been attacked . Yeah, there are some reports that up to four have been attacked, but that is not clear because there have been live pictures from the metro station. Been attacked. The nextdoor station which is right at the eu institution, there are unconfirmed reports there has been an attack there. However, it may well be that people have moved along the tunnel and come up out of the shuman entrance if you like. These metro stations are extremely close together. So were not actually sure, in fact, if there was a separate explosion or just at melbeck station. Theres definitely something happening there. Smoke can be seen emanating from that station. Now, suzanne, youre based in brussels, right . Yes. Yeah, i live here, covering for the irish times newspaper, so ive been here for over three years. Give us a sense of what the mood has been like since friday, since that highprofile attack of Salah Abdeslam, a key figure in the paris attacks. Were people nervous, or were they relieved to hear about this arrest . Brussels . I think what happened last week when these arrest happened, people were extremely shocked. Things had kind of settled down here. There had been a sense that maybe Salah Abdeslam, this man who was on the run, had maybe fled to syria. Things had really calmed down from the height of the Security Threat back in november. So people were extremely shocked when the first raid happened last wednesday and then when the arrest of abdeslam happened on friday. Now, theres been i mean, maybe im being a bit critical, but not selfcongratulatory, but there was a sense of relief by the police that they successfully got their man, if you like. And theres been a lot of interviews by a lot of senior politicians thanking the police. And maybe people got slightly complacent. The public got maybe complacent about this. We do have to remember the interior minister on monday warned that the country was on high alert for some kind of a
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