The attack happened three miles from a Belgian Euro 2024 qualifier.
October 17, 2023, 10:40 p.m. ET
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LONDON – Authorities suspect the Tunisian man accused of killing two Swedish soccer fans in a brazen shooting in Brussels on Monday night was likely inspired by ISIS, U.S. officials briefed on the situation told ABC News.
The attack, which Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo described on Tuesday as an “act of terrorism,” occurred about five kilometers from the Roi Baudouin Stadium, where Belgium was playing Sweden for qualification for the 2024 European Football Championship. Authorities confirmed early Tuesday that 45-year-old Abdesalem Lassoued, the suspected attacker, was shot dead by police the next morning in the Schaerbeek district of central Brussels.
According to preliminary information from US officials, the suspect was denied asylum in Belgium in 2019. They said authorities believed the suspect’s motive was related to ISIS based on open-source social media posts. Officials said Lassoued recorded a video in which he spoke about attacks on Swedish people and that he carried out the attack for ISIS. The investigation is ongoing, U.S. officials said.
After the attack on Monday evening, which led to the interruption of the football match, the Belgian interior minister announced stricter border controls along Belgium’s borders while the suspect was still at large.