A 43-year-old man allegedly stabbed two police officers in Brussels Wednesday, and authorities have “reason to believe this was a terrorist attack.”
The attacker is identified as Hicham D., a Belgian citizen. During an identity check in the the neighborhood of Schaerbeek, the attacker suddenly stabbed one officer in the stomach and the other officer in the neck. Another officer shot the suspect in the leg as he tried to flee scene.
Neither officer sustained life-threatening injuries.
“We have reason to believe that the incident was a terrorist attack,” said Eric van der Sypt, a spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office, according to the BBC.
The stabbings took place just hours after a Brussels train station was evacuated following a bomb scare.
Schaerbeek is a know jihadist hotbed in Brussels. The bombs used in the March 22 attacks in Brussels — which killed 32 people and injured around 300 — were made in the neighborhood.
The stabbings mark the third attack on police officers in recent weeks.
Two officers were lightly wounded in a machete attack in the city of Charleroi in August. The attacker shouted “Allahu akbar” before striking the officers and Islamic State later claimed responsibility.
A North African man tried to stab two other officers Sept. 7 in the Brussels neighborhood of Molenbeek, also known to be a terrorist breeding ground.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.