Skip to main content

(CNN)Authorities have identified the two suicide bombers involved in the attack at the Brussels airport on Tuesday, a senior Belgian security source told CNN.
They are brothers Khalid and Brahim El Bakraoui, both of whom were known to police, but for organized crime, not for acts of terrorism, state broadcaster RTBF reported.
Khalid El Bakraoui rented an apartment in Brussels that was raided last week and both are suspected of having ties to the Paris attack, the source said.
While Belgian officials say both brothers were suicide bombers, a U.S. official briefed earlier on preliminary evidence from the investigation says authorities are looking at the possibility that one of the airport explosions may have been caused by a bomb inside a suitcase and the other was a suicide bombing.
Now, the hunt is on for a third remaining suspect -- a man in light-colored clothing who appeared next to the El Bakraoui brothers at the airport in security footage.
Brothers Khalid and Brahim El Bakraoui.

Three suspects, two explosions and a taxi driver

One of the first major breaks in the investigation appears to have come from a taxi driver.
Just hours after the explosions, Belgian authorities released a photo from airport security that showed three men -- two in black and one in lighter clothes, wearing a hat.
The three men who are suspected of taking part in the attacks at Belgium's Zaventem Airport.
Video shows the men exiting a taxi and moving through the airport, according to two U.S. officials.
The two in darker clothes are believed to be suicide bombers who died in the explosions in the airport's departure lounge, according to Belgian federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw.
But investigators believe the man in light-colored clothing planted a bomb at the airport, then left -- a move that appeared to be planned, the two U.S. officials said.
Authorities are calling him a wanted man and asked for the public's help tracking him down.
"It's Salah Abdeslam all over again," Dirk Coosemans, a reporter at Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, told CNN. "This one was there to be a suicide terrorist, and he didn't do it."
Belgian media also reported a Kalashnikov assault rifle was found in the departure hall of the Zaventem airport.
Fortunately, a taxi driver called police shortly after the photo was released and said he believed that he drove the trio to the airport.
The driver told authorities that his passengers would not allow him to unload the suitcases from the cab. He also led investigators to the location where he picked the three of them up.

Schaerbeek

That information prompted authorities to raid a residence after the attacks, the officials said.
Investigators found a nail bomb, chemical products and an ISIS flag during a house search in the northeast Brussels neighborhood of Schaerbeek, Belgium's federal prosecutor said in a statement.
Forensic teams are now scouring an apartment building in that neighborhood and have been seen carrying out bags of evidence, according to CNN's Frederik Pleitgen, who was reporting from just outside the building.
Their work continued into the night.

Putting the pieces back together

Determining what type of explosives were used will be crucial, according to CNN National Security Analyst Peter Bergen.
French prosecutors have said that the bombs used in the November Paris attacks were made from triacetone triperoxide, or TATP.
If the same type of bombs were used in Paris and Brussels, that would be a key clue linking the two attacks.
"Such bombs have been a signature of jihadist terrorists in the West for more than a decade because the materials are so easy to acquire, unlike military-grade explosives, which are tightly controlled in much of the West," Bergen said.
TATP-based bombs require technical know-how and bulk purchases of hydrogen peroxide or hair bleach. That helps authorities winnow down potential bomb-making suspects, because making the explosives can sometimes bleach hair. So authorities can identify bomb-makers in part by recognizing unusually-bleached hair or asking sellers to report any suspiciously large purchases of hydrogen peroxide.

Dearth of Maelbeek information

While authorities have been able to move quickly on intelligence from the airport attacks, very little has been publicly revealed about the bombing at the Maelbeek metro station.
Coosemans, the Het Nieuwsblad reporter, says that's because there isn't as much surveillance there compared to the airport.
"We just know less about the Maelbeek attack because we don't have pictures there," he told CNN. "The police know less about Maelbeek."

Unraveling the network

Two senior U.S. officials told CNN they believe the Belgium attack is tied to the same network as terror suspect Salah Abdeslam (ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.)
And the "working assumption" in Belgium is that the attackers came from the network behind the Paris attack, Belgian security sources said. However, they cautioned it is very early in the latest investigation.
The identities of the three airport suspects aren't clear to U.S. authorities, either because Belgian authorities haven't completed identification or haven't shared that information with counterterrorism officials in the U.S., the officials said.
Going forward, intelligence sharing will be very important, says Steve Moore, a CNN law enforcement contributor.
"They obviously have some information. They don't know if they're looking at one cell or a series of cells. And so now it's time to get all around at the same table and exchange information," he said. "If you can get them all to use the same currency, I cannot believe that you can't get them all to share intelligence."

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Chelsea news

Chelsea news: Antonio Conte’s men shouldn't worry about beating Atletico Madrid - Lampard CHELSEA have to remember they don’t need to beat Atletico Madrid. Those are the thoughts of Blues legend Frank Lampard. After thrashing Qarabag on matchday 1, Chelsea travel to face La Liga giants Atletico Madrid in their second Champions League group game on Wednesday (7.45pm). Antonio Conte ’s men have hit their stride in the Premier League and swept aside Stoke 4-0 at the bet365 Stadium in their last outing. Lampard, who was part of the Champions League winning side in 2012, insists his former club don’t need to get a victory against Atletico. Morata and Hazard look sharp in training as Chelsea prepare for Atletico Madrid clash “Chelsea should remember they don’t have to win the game,” Lampard told the   London Evening Standard . “If they come away with a draw they will be happy and it will set them up for the Manchester City match. “I expect Atletico will press high ...

The Game

Rapper threatens IG troll for calling his daughter a whore The Game didn’t fail to respond to the harsh comment as he told the IG troll that he will find him and shoot him in the head.    American rapper, The Game has made it known several times, he would not take insults and trolling concerning his daughter and 'apple of his eye', California Dream Taylor . American rapper, The game in new sexy photos (lindaikejisblog) But, it seems like people never relent as this Instagram troll just proves. Over the weekend, the rapper and his daughter celebrated Easter by hanging out with fellow musician, P.diddy and his daughters at his residence. The Game shared photos from their outing on his Instagram page and one of the photos showed his daughter hanging out by the poolside with Diddy’s daughters. The girls can be seen lounging on pool chairs in different playful positions and a troll decided to hop on the photo. ...

5 celebs who hate Linda Ikeji according to pulse

Read about the Nigerian celebrities who have a thing or two against popular blogger Linda Ikeji.   Popular blogger Linda Ikeji, 35, is one of the most celebrated women in Nigeria and one of the most hated. Any news about her stirs up some controversy or the other. Her Banana Island mansion trended for days and her Birkin bags fiasco was the talk of the town for days. While she has celebrities who like her, it is no surprise that there are more than a few celebrities who hate her. Below is a list of the top 5 celebrities who cannot stand Linda Ikeji’s guts.   1) Toke Makinwa The OAP and Linda Ikeji clashed in 2012 when Toke Makinwa went on air and said the blogger was not a role model. “ I don’t think Linda Ikeji is a role model. She’s a gossiper, She sells gossip ” said Toke Makinwa. The blogger clapped back with a long and detailed post of how she has never had sex with men just to get ahead in life. In an interview with Nigerian website 360 Nobs Toke ...