In another day of high drama by police in both countries, Brussels raided six homes as they continued to hunt for at least another two unidentified men behind the attacks on Tuesday, including the man in the white coat at the airport and another seen at the train station on Tuesday shortly before bombs killed 32 people and injured 270 others.
The raids and arrests in central Brussels included two homes in the district of Schaerbeek were the el-Baraoui brothers had been holed up and from where they made their bombs.
Belgian police also revealed they think the original plot to attack the transport network may have involved using nuclear material as the brothers had been secretly filming the country’s nuclear power chief who it was suspected they were going to kidnap to gain access to the site.
According to Belgian media a hidden camera was planted in front of the home of the director of research and development at the Belgian nuclear program as they recorded his comings and goings.
In the immediate aftermath of the bombings this week, Belgian police had announced they had deployed soldiers to the power plant; it has now been revealed 11 workers at the plant have had their access passes removed as authorities investigate whether there was to be insider help on the plot.
Later in the day two senior ministers of the Belgian government offered their resignations for the clear failings to have identified the plotters, chiefly the brothers, whom they claimed they thought were just common criminals despite the fact they were known as ISIS-linked jihadists by other authorities including in Turkey and the US where it was revealed they were on a ‘watch list’ of suspects. The resignations were rejected by Prime Minister Charles Michel who said it was not the right time in the midst of a crisis. The threat level was lowered one notch yesterday but he said there remained a clear and present danger of further attacks.
Across the border French police announced an attack in Paris was imminent as they raided a property and arrested a French national they claimed belonged to a militant network.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in a televised address that the arrest helped “foil a plot in France that was at an advanced stage.”
French media reported a raid on a home in the northern Paris suburb of Argenteuill found explosive material.
Meanwhile US Secretary of State John Kerry was due to arrive in Brussels today in a show of solidarity, during which he will pay tribute to the victims at the airport and hold meetings with EU officials.
The death toll from the attacks is expected to rise but medical staff announced the full toll may not be known for weeks as they sift through forensic evidence.
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