This article is about the 2016 terrorist attack. For the 1979 terrorist attack, see 1979 Brussels bombing. For the event in the Nine Years' War, see Bombardment of Brussels.
2016 Brussels bombings
Part of Islamic terrorism in Europe (the spillover of the Syrian Civil War)
Map of the bombings in relation to each other
(1) 07:58: Departure hall of Brussels Airport
(2) 09:11: Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station
Location
Brussels Airport in Zaventem and Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station in Brussels, Belgium
50°50′38″N4°22′36″E / 50.84389°N 4.37667°E / 50.84389; 4.37667 (Maalbeek metro station)
Date
22 March 2016; 8 years ago (2016-03-22) 07:58 am – 09:11 am (UTC+1)
Target
Civilians and transport hubs
Attack type
Suicide bombings, nail bombing, mass murder, Islamic terrorism
Weapons
TATP explosives
Deaths
35 (32 victims,[a] 3 perpetrators)[1]
Injured
340[1]
Perpetrators
Islamic State (Brussels cell)
Assailants
Airport:
• Ibrahim El Bakraoui (deceased)[1]
• Najim Laachraoui (deceased)[1]
• Mohamed Abrini[1]
Metro station:
• Khalid El Bakraoui (deceased)[1]
• Osama Krayem[1]
Motive
Islamic extremism
On 22 March 2016, two coordinated terrorist attacks in and close to Brussels, Belgium, were carried out by the Islamic State (IS). Two suicide bombers detonated bombs at Brussels Airport in Zaventem just outside Brussels, and one detonated a bomb on a train leaving Maelbeek/Maalbeek metro station in the European Quarter of Brussels. Thirty-two people were killed and more than 300 were injured. Three perpetrators also died. A third airport attacker fled the scene without detonating his bomb, which was later found in a search of the airport. A second metro attacker also fled, taking his bomb with him. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The perpetrators belonged to a terrorist cell that had been involved in the November 2015 Paris attacks and the attacks happened shortly after a series of police raids targeting the group. The Belgian Government declared three days of national mourning after the bombings, which were the deadliest attacks on Belgium since World War II.
In December 2022, ten men accused of involvement in the attacks went on trial in Brussels. Six were convicted of terrorist-related murder and attempted murder, while two were convicted of terrorist activities.
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^ abcdefg"Brussels explosions: What we know about airport and metro attacks". BBC News. 9 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2 June 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
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Global Information
Islamic State (Brussels cell)