On Friday an Islamist was shot dead when he attacked three soldiers with a machete on the Emile Jacqmain in Brussels.

The man was in possession of several Koranic books.

The attacker was also an Islamist refugee from Somalia.

The authorities say the motivation for the attack unclear.

Deredactie.Be reported:

Federal prosecutors say that the man of Somalian descent who attacked a group of three soldiers with a machete was in possession of a fake arm as well as several Koranic books. They speak of an attempt at terrorist murder. The attacker has been identified. He was born in 1987 and arrived in Belgium in 2004. In 2009 his application for asylum was regularised as it had been dragging on for four years. In 2015 he acquired Belgian nationality.

The suspect was not known to the authorities in connection with terrorism, but was linked to an incident of GBH in February of this year. He had been living in social housing in a block of flats in Bruges. Police have raided his home. In the interest of the investigation prosecutors are not providing any further information about this operation.

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Neighbours describe the 30-year-old as a friendly, sociable man addicted to sports who didn’t trouble anybody. The motivation for his attack remains unclear.