Terrorist Shoots Two Swedes in Brussels

A self-proclaimed member of the Islamic State shot dead two Swedish soccer fans in Brussels on Monday night and severely injured a third. The Tunisian gunman, Abdesalem Lassoued, claimed the attack was to avenge the murder of a 6-year-old Palestinian boy in the United States.

After the attack, the gunman proudly announced the killings on Facebook. “I am a fighter for Allah. We live for our religion and we die for our religion. Your brother took revenge in the name of Muslims. I’ve killed three Swedes so far,” he said in a video.

The 45-year-old terrorist was shot dead by the Belgian police Tuesday morning after a 12-hour intensive manhunt.

The police knew the gunman was a risk to state security. He had been suspected of involvement in human trafficking, was illegally in Belgium, and had previously threatened a person in an asylum center. Belgian officials had also been informed by a government authority that the man had “intended to travel abroad to fight in a holy war,” according to the Associated Press.

Hamas-inspired terrorism: Lassoued had shared messages in support of the Palestinian people on social media, suggesting the Israel-Hamas conflict played a major role in his motivation. The Brussels attack came just days after a teacher was stabbed to death in northern France, which President Emmanuel Macron condemned as “barbaric Islamic terrorism.”

Speaking of the two incidents, Macron said all of Europe is vulnerable to the “resurgence of Islamist terrorism.” The city of Brussels and France both raised their terror alerts to the highest level.

Clash of civilizations: The Iran-backed terror war in Israel is fueling terrorism across the world, with Europe as the main target. Based on prophecy in Daniel 11:40, the Trumpet has forecast for decades that Iran’s “push” against Europe will escalate into the next world war. Iran’s Islam-inspired terrorism is a major factor leading to this terrifying clash between Iran and Europe.

Learn more: Read our Trends article “Why the Trumpet Watches Iran and Europe Heading for a Clash of Civilizations.”