He was watched by Italy
Brussels attacker entered Lampedusa
October 18, 2023, 11:15 a.m
Two Swedish football fans are shot dead in a terrorist attack in Brussels. More and more details are becoming known about the 45-year-old alleged perpetrator. In Italy he was classified as a radical Islamist.
According to the Italian government, the suspected Brussels attacker came to Europe in 2011 on a refugee boat from Tunisia via the Italian Mediterranean island of Lampedusa. The 45-year-old, who was shot dead on Tuesday after the attack with two deaths, was then classified by the Italian authorities as a radical Islamist in 2016 after a temporary stay in Sweden and was also under observation, reports the Ansa news agency, citing the government. He later went to Belgium.
The Swedish Migration Agency had previously announced that the attacker was in prison in Sweden. “He served a prison sentence between 2012 and 2014,” said an authority spokesman. It was not stated why the Tunisian was sentenced to prison.
The deputy prime minister of the incumbent Italian government, Matteo Salvini, now viewed the information about the man’s entry route as proof that he was correct in warning about Islamist terrorists landing on Lampedusa. “I was accused of fomenting hatred. But I was right,” said the former interior minister and current transport minister from the right-wing Lega party.
In the attack in Brussels on Monday evening, two Swedish fans were shot on the sidelines of a football match between Belgium and Sweden. The terrorist militia Islamic State (IS) has since claimed responsibility for the crime.
Because of its proximity to Tunisia, the small island of Lampedusa has been one of the hubs of immigration from Africa to Europe for many years. This summer, after a dangerous sea crossing in small boats, several thousand migrants arrived there every day. Currently there are usually a few dozen per day. The number of arrivals depends heavily on weather conditions. Fatal accidents occur again and again during the crossings.