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Tuesday 13 December 2011

Baby Among Four Dead In Belgium Grenade Attack

A 18-month-old baby has become the fourth victim to die after a gunman opened fire on a square in Belgium.
Two teenage boys, aged 15 and 17, and a 75-year-old woman were also killed.
Nordine Amrani, who was 33, also threw grenades from a rooftop in Liege in the rampage that left another 122 injured.
He also died but it is not clear whether he was shot by police or he killed himself.
Police told reporters at a press conference that the attacker had been due to report to them concerning an incident he had been involved in.
Instead he climbed onto a city centre rooftop in Place Saint-Lambert, fired shots at passers-by and threw three hand grenades into the shopping street below.
A police spokeswoman said: "At no point during the legal matters with this person had we picked up anything to suggest this kind of incident.
"We are of course very saddened by these events."
Initial witness reports said up to three men threw up to four grenades at a bus station.
The aftermath of the attacks was chaotic and reports of events were conflicting.
One witness told RTL TV he heard three "large explosions" and then a series of shots ringing out.
He said: "There were sounds of gunfire and then everyone scattered.
"I just hid myself...there was total panic."
VRT Radio spoke with Herve Taveirne from the courthouse into which he had fled to escape the gunfire.
"We were in the courthouse building and were just leaving when we saw someone toss a grenade," he said.
"I grabbed a little boy ... and took him back into the courthouse.
"Outside the building I heard shooting ... Our lives were in danger. This man was shooting in any direction. We ran for our lives at that point."
Valerie Schaaps, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office, confirmed there had been explosions and gunfire, and that there were injuries.
Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was "saddened" by the attack. "There can be absolutely no place for appalling acts of violence such as this in any society, and I condemn this attack in the strongest terms," he said.
"I send my deepest sympathy to the victims of this attack, their families and loved ones.
"The Belgian authorities have our full support as they investigate this incident."

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