belgium is no longer belgium. belgium is not the belgium you and i knew, matt, from 20 year ago, which was one of the most beautiful and safest cities in the world. belgium is a horror show right now. terrible things are happening. people are leaving. people are afraid. this all happened because, frankly, there's no assimilation. they are not assimilating. they're not assimilating in other locations either. >> just a couple of seconds -- >> they want sharia law. they don't want laws that we have. they want sharia law. you know, you say to yourself, at what point? how much of this do you take? we're allowing thousands and thousands of these people into our country. we're going to have nothing but problems, as sure as you're sit tlg. >> in the 30 seconds i have left, what would you say to the >> i would say to the american people that we are going to be very strong. we are going to be very ville gilant and tough. we're not going to allow it to happen to our country. if it happens, we'll find the people who did it an

our coverage told once again dominated by events in belgium. these are live pictures of vigils being held in the belgian capital, for the 34 victims of the attacks. in other news, the u.n. refugee agency pulls its staff from camps in agreeing saying they have turned into detention centers. big wins for clinton and trump in arizona in the latest u.s. election primary. bernie sanders is celebrating too >>> belgium police have launched a series of raids and a massive manhunt to catch a suspecteded i.s.i.l. bomber on cctv at brussels airport. this is the scene in the belgium capital this morning where 34 people were killed that coordinated attacks. three days of national mourning have begun after what the belgium prime minister described as a day of tragedy. over to dominic kane. we've been seeing a certain amount of activity going thorough. what's happening? >> reporter: the sound connection is poor. i think you were asking about the situation here today. clearly as you say the first of three days of national mourning have now begun. belgium is as

. >> belgium is considered a terrorism hotbed. sending more terrorists per capita to fight than any other country in europe. >> they've conducted now attacks in paris, san bernardino. and now in brussels. so, i would say they're winning, right? they're winning and we're going to have to find additional approaches to try to undermine hit belgium. but it is europe who has been divided and everyone who has been concerned. >>> i'm norah o'donnell with gayle king and anthony mason. charlie rose is off today. and we are continuing our coverage this morning of today's terrorist attacks in brussels. at least 30 people have been killed in a series of explosions. and u.s. authorities at this hour are investigating reports of at least two americans who may have been wounded in these attacks. now moments ago we heard from the french president francois hollande who condemned the attacks. >> translator: a war against terrorism is now being fought by all of europe. and this is a war that is necessary. all our decisions are effective, and are tak

in belgium and the search is on for one suspect who officials believe fled the airport. the day was fill with raise around the country as belgium feared another attack. >> a chaotic scene at the brussels airport unfolded when two separate explosions kill ten people and injured more and another attack in the subway and more than 30 people are dead and 200 wounded. belgiums we spoke with via skype are saddened. >> a friend of a friend of mine had fallen when the people tried to escape and in a hurry and chaos. >> the people are just shocked. they don't understand how some thing can happen like this in belgium, it is a pretty peaceful country. and like i said, the feeling of security is absolutely gone here. >> hours after the attack, this image was released by belgium authorities showing three men, two of them are wearing gloves believed to be holding detonator, the search is on for a 3rd suspect that fled. at least one undetonated bomb was found an explosive device containing nails was found in a brussels home following the raids. john kirby encouraged everybody to find s

what is it about belgium? >> two factors. one of that 6,000 number, a large percentage of the folks who traveled have come from that's problem number one. current and former officials we've been speaking with say they're not just prepared. they don't have the resources committed to following, to tracking this number of people to begin with. they are totally outmatched given the threat they are facing. >> that will likely change as this begins to get pieced together. a lot of the things we are wondering here in new york city, are there threats here in new york right now? >> there are always threats here. there are ongoing consistent concerns. are there new specific threats to new york? no. there is precaution. that's why you're seeing the ramp up in the city unless the police department gets all the information they can. >> seeing national guardsmen at the airports and such this morning. please keep us posted with new developments. thank you. >>> just moments ago, a long island congressman peter king called the attacks in brus

belgium is observing the first of three days of national mourning. thousands of belgians stood in silence earlier in tribute to the victims. you can hear the spontaneous applause as we listen in. the mayor of brussels also spoke out earlier. out -- hen to reach called on his countrymen to reach out. a minute of silence in memory of the dead. thousands of others across the country, the belgian king and queen, the european commission president, and the country's prime minister came together to stand in solidarity at midday on wednesday. >> more than ever, we have a duty to be at the helm of europe's destiny. this fate is now being undermined. we now have to come together to be up to the task at hand, to be united. you --r: outside of outside, e.u. flags were at half staff. at the same time, around the capital, a growing carpet of tributes. thousands assembled to pay their respects at the foot of the old stock exchange, followed by a huge round of applause. [applause] reporter: an entire nation united, both in grief and in defiance against terrorism. kn

are they bred in belgium or have a traveled to syria ? we know isis is able to get a hold of passport so a lot of questions but the biggest one out there, are there attackers still on the loose?jon: a lot of digging it to do. benjamin hall live from london. thank you. heather: coming up in the next hour, no more breaking news on the brussels attacks. after multiple explosions strike the airport and subway system in the belgian capital during morning rush hour. belgium raising its terror alert to its highest level, the airport on lockdown,all flights canceled and rail travel suspended. stick right here with fox news for the latest on the attacks . we will continue to follow this story.

this is not just a belgium capital. this is what people call the european capital, the base for nato is here and the base for the european union is here, and there are three american ambassadors in this city, so this might be a smaller second european city with places compared to berlin and london and paris, but this is a political hub so that's the significance of these attacks today and it's not something that is happening in a big belgium city, but these are attacks against some of the most highly secured areas in a city that is crucial to europe. >> and i want to bring that to our former counterterrorism official with the u.s. government, and that neighborhood in the middle of brussels, a hotbed of terrorists, and srinivasan was there even though you had a lot of people looking for him. >> yeah, you are right, and if this turns out to be an attack and terrorists and san bernardino illustrate how terrorists are involved. they are communicating with other terrorists through encrypted communications channels. the botto

and today it is with belgium. yes, in the past it was with france, that everyone expressed solidarity. we are all aware that we are all involved, and that is why at the beginning of this meeting, while we are reflecting about what we can do in our own country, what we should do in europe, we are with you, but we also must ensure that there will be no economic developments if there is not security first. and security is also an element that is necessary. and we must ensure that all means are taken in france but also in europe and here i am expressing myself on behalf of france so that you can ensure that you too can invest in france but making sure that there is security. now i am going to answer questions. there were 30 businesses here, different geographies. and we wanted to meet at this council meeting. it is an initiative i talked two years ago, and every six months on a regular basis we meet. we meet both to evaluate what we have done. >> as often happens when our president has to speak about a pressing issue

these were attacks in belgium. they could just as well be attacks in britain or france or germany or elsewhere in europe, and we need to stand together against these appalling terrorists and make sure they can never win. >> the thoughts and prayers of the american people are with the people of belgium, and we stand in solidarity with them in condemning these outrageous attacks against innocent people. we will do whatever is necessary to support our friend and ally, belgium, in bringing to justice those who are responsible, and this is yet another reminder that the world must unite. we must be together regardless of nationality or race or faith in fighting against the scourge of terrorism. >> obama and other world leaders reacting to what's going on in brussels today, two terror attacks, one at the airport, one at a train station at the seat of government in the european capital. as we saw president francis oland say, it's not just an attack on brussels, it's an attack on europe itself. chris joins us from brussels.

belgium."our tony mirones caught up with him today, to find out how his family and friends are faring back home. we think you will be interested in how he copes with terror. ((traffic nats))the taste of belgium in over the rhine is the first of small chain of native jean-francois flechet. ((nats))he's been monitoring what's happening back home all day while trying to work at the same time.jean-francois flechet/beglium native"it's really sad and upsetting, it's not something you really expect to happen in a place like brussels."his family and friends are safe, but his parents have concerns. jean-francois flechet/beglium native"my parents are a bit shaken because they were suppose to be in brussels tomorrow, so with a 24-hour difference that would have been a very different situation so they are very fortunate that it didn't happen to them."while keeping up with the news of the manhunt for the terroists, he's reading all of the editorial cartoons.he says, it's the way belgians cope, with a bit of

belgium broadcaster identified belgium broadcaster identified the other two suspects as -- the suspect from paris that killed 130 people. authorities believe that his arrest could have prompted other cell members to act. >> if they were concerned he was talking, that authorities were close to tracking them down they may have moved up the timetable. >> at this hour, the belgium crisis center has increased the death toll from the bombings to 35. 15 people died inside the airport. 100 were wounded. 20 people died and 130 were injured in the metro station. belgium authorities are ready to hold a news conference where we expect to learn more about arrested bummer, and the victims . >> we continue to update you on the story in brawls and how it is affecting people in the bay area. >> we look at weather and traffic as you head out the door. mike? >>> >> good morning, everyone. cooler. because of the lack of cloud cover. and no radar returns much it is dry. live doppler hd shows the lack of clouds. 38 to 52 is the 7:00 temperature. through the 12-hour day planner you want to have the sunglasse

why belgium as this hot bed? >> well, a number of reasons why belgium hasn't been able to deal well with these situations. you don't have a particularly -- you have at least some minority of a muslim population in the country that's not well integrated. notable that they stayed in this neighborhood. >> for four months. >> for months without anyone finding out about this. there's no way there aren't a bunch of people who should have been aware. this is a neighborhood that now everyone knows specifically because it is a hot bed of radicalism. it's had a spotlight on it from the international media starting with this attack. and even before this attack, people knew this was a place where you had returning foreign fighters from syria. this sort of jihadi launch pad. so these individuals, because there's more than one. we've had a couple killed in shootouts. that they would stay and feel comfortable staying in this area raises troubling questions -- >> well, would they trigger alarms if they stepped too far outside of

that's all happening in belgium. i can tell you from a transportation perspective, the american officials in brussels are asking u.s. government officials who might travel to brussels and there are a lot of people who travel to brussels regularly, it is the capital of europe, asking them to postpone at least a week, until march 29th. in the short run, that will be relatively easy, because the brussels airport will certainly not be open tomorrow. unlikely to be opened thursday. american airlines says it is not even sure about friday at this point. american canceling its flights. planning the rest of the week by ear. in the meantime, in u.s. airports, the homeland security is changing their posture on security in really a nuanced way. beef you have security with the assistance of state and local police as much as possible across the country, adding other safety measures or security measures we might not be aware of. they're also doing a double-check on anyone with a belgium passport, who might be on the tsa watch list,

and this twitter post shows the belgium flag with the #pray for belgium. it is so far been shared thousands of times and people have been sharing images of the most popular cartoon character. those of us here in the u.k., the writer says belgium is crying for his children, and this is the official twitter account of the french capitol of paris. as we have been reminding ourselves 130 reported last november in the attacks then, the accounts display the belgium flag and says the iffle tour will be lit up in the colors of belgium on tuesday morning. a live shot here of the airport. you can see the scaffolding there, hard to pick up the damage behind them, perhaps we can see the shattered window on the left there. so that is what is happening there, and this is in brussells itself, in h the center. about halve an hour train ride from the airport. floral tributes. not entirely certain what that location is. but according to our correspondent, paul brennen who was close the the european parliament has been replaced for a number of hours has gradually been lifted

and belgium and says it won't attack his business. >>> continuing our team attack in belgium will play out in the race for the white house. >> john kosic joins us from the newsroom and we have seen they have had impacts before. >> there is a familiar narrative, inevitable events. >> to a person presidential hopefuls came out strong denouncing the belgium attacks. >> this is a war and separating administration. >> i am surprised that the president is going to a baseball game. >> their responses will be closely measured by voters. >> this has a lot of reverberations and as a candidate you show strength, unity that you have a plan for what you are going to do to try to stop this and certainly at a minimum stop it from coming to the united states. >> in 2002 bill clinton said when people feel uncertain they would want somebody wrong and right. >> we want to see we are doing something. >> or in the face of republicans doing something and if they don't get perception the real clear politics poll numbers show donald trump and ben carson tied. the paris attacks came the next day on the 14th. o

this isn't a belgium problem. there was an intelligence failure today, and they're going to keep hitting targets. it could be the eiffel tower. it could be the eu. once they get into europe, you can drive anywhere you want in europe. an hour from where the attacks were today in any direction, and you're out of belgium. you're in germany, the netherlands, or france. they can blow those up just as easily without ever seeing security. >> when you think about the eiffel tower, now lit in the colors of the belgian flag, and we're showing that to our viewers as we speak to you, when you talk about an intelligence failure, how do they correct this? because you know the neighborhood. you've described it to us very well. you spent a lot of time there. but they knew where these guys came from after paris. and yet, they were able to evade capture or evade arrest or evade detection for that amount of time when the focus of the continent was on that area. how is that possible? >> i think the intelligence failure here wasn't be

this is going to be belgium's bataclan. you will see some real steps to coordinate, national coordination, and more european levels. andle realize the extent, you will get some nationalization in countries that have not been present. tom: it has to do with security but i am much more interested in individual rights. this is becoming an ugly habit. how will rights change across europe as the good authorities try to get a handle on preventing the next attack? robin: different parts of europe have different attitudes. in the u.k., people are very relaxed about the kind of cctv coverage that was used routinely around london. in countries like germany, people tend to be much more suspicious. they will have a coming together with your balance. other european countries have not gone through the kind of attacks -- i think this will bring europe a little more into a u.s. mentality. francine: robin, we are also hearing from david cameron, the prime minister of the u.k., tweeting that he is shocked and concerned by the events in bruss

belgium's most famous fictional character tintin is in the collars of the belgium flag. the peace symbol, again in the colors of the belgium flag. it is shaped at a plane hinting at the location of the first two bombs at the airport. finally, this is a statues, one of the famous landmarks in brussels, an image of defiance and a statement of content towards those who use violence. there, again, the center of brussels. that ij ilwe have-- vigil, more and more people are gathering there where flowers are being played and flags from occurrence around the world-- countries around the world have been placed there >>> in the republic of congo, the government has extended a communication blackout that was imposed last week during the elections. final results are expected on wednesday. >> reporter: opposition supporters are not happy with the result. they say they can't believe how it's possible that the president is leading in the polls. they're gathering out here where they plan to have a big meeting. this is all of them. they say they didn't boycott the election because they w

and speaking of belgium, you're taking live look at the belgium flag right now on the ben franklin parkway and for those people that have contacts overseas, they are devastated. the belgium flag flew outside humphries flag store in old city. a tribute to the victims killed and injured in the brussels attack. philadelphians send their prayers overseas. >> my concern was all my friends that live there and work there, and it was very difficult to reach them. >> reporter: tom peters owns monk's cafe in center city his specialty belgium beer. he's been to brussels countless times. he was at the airport one of the attack sites just in january. >> wow many i was stunned and i was thinking in we would have done this trip a little later, we could have been there. philadelphia police commissioner richard ross beefed up security around the city moments after learning about the attacks. >> we are taking the appropriate measures here. there are no threats to the philadelphia region that we're aware of according to the fbi and homeland security. >> it's very erie. you walk around people are very sad. >>

we learned belgium authorities shared a picture with u.s. authorities on three possible suspects they believe were involved in the terrorist attack. it's a picture of three men pushing carts through the airport, and then we know subsequently that's where two explosions happened. this is a picture taken presumably from a surveillance camera inside the airport. right now u.s. officials are looking at that picture, trying to figure out if these were people on the u.s. radar, trying to see if there was any nexus to the u.s., and also one big question officials are trying to answer right now is whether the men, whether one or more, perhaps dropped off that suitcase bomb there in the airport and then went to the metro station after that where we know the explosion happened an hour after. a lot going on right now in terms of the investigation. also in addition to that, u.s. authorities right now are scrutinizing the where abouts of suspected extremists in the united states. of course, a big concern is that when something like this happens, it will

are taking place across belgium following the deadly attacks on brussels. the islamic state has taken responsibility for the bombings at the airport and the metro. there were a series of attacks in the belgian capital, leaving at least 31 people dead and many more injured. the first went off in the departure hall of the brussels international airport. as people ran toward the exit there was a bigger explosion. authorities believe it was a suicide bomber. at least 10 or killed. an hour later, a third explosion on the brussels metro by the offices of the european union during rush hour. at least 20 were killed in the metro and many more injured. the explosions come 4 days after the arrest of the paris terror suspect salah abdelslam. the belgian prime minister has called the attacks a dark moment for his nation. the europe editor reports on the day's events. >> it's ok. it's ok. correspondent: when a shaky voice tries to sound reassuring, calling out from clouds of smoke that it is ok after the debris of devastation. you know that it is not all right. it is no

belgium officials say 34 people wounded at two explosions at the belgium airport and a city metro station. a power plant was just evacuated under order from belgium authorities. just about two hours ago, attacks. this is what he had to say. >> yet another reminder that the world must unite. we must be together regardless nationality, race or faith in fighting against the scourge of terrorists. bridgewater and we are just learning that isis claims to be responsible for these attacks. this comes days after the prime suspect in the deadly terrorist attack in paris was arrested in brussels. tina krause has the latest. >> reporter: survivors ran for safety as smoke and chaos filled the airport terminal in brussels. dozens were injured after two powerful explosions, one blast caved in a ceiling on some terminal's windows. cbs news has learned police found an unexploded device, possibly a suicide event and a russian assault rifle in woman was with her daughter is now missing. >> [inaudible]. >> reporter: three missionary >> reporter: three missionaries from utah were seriously injured in the air

this is a problem in belgium. these are two different major terrorist attacks that were tied back to a network or networks in belgium. that has nothing to do with the united states. >> but you and i both know pa people will say, what about san bernardino? they will point to other examples and say, no, there is a connection. >> sure. so it makes perfect sense. because we have a very, very small number of extremists here, we're going to antagonize the entire american muslim community and drive everyone against the u.s. government in order to find the needle in the haystack, which we're not going to find anyway. this is the problem with homegrown terrorism. we are facing a different threat here in the united states. we're faced with a threat of homegrown extremists who aren't as well equipped and are motivated by a sense that society is at war with them. the reason we don't have scores of people going from the u.s. and going to syria, part of it is the atlantic ocean, but part of it is because most american muslims w

belgium is a trilingual country, phlegmish french and -- they divide up the city. it's a very peculiar city in that regard. people think of belgium as a french city, b t the truth is there are more flemish in the general area tn french. >> our reporter has ordered a shelter in place order issued. let us not forget this is among other things the capital of europe. so it's a strategic target, also a symbolic target. as we've been talking this morning, brussels itself, particularly this neighborhood known as maelbeek has been a hot bed of islamic radicalism and something that has been very difficult it seems for the belgian authorities to get ahold of. you mentioned the laws -- i just read this morning, in the search thought they had him. there's a law preventing nighttime raids in brussels, so they were unable to go after him. >> reporter: from an american perspective, some of these laws seem absolutely silly in which they quite literally were not allowed under belgian law to stage policeaids overnight, between the hours of midnight % and 5:00 a.m. anyone from law en

in the belgium matter, belgium is a week leak and the e.u. is as strong as the weighingest link. if the e.u. is to stand up to the threat, u.s. intelligent services need to integrate and cooperate and belgium needs to improve intelligence and security. the terrorist strike in the heart of europe and the unofficial capital demands more be done. data and privacy concerns must take a back seat. e.u. citizens must be tracked during travels abroad. they argue if police need more tools, they must have next. francis published this cartoon showing a belgium flag, face buried in its hand, acapped by the loving face of a french flag. a russian court sentenced ukranian title nadya to 22 years in prison after convicting her in the killing of two russian journalists. an efficient tsarcheko sang. she denied the killing of the journalists killed in any attack. the e.u. and president obama calls for her release. >> we found the judge refused to admit material that could serve as an alibi. they refuse to admit to material or to summon witnesses, participation defense witnesses or refuse to order

we remember belgium, that neighborhood, troubling. did belgium authorities miss something? did they not turn that place inside out? and if they did, then this is worse than we want to believe. the numbers, the resources, the ability to wreak holy hel whenever possible. we hear the accounts. >> the shock wave was like nothing i've ever felt before. >> reporter: just every day stories turned into stories of survival. california, paris, we hold our loved ones closer and realize this feeling will fade in a few days but we also now know this will happen again. harry smith, nbc news, new york. >> frightening reality. i'm betty nguyen. thanks for watching "early today." mark: now on news 5 today, the presidential candidates fighting for votes in tuesday' s round of caucuses. what they had to say about the terror attacks in brussels. lisa: we' re leading the way on yet another serious accident near the combs hehl bridge. what we know so far about the wreck that sent two drivers to the hospital. mark: we have the latest in the deadly terror attacks in brussels. the suicide bombers n

belgium officials can linko ta a u.s. military serviceman is an air force official based in nettherlands. >> i heard the the state department is not giving out numbers yet. >> yes, because the numbers keep fluctuating. we are determining how many americans hurt and there could be more than what we know and we don't he know if anyone was killed in terms of victims and still things coming through and if we find out, we will let you know. >> christina rendon like. we will turn to tom vacar. >> reporter: security measures are stepped up and nothing that the naked eye would notice because they are discussing what they think they need to do. but nsid this, while e thhardest hard targeand the most protected. ait rpories t so >> there is a attacked an airport loand open rail system. they don't have tight security where masses of people enter the systems. >> the access is weak or nonexistent. >> transportation is a place where the attackers can nd crowdedspaces that don't necessarily have good control. >>t folks ink security is ad

some talk of closing the border between france and belgium. we were able to drive straight in and, again, into the city. so, no changes there. but in terms of travelers getting into and out of the airports. the airports have been closed and, really, the city now in sort of a state of shock. people trying to figure out what's next. do we go to work? do we stay at home and do we collect our children. are the phones working yet? some have been in and out. i have been able to get some phone calls through. but it is still sort of a city influx right now, guys. >> thanks, kelly, on the scene there. i know you'll continue to keep us posted. she mentioned she was able, matt, to just drive in rather easily. >> which i was surprised. >> on the other hand you have been remarking and you know this area very well. these are porousers. not one singular checkpoint that could be closed. >> kelly and her team were able to drive right to the area where that metro attack took place and not be stopped in the process. you can see the streets look basically deserte

to show belgium. >> it is a scene repeat in the cities around the world, and the belgium capitol. outside the brussels stock exchange, chalked messages in many languages, remembered the victims and expressed solidarity. candles traced hearts, and peace signs, and the young people came together to mourn and believe in a better world. now, us ambassador, said that he's grateful for the condolances, that people are bringing here today embassy. he also said that the belgium people are strong, and they will not give into fear, they'll continue to face the situation with strength and resilience. live in northwest, melanie, fox5 local news. >> if you plan on taking metro this morning get ready for a lot more security. >> although no signs every planned attack in the nation's capitol, metro police want to make sure that you're safe. fox5's danny in northwest with more, anne? >> hey, right, metro officials want their riders to know, that they're monitoring the events, that they're working with federal officials, and state and local, and they're staying on top of this. and as you mention, i

belgium authorities say possible suicide bombing. the third man in the light colored coat to the right is thought to still be at large. police conducted raids throughout the city today. one house, they found an explosive device packed with nails and an isis flag. isis claimed responsibility for today's attack. belgian's prime minister said this is a dark moment for the country, and president of france said we are at war. we begin tonight with nbc's bill neely in brussels. so i guess we all, those of us who have been busy at work doing other things and not watching the news, need to know the news. what are the facts about today's terrible attack? >> reporter: yeah, chris. well, brussels is in shock tonight, after two absolutely horrific attacks. one underground. it began around 8:00 this morning at the main international airport in brussels. at least 11 people were killed. in the first of those explosions, just minutes later, rushing towards the exits, near a starbucks shop, another explosion. police say three men were involved. in th

this is not typically belgium. it's not because of the belgium political structure that is happening. this is systems being put in place. people need to use it. and this saul over the world. you can sort it out? better education, maybe organize the systems to make it more user-friendly. streamline it. this is all you need to do it. >> what about the pressure on the authorities and, you know, we see these massive operations taking place overnight. we know that the security services behind the scenes are working across europe. what sort of pressures are they telling you about right now? >> it's pretty clear that the belgian political system is under pressure. justice, police is under pressure. they need to provide us with some results. and that is what is happening right now. but this is not because we saw some flaws. this is just the system running when it's used in a good way. >> a bit of a blame game going on behind the scenes, isn't there? we've certainly seen it between france and belgium today. >> this is part

wednesday morning in belgium. authorities have been carrying out raise across the country through the attacks and fearing another attack. and the search is on for one of three suspects. >>> two separate explosions rocked the brussels airport tuesday morning killing at least ten people and injuring dozens more. an hour later another blast raised the death toll and left dozens running to safety. belgiums are left saddened and shocked. >> phone lines were dead and so everything went through social media. >> it is weird to acknowledge the fact that it is going to be me or my friends or anybody i knew that got killed this morning. >> hours after the attacks, this image was released by belgium authorities showing three men, two of them wearing gloves only on their left hand. are believed to be responsible for the airport bombings. the search is on for a third suspect that reportedly fled. at least one undetonated suicide vest found at the airplane. following the raise around the country, an explosive device containing n

raids are taking place around belgium this evening. police have already found an bomb,c state flag, mail and chemicals during the raid. >> these are the suspects behind apparent twin suicide explosions according to investigators. they are now seeking the third man in the black hat and coat. he is thought to have fled. anyone witheeking information on his identity. >> investigations are ongoing at the various crime scenes. searches aree taking place at various locations around the country. several witnesses are also being questioned. while brussels remained on lockdown with the terror alert at its highest level, police searched the district, finding a mail bomb, chemicals, and the flag of the islamic state organization in an apartment. the jihadist group earlier themed responsibility for blast online. investigators are now seeking potential links between the strikes in both cities, if any exist. some insightst from our guest. david is a security and terrorism expert. he joins us live. the belgium interior minister has said in the last h

the other question for the belgium prime minister. many people being critical asking what's happening next. he's come out with strong statements. he tweeted this country will defend its values and won't be subject to the barbaric attack. many people are questioning if they are ready to take this on. >> one of those raids produced another explosive device and chemicals leading some to speculate that perhaps other incidents were planned. do we have any clarity on that yet? >> reporter: there hasn't been much clarity on that. we understand this is not on snag was beyond the pail. belgium officials after they were able to secure the third brother, they were involved in the paris attacks. they said the belgium prime minister saying another attack s problem. this speaks to the level of insecurity. they really don't know what's going to happen next. >> let me ask you a little bit about the fact that in brussels and in belgium there's lots of different jurisdictions and criticism about how well or not well they communicate on police operation

peace, love and prayers for the people here in belgium. the itinerary shows the students were going to visit parliament, louvain school of management and procter and gamble this week. uc says the university is evaluating the situation, but as of now the students have no plans to return home early. >> the next step will be we will follow their progress to make sure that the situation is stable and if they can complete the journey, they will and if it is time for them to come home, that decision will be made by faculty members who were there and we' ll make sure that everything runs smoothly. reporter: one of the professors say that they are planning to go out for dinner tonight to try to get their mind off the attacks. in the meantime, they checked -- of brussels. to fly back to cincinnati on they planned saturday. jenell walton wlwt news 5. sheree: we also reached out to procter and gamble today to warp -- learn more about employees working in belgium. the company says they have 1100 employees working in brussels p&g' s global innovation c

officials unaccounted for in belgium. we have a former counterterrorism expert from the treasury department. as you heard what i find so mind-boggling and frustrating, morgan, these people were known. they were known. they were on a list. turkey said this is isis fighter and able to come back to belgium and freely and plan a an attack. >> it has been going on for decades, to be honest, trish. when i was with the treasury department working with europeans it was incredibly frustrating. we would see activity going on and i remember vividly having conversation with another analyst say this can only last so long. they're not interdicting these groups. they don't have a legal infrastructure in place to go after them and they really have their head in the sand. it is really unfortunate and after paris and brussels i think europe realizes, if they don't they need to realize things will never be the same. this should be their 9/11 moment after the two attacks where they say we have to do what the united states did. we have to do

of foreign fighters come from belgium. we have had shari'ah for belgium that are radicalizing the youth, so there's a target of opportunity. great symbolism and the disruptive effects of bringing in essence europe's capital to the knees is incredibly valuable to isis. a huge propaganda victory. >> at the airport and at the subway station, to very soft targets where everyday people go every single day. >> absolutely right. so a target rich environment where a lot of innocents can be killed, a source of great terror. but also a source of great disruption for belgium, brussels, and the economy. not just there, but in europe and globally. so it's a major one-two punch for the islamic state to be able to per peltuate -- per me tate the strikes in brussels. >> i want to update the viewers on the ongoing security threat first. u.s. lawmaker forces confirm there was an unexploded device, possibly a suicide vest or belt that was found at the airport. what does that suggest to you? >> norah, this will feed the suspicion and concern

at the belgium airport. the number dead and wounded at this hour, stands at one dead, several wounded. we don't know exactly how many wounded as the number could possibly continue to rise as we get more information on this. emergency services say it's too involved in this explosion but they are taking to social media to warn people not to come to the airport. they tweeted that flights have been canceled and the building is being evacuated. and urging passengers not to come to the airport. again, there's been an explosion at the brussels' airport in belgium. one dead, and several wounded so far. we'll bring you the latest information as it becomes available to us here at nbc. >>> and the pentagon announced it has a small base in northern iraq iraq. this comes days after isis launched rockets at that base. one american killed and three wounded. those troops are there to help u.s. military advise ors advisors hogan $25 million in punitive damages, on top of the $15 million won over gawker. >>> and 46 point blow

the eiffel tower, as you can see, lit up with the colors of the belgium flag. while in brussels crowds have gathered across the city to mourn the victims. the bombers targeted the airport and a metro station in back-to-back bombings. the attacks were timed to target commuters and travellers. it happened at around 8.15am local time. some say gun shots were also heard. an hour later an explosion occurred on a commuter train at the maelbeek station in central brussels. it is 100 metres from the european department. the attacks took place in the west of the suburb. that is where the alleged organiser of the paris attack salah abdeslam had been shot and arrested by police on friday. as belgium comes to terms with the events of the last 24 hours, people there are asking why the bombers targeted the city brussels. jacky rowland reports. >> reporter: it is the end of a traumatic day. people take a moment to honor those who died and to think of those who even now are fighting for their lives. there are so many questions. how could this happen and why did the attackers c

here in belgium on friday. and authorities said then that they are cranking up their alert.is arrest was going to flush suspects out of >> charlie -- >> reporter: and we're also t somebody has been arrested. >> we are also getting a report of a blast at a train station in brussels, a metro station in brussels. when we heard were looking for at least one other suspect, this man who's known to be a bombmaker, i'm sure -- and also theher terrorist attacks were in the works were being planned, authorities must have expressed some concern about possibly a ramping plans. was there any talk of increasing security, people looking out forbe out of the ordinary? i would think at a time like this, everyone would be surprising to hear that, you know, at least the blasts at the airport was pulled off. >> reporter: well, exactly. a heightened sense of security around airports in public places and metro stations as well. but yes, there's actually an alln out asking for for this alleged bombmaker. najim they were worried that

belgium mourns amid hunt for spect. belgium officials declared three days of national mournin as a large man hunt descended on the citizenso show calmness and solidarity. and first victims named as survival stories emerge. and ruiz lives in brussels with her husband and was at the aiaiort to see off relatives. >>> in nbcnews.com migration crcris looms in background of brussels terror attacks.s. national concerns stirred once again over the on-going migrant crisis. >>> in the washington times, pope francis speaks out against blind violence in brussels. >>> and in bloomberg, belgium attacks threaten summer travel. >>> the horror we feel after the terror attacks ss has sadly become part of the new normal and the world in which we live must still find a way to carry on. >> reporter: so, this is it. >> explosions rocking the airport and the subway system overnight. >> reporter: we click on the tv in the morning to see what's new and we're stunned. we connect our own dots. the u.s. lastarrest last week of the terrorist in bel

i think you think of thatis as belgium's 9/11. putting the entire city, the entire country of 11 million into a lockdown here. i was just on the phone with my wife, who is in touch with family in belgium. all the schools are on lockdown, as we've discussed. the free university of brussels announcing they're evacuating their campus. primary schools through high school are on lockdown. probably not a safer place for them to be. several individuals in belgium are telling me their cell phone rs not working for voice calls. they are speculating, they are speculating, that that could be the government or the police, trying to shut down the cell phone network to make it more difficult for any potential suspects to communicate. that is conjecture and talk. that gives you a sense of where you can imagine the terror we kept on 9/11. especially those of us on the east coast. how people in brussels are feeling at this very moment, with the entire country locked down. no rail service, no subway service, no plane service. busses have been shut

all flights to belgium have been diverted elsewhere. also, the subway system, the metro system, has been shut down completely as well. another report of an explosion at the molenbeek metro station, which is very close to eu buildings. so we're continuing to monitor that. essentially, the country has been shut down. a high state of alert, and authorities are trying to sort of get a hand on what has been unfolding all morning long. charlie, you're on your way to brussels now. i'm wondering, what is it like out there on the roads? i mean, can you see -- can you tell that something is occurring here in this country? >> reporter: well, we're racing on a highway. so we are in between bruge and brussels itself. so we haven't got into the city center so i can give you a flavor for what's going on there. but the reason that we're in bruge is because salah abdeslam, the paris attacker who was arrested on friday, he was transferred to bruge, which is a high-security prison. they don't have one of that nature in brussels, so they transferred him to