Suicide suspected after man blows himself up at Belgium soccer field

BRUSSELS — A man dies after blowing himself up on an empty soccer field in the eastern Belgian town of Verviers in an apparent suicide, the city’s deputy mayor Hasan Aydin says Tuesday.

“The individual, whose identity is not yet known, blew himself up in the middle of the football field around 08:30 in the morning,” Aydin tells AFP.

“He was alone in the middle of the field,” he adds.

“Suicide seems the most likely reason for the moment because if he had wanted to cause casualties, the man would have chosen another place at another time,” he adds.

“It would seem that he is a European in his fifties and a former career military officer,” the deputy mayor says.

Contacted by the AFP, the federal prosecutor’s Office responsible for terror cases says that it was not responsible for this case, suggesting that police do not believe the incident involves terrorism.

Belgium was hit by jihadist attacks that killed 32 people on March 22, 2016.

— AFP