Organizers postpone Brussels 'March Against Fear' over security concerns
Organizers have decided to postpone a rally in solidarity for the victims of Tuesday's terror attacks in Brussels at the request of Belgium's interior minister, who said police are stretched too thin due to the ongoing investigation into the bombings.
Interior Minister Jan Jambon made his appeal on Belgian television, urging but not demanding organizers of the "March against Fear" demonstration planned for Sunday to cancel it over security concerns.
"We understand fully the emotions. We understand that everyone wants to express these feelings," Jambon said.
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The march was to take place from the Place de la Bourse in Brussels to the city's Gare du Nord.
Belgium remains on high alert after least 31 people were killed and 270 wounded in twin attacks on Brussels airport and metro that occurred about one hour apart early Tuesday morning local time.
Organizers said the march was meant to show that Belgians refuse to be intimidated by terrorism and that they are united.
"This week, we, Belgian citizens have been attacked, in how we live, our customs, our rights, our liberty," read a statement from organizers, according to AFP. "The first reaction in such events is to withdraw but on reflection, fear must give way to hope and the defense of our values."
But in the end, they decided to cancel the event.
Charges filed against three suspects
Meanwhile, Belgian prosecutors say three men have been charged with terrorist offenses linked to Tuesday's attacks.
Federal prosecutors announced Saturday they charged a man identified as Faycal C. for "involvement in a terrorist group, terrorist murder and attempted terrorist murder," The Associated Press reported. They say he was arrested Thursday. No weapons or explosives were uncovered during a police raid on his home.
Prosecutors didn't comment on Belgian media reports that a man named Faycal Cheffou has been identified as the suspected fugitive in a light-colored jacket who fled Brussels airport after two alleged accomplices blew themselves up there Tuesday.
The Belgian Le Soir news outlet said a taxi driver who drove the three men to the airport identified Cheffou as one of his passengers from photographs.
Prosecutors say two other suspects arrested Thursday and identified as Rabah N. and Aboubakar A. have been charged with "involvement in the activities of a terrorist group."
A fourth man, taken into custody Friday after he was shot by police at a Brussels tram stop, is being held for at least 24 hours longer.
Additional reporting from The Associated Press.
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Christopher is Mashable's Senior Correspondent covering world news, particularly the post-Soviet space and especially Ukraine, where he lived and worked for more than five years. As an editor at Ukraine's Kyiv Post newspaper, Christopher was part of the team that won the 2014 Missouri Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism for coverage of the Euromaidan Revolution, Russia's annexation of Crimea and the war in eastern Ukraine. Besides Mashable, he has published with The Telegraph, The Times, The Independent and GlobalPost from such countries as Greece, Italy, Israel, Russia and Turkey, among others, as well as from aboard a search and rescue ship off the Libyan coast. Originally from rainy Portland, Oregon, he is also a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Ukraine) currently based in New York.
