Chilling footage shows moment terrified passengers cower under desks and run for their lives after suicide bomb blasts rock Brussels Airport in series of attacks that killed 34 across the city

* At least 14 people killed after two explosions struck near the American Airlines check-in desk at 8am (7am GMT)
* Reports of a firefight between police and attackers seconds before they shouted ‘in Arabic’ and detonated bombs
* Terrified passengers covered in blood ran for their lives after explosion sent ‘shockwaves’ through terminal building

* Another blast killed 20 at a Metro station near EU headquarters in Maelbeek area of centralBrussels just after 9am
* Two suspects arrested a mile from train station at around 11am as hundreds of troops and police flood the streets
* Comes a day after Belgium minister warned of revenge strikes after arrest of Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam

Cowering under desks and running for their lives, this is the terrifying moment passengers were caught up in a suicide bomb attack at Brussels Airport today in a series of blasts that have killed at least 34 people across the city.

Witnesses described apocalyptic scenes with blood and ‘dismembered bodies everywhere’ after two blasts rocked the terminal at around 8am (7am GMT), killing at least 14 people and injuring 35 others.

Then 79 minutes later at 9.19am, at least 20 people were killed and 55 injured, some critically, when a blast hit a Metro station just 400 metres from the EU headquarters in the city centre.

At the airport, there were reports of a firefight between police and the attackers who shouted in Arabic moments before detonating their bombs. A Kalashnikov was later recovered from the scene.

The blasts, which detonated near the American Airlines and Brussels airlines check-in desks, sent shockwaves through the terminal building, shattering windows and knocking roof tiles off the ceiling as terrified passengers ran for their lives.

The explosions have left countries worldwide reeling, with security placed on high alert, flights cancelled, Eurostar services suspended and France’s border with Belgium shut down.

Two suspects were arrested a mile from the Maelbeek metro station at around 11am as hundreds of troops and police flooded the streets of Brussels in the hunt for members of the terror cell.

Soldiers have been also been deployed at the airport and other key locations across Brussels as Belgium raised security to its maximum level.

The bombings come just a day after the Belgium Interior Minister warned of possible revenge attacks after the arrest of Paris massacre suspect Salah Abdeslam in the city on Friday.

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Terrified passengers run for their lives in a cloud of smoke moments after the twin blast rocked the terminal building

A terrified passenger cowers under a check-in desk moments after two explosions rocked Brussels Airport in a suicide bomb attack today

FIRST ATTACK: At least 13 people have died and dozens injured after two explosions rocked Brussels Airport in a terror attack today

Shocking: Injured passengers are covered in blood and dust after the explosions rocked the terminal building at Brussels Airport

SECOND ATTACK: The image above is being used by the Belgian media who claim this is the damage caused by the bomb at the Maelbeek Metro station in central Brussels 79 minutes after the first attack. It has not been verified but is being widely circulated on social media

Aftermath: A man lies stricken on the pavement as survivors kiss in relief after surviving the bombing at the Metro station in Maelbeek

Two suspects were arrested a mile from the Maelbeek metro station at around 11am as hundreds of troops and police flooded the streets

Two men are pinned to the floor and handcuffed by police as soldiers stand guard near the North station in central Brussels

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Photographs from inside the arrivals hall showed the floor covered in fallen tiles and dust as bloodied people hobbled out of the airport. Others injured were photographed lying on the floor.

Video showed terrified passengers running for their lives out of the building.

Firefighters who entered the terminal to search for survivors are said to have found a third unexploded device, while armed police in protective clothing combed the building for more wounded travellers and suspicious bags.

London Mayor Boris Johnson today said ‘there may be one UK casualty’ in the explosions and another Briton is understood to have been injured in the airport attack.

Samir Derrouich, who works at a restaurant in the airport, told MailOnline: ‘The two explosions were almost simultaneous.

‘They were both at a check-in desk. One was close to the Starbucks. It was awful. There was just blood. It was like the apocalypse.’

Dries Valaert, 30, was waiting to get his boarding pass from a check in desk when the blast struck.

He said: ‘There was a first blast and then ten seconds later a second explosion. It was a big, big blast, the ceiling went down. It was just 30 metres from where I was.

‘I saw people down on the ground and I just went running. I jumped over the security fences towards the departure gates as I thought it would be safer.

‘My first intuition was to get out in case their were attackers with guns. I saw a woman around 18 years old with a hole in her hand with blood pouring out and a man with an injured ankle and two people down. There was lots of panic. People were running all over the place.’

Mr Valaert, who was flying to a business meeting in Berlin, said he believed the bombs were hidden in suitcases that had just been checked in.

He said: ‘The explosions were just behind the service desks, they were blown towards us. To me it is the most realistic possibility. I don’t think it was someone with a suicide vest.’

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A soldier walks through debris after two explosion rocked a terminal building at Brussels Airport

Firefighters search the terminal for explosives and survivors (left) as a man lies injured on the terminal floor

A man lies injured on the floor after two explosions detonated near the American Airlines check-in desk

Hundreds of terrified passengers ran from the terminal, some of them covered in blood, after the blasts rocked the building at 8am

Shouts in Arabic were reportedly heard before the explosions which sent shockwaves through the terminal building, shattering windows

Survivors wrapped in blankets leave the scene of explosions at Brussels-Zaventem airport in the wake of the suicide bomb blasts

Blown out: The explosions sent shockwaves through the terminal building, shattering windows and knocking roof tiles off the ceiling

Air stewardesses look shocked as they flee the terminal building in the wake of the suspected suicide bombing

Stunned: Staff walk away from Brussels airport after explosions rocked the building in Brussels

Two blasts detonated near the American Airlines check-in desk at Brussels Airport at 8am (7am GMT) in a suspected suicide bombing

Alphonse Youla, who was working on a stand putting security wrapping around suitcases, said: ‘I heard a man shout some Arabic words then an explosion… then a second explosion, a massive explosion, much bigger.’

Speaking with blood on his hands and struggling to hold back tears, he added: ‘It was a horror. I saw at least seven people dead. There was blood. People had lost legs. You could see there bodies but no legs.’

He added: ‘I saw two men face down with blood pouring out of their heads. The injuries were so awful. You cannot imagine. People were so injured.

‘I did not see the man who shouted in Arabic as he was behind me. I just heard the words. I don’t speak Arabic so I don’t know what he said.’

In the aftermath, thousands of people waiting for flights this morning were penned inside the terminal as police sealed off the shattered arrivals hall.

People already checked in were then slowly evacuated through emergency exits – but were told to leave all their hand luggage as police checked bags for more explosives.

Evacuated passengers are being ferried onto buses and are being driven to a ‘crisis centre’ away from the airport, with women and children being moved first.

All flights are being diverted from the airport this morning as it remains on lockdown.

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Bravery: People are treated, comforted and given water by the emergency services as they help the wounded

Second attack: A person lies injured on the floor after an explosion was heard at the Metro station in the centre of Brussels

Rescue effort: A Maelbeek victim is carried on to a stretcher as Brussels is hit by a string of bombings

Evacuation: Those on the tube network were evacuated from smoke-filled tunnels and walked along the tracks to the nearest station

Panic: Commuters in the Metro described a bang, and a rush of air that made their ears pop before they tore open the train doors and walked down the track to the closest station

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Flights due to land at Brussels-Zaventem, which handles 21million passengers a year, were sent to Antwerp, Liege, and Brussels Charleroi airports.

Europe’s biggest airports are all increasing their security today. Heathrow confirmed it had stepped up its own ‘visible’ security in the wake of the attacks – with large units of armed police patrolling the airport this morning.

American Airlines confirmed that its planned flight from Brussels to Philadelphia in the US, which had been scheduled to depart at 9.40am had been cancelled in the wake of the blasts.

A spokesman said: ‘We are aware of an incident at the Brussels airport departure hall and are taking care of our customers, employees and contractors. At this time, all of our employees and contractors are accounted for with no reported injuries.

‘American Airlines flight 751 has been cancelled for today. When operations at the airport resume, we will re-accommodate our customers.’

Brussels Airport has announced it will be closed until at least Wednesday following two explosions in the departure hall.

Terrorists then blew up a crowded Metro station in the city centre at around 9.19am, killing at least 10 people and seriously injuring dozens more.

Shocking images from Maelbeek station show smoke pouring out of the building and casualties littered on the pavement outside, just 400metres from the EU’s headquarters.

Commuters on the Metro at the time described hearing a loud bang before they were evacuated from trains and forced to walk down smoke-filled tunnels and along the track to the closest safe station.

Emergency services at the scene were carrying the dead and injured out of the station on stretchers.

Alexandre Brans, 32, who was wiping blood from his face, said: ‘The metro was leaving Maelbeek station when there was a really loud explosion. It was panic everywhere. There were a lot of people in the metro.’

Brussels resident Shigeo Sugimoto said he was one stop away from where the metro was hit and heard people shouting.

He wrote on Facebook: ‘I am fine !! But I was in the metro when suddenly some one start shouting explosions!!! Evacuation!!!

‘Ouch!!! I was just one station ahead before when explosion happened!!!!!!!!’

He posted pictures showing cars and people standing in the road and wrote: ‘Maerbeek (sic) now apocalypse!!!’

Second attack: Around 90 minutes after the airport blasts, there were reports of an explosion at a station (pictured) in the centre of the city

Lockdown: Rue de la Loi, which runs outside the station, is sealed off by police and emergency services in the wake of the 9.19am attack

Mr Sugimoto said he saw a man with blood on his face in the vicinity of Maelbeek station in the EU quarter, near the European Commission’s main building.

He was at Arts-Loi station, one ahead of Maelbeek, and told the Press Association: ‘On the ground, there were already people walking every direction to distance (themselves) from metro and the Belgian army were there trying to make people calm.

‘I saw a guy, blood over his face, dragged by another person. Then police start blocking the street and I could only see ambulances go and come.’

Evan Lamos was among the thousands of commuters on tube trains this morning when the network was attacked.

He was on two stops away from Maelbeek and the passengers on his train were evacuated from the carriages into a smoke-filled tunnel and then walked along the tracks to the exit at the nearest station.

He said: ‘There was a dull thud. We felt a blast of air and my ears popped shortly afterwards. The Metro stopped immediately’.

The Belgian Interior Minister has raised the country’s security level to ‘maximum’ this morning as it prepares itself for more terror attacks in the wake of the airport bombings.

British Prime Minister David Cameron offered his support to victims and called a COBRA emergency committee meeting to address the events in Brussels.

He tweeted: ‘I am shocked and concerned by the events in Brussels. We will do everything we can to help.

‘I will be chairing a COBRA meeting on the events in Brussels later this morning.’

The explosions came as the Belgian capital was on a state of high alert following the arrest of Paris terror attack suspect Salah Abdeslam in the city last week.

Belgium’s Interior Minister, Jan Jambon, said the country was on high alert for a possible revenge attack following the capture of 26-year-old Salah Abdeslam in a flat in Brussels on Friday.

‘We know that stopping one cell can… push others into action. We are aware of it in this case,’ he told public radio.

France is seeking Abdeslam’s extradition so he can stand trial for his alleged role in the November 13 rampage of gunfire and suicide bombings that killed 130 people in Paris.

Belgium is under great tension, with its federal prosecutor Frederic Van Leeuw saying yesterday that last year the country worked on 315 new anti-terror cases and nearly 60 so far this year.

Security ramped up at airports and train stations across the world and border between France and Belgium is closed after Brussels terror attacks

Armed police have been deployed to airports, train stations, ports and border crossings around the world in the immediate aftermath of today’s suspected suicide .

From New York to Moscow, security measures were stepped up at transport hubs across the globe with police and military personnel carrying out extra high-visibility patrols and additional checks.

The border between France and Belgium was closed, Eurostar services in and out of Brussels were suspended and airlines to and from other destinations were warning passengers of potential disruption as the effects of this morning’s terror attacks were felt around the world.

Train and bus stations, ports and road checkpoints were also put on high alert, with armed police on the streets in major global cities including London and New York, sniffer dogs deployed and extensive border checks put in place.

An armed policewoman on patrol in Frankfurt Airport in Germany as security measures were ramped up at transport hubs around the world

Travellers stand in a long queue at St Pancras station in London, after all trains in and out of Brussels were suspended this morning

London mayor Boris Johnson said there would be an increased security presence at transport hubs in the city, while the country’s most senior counter-terrorism officer Mark Rowley said police forces across the UK had increased their presence at key locations as a precaution in the wake of the Brussels attacks.

And in the US, the NYPD said it would be increasing security measures at mass transit points, bridges and tunnels, and other landmarks following today’s attacks.

Police and soldiers carrying guns were also seen at airports in the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy, while in France – still shaken from the November attacks in Paris – officers remained on high alert.

Troops have also been deployed other key locations across Brussels as Belgium raised its security level to ‘maximum’ in the wake of the attacks.

The entire border between Belgium and France was placed on lock-down, and the Thalys train service – which travels between France, Belgium and the Netherlands – was halted in the wake of the explosions, the operator said.

Eurostar, which links London with Brussels and Paris via the Channel Tunnel, said no trains are currently running to or from Brussels Midi station. Passengers were being advised to postpone their journeys.

Dutch military police were carrying out additional high-visibility patrols at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam

Two armed policewoman guard the gateway to the airport in Frankfurt

Services had been terminating at Lille in France, before the entire route was suspended – and the train company was looking into instead running a train service between London and Lille.

A spokesman said: ‘We have suspended all services to and from Brussels until further notice. We are looking at running a shuttle service between Lille and Brussels.’

A spokesman for travel organisation Abta said British holidaymakers in Brussels should follow the instructions of the Belgian authorities, while those due to travel should contact their transport provider.

He added that although Belgium is a popular destination for UK visitors, March is ‘one of the quieter months for leisure travel’.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated its travel advice for Brussels.

It issued a statement which read: ‘You should stay away from crowded places and avoid public transport at this time.’

British officials in the city have been given the same instructions, the FCO said.

Britain’s official terrorist threat level stands at ‘severe’, the second-highest level on a five-point scale, meaning an attack is highly likely.

All flights between the UK and the main airport in Brussels have been cancelled for the rest of today, and Brussels Airlines cancelled 25 flights between UK airports – Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Edinburgh – and Brussels.

Eight flights between Heathrow and Brussels were cancelled by British Airways.

In London, police were carrying out extra patrols of airports, and advising passengers to check with their airlines before travelling.

Police officers perform security checks outside Fiumicino Airport near Rome today

A Gatwick spokesman said: ‘The safety of passengers and staff at Gatwick is the airport’s absolute priority. As a result of the terrible incidents in Brussels, we have increased our security presence and patrols around the airport.’

A spokesman for Heathrow Airport added: ‘We take the safety and security of our passengers and colleagues very seriously.

‘In the light of events in Brussels airport, we are working with the police at Heathrow who are providing a high visibility presence. We expect flights to Brussels Airport to be affected and ask passengers travelling there to check their flight status with their airline.’

Aeroports de Paris, which operates the Charles De Gaulle and Orly airports, said they were both operating as normal – but that extra security measures brought in following the terror attacks on the city in November were still in place and passengers should continue to allow an extra hour for checks.

France’s top security official, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, said the country was reinforcing security at airports, train stations and on metro services, and immediately increased its vigilance after the Belgian attacks.

France has been on highest alert since the November 13 attacks in Paris that left 130 dead.

The Dutch anti-terror authority said the threat level in the Netherlands was unchanged at ‘substantial’. It said extra security measures would be in place at the country’s airports and borders.

Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said authorities will re-evaluate security at Russian airports. In 2011, a suicide bombing at a Moscow airport killed 37 and injured many more.

Frank Brehany, consumer director of holiday consumer watchdog www.holidaytravelwatch.com said anyone travelling today should expect to see a heightened sense of police visibility and security measures.

‘We are all used to seeing armed police and military working around airports and I think this will be much more evident today,’ he told MailOnline. ‘It’s a consequence of the times we live in and most reasonable travellers and holidaymakers will accept this sadly – although with a heavy heart.

‘It’s a sign of the times we live in and until such time these issues are resolves this will be something we have to live with.’

He said that passengers travelling around the world today should be aware that they may face disruption such as cancellations and delays, but said those in airports outside of Brussels should still expect to be looked after by their airlines.

There was a heavy security presence at both Heathrow and Gatwick in London as police carried out high visibility patrols

Passengers were being advised to give extra time for baggage checks and checking in

‘It’s one of those thorny issues because most people’s thoughts are not on consumer rights at a time like this – but they do still have consumer rights,’ he said.

‘I don’t think anyone would dispute that these are extraordinary circumstances, but airlines are still obliged to provide passengers with the care they are entitled to.

‘Compensation is a more difficult subject – there will be disruption around Europe, and that could be down to air traffic control in a situation like this. This is akin to an act of God or a force majeure and airlines and passengers weren’t to know something like this was coming.’

Raffaello Pantucci, an international security expert for the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) said attacks on airport usually suggest an international terrorism plot, as they are high profile targets which can undermine global security.

However, he said it would not surprise him if today’s blasts were linked to the arrest last week of he arrest of Salah Abdeslam, the quartermaster for the Paris massacres.

‘At this point, there has not been a claim of responsibility,’ he said.

‘An airport usually suggests international terrorism, but it would not surprise me if it was linked with the wider community around that network.’

On the issue of airport security, he said: ‘Most airports you cannot get in without layers of security.

‘They have long been targets and they are quite hard targets. The reality is, they are also high profile targets.

‘If you can launch an attack there, you are striking at the international border and getting a lot of attention.

‘If you attack that, you undermine the global security.’

But he said more security measures could be rolled out at European airports, pointing to countries which have been afflicted by terrorism, like Pakistan.

He said: ‘There is also more you can do. You can push out more security.

‘In international airports, the security really starts a lot earlier, such as when people come to the car park.

‘You see that a lot in the third world, where countries have had problems. The first barrier people have is much further.’

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