In Video: Brussels Lone Wolf Shooter Claims To Be ISIS Soldier Who Killed Swedes To Avenge Muslims

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In the evening of October 16, 2023, a gunman armed with an automatic rifle shot and killed two Swedish nationals in Brussels. The Swedish national football team was scheduled to play a match against Belgium at the Heysel stadium, only five kilometers from the area of the attack. As of this writing, the perpetrator is reportedly still at large.

Soon after the incident, the prolific pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel Bariqah News shared footage of the attacker in which he claims responsibility for the double murder. The video, circulating on social networks Telegram and X (formerly Twitter), shows a man in a fluorescent orange jacket and baseball cap apparently leaving the area on foot, where he arrived riding a scooter. The attack happened near Place Sainctelette, in the northern districts of the Belgian capital.

Speaking in North African Arabic, possibly Tunisian dialect, the attacker said in the video that he is an ISIS soldier who avenged Muslims.

It is likely that the attack came in response to the Quran burning incidents in Sweden in July 2023, and earlier in February by Danish-Swedish politician Rasmus Paludan in Sweden and Denmark.[1]

"I Killed Three And Avenged Muslims"

In a first video, after prefatory religious remarks, the attacker said: "I am Abdessalam Al-Jilani Miftah Lassoued, a mujahid for the sake of Allah within the Islamic State, whether you like it or not. We live for our religion and die for the sake of it. Praise be to Allah, your brother Abdessalam avenged Muslims and killed three Swedes. By Allah's permission, I will meet my Lord and my Prophet all happy, Allah willing."[2]

ISIS Soldier And A Pledge Of Allegiance To Current "Caliph Of Muslims"

In a second video, Al-Jilani appeared in an indoor setting, face wrapped in a red kaffiyeh, saying he is "a soldier of the Islamic State," before reciting the customary jihadi pledge of allegiance to "Shaykh, Emir, and Caliph of Muslims Abu Hafs Al-Hashimi Al-Qurashi, may Allah protect him."[3] It is not clear whether the second video was recorded before or after the attack.

Another video filmed by phone from the balcony of a nearby building was shared by Bariqah News. It shows the attacker on his scooter, fleeing the scene and shouting in Arabic: "Allah is greatest."

Pro-ISIS Media Outlet Praised Attacker As "Hero"

Commenting on Al-Jilani's act and remarks, the channel praised his "bravery," claiming that the attack will infuriate the "apostate Al-Qaeda" and supporters of Iran's "minions," a reference to Hamas, which has been endorsed by Al-Qaeda General Command[4] and its affiliates in the Maghreb, Sahel, Somalia, and Yemen.[5]

The channel praised the attacker as a "hero," praying to Allah to preserve him wherever he may be, adding: "The lion's roaring will hurt many fake Muslims who falsely and hypocritically claim to belong Islam."