May 29 (UPI) — A gunman shot dead two police officers Tuesday after taking a woman hostage in Belgium, authorities said.
The shooter, released from jail Monday, was on leave for a short period of time when the standoff in the town of Liege began.
Officials said two female police officers stopped the 30-year-old gunman. He disarmed one of the women and began shooting — killing both officers and a 22-year-old female bystander.
The attacker fled from the scene and took a cleaning woman hostage at the entrance of a nearby high school, authorities said. Two police officers were injured in a shootout there and the gunman was killed. The hostage was not harmed.
A teacher at the school, identified as Vincent by Belgian outlet La Libre, said he evacuated more than 800 students from the building.
Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel condemned the violence.
“Violence cowardly and blind,” Michel said in a tweet. “All our support for the victims and their loved ones. We are monitoring the situation with the security services and the crisis center.”
Belgian Interior Minister Jan Jambon said the country’s anti-terrorist crisis center is monitoring the situation.
Belgian authorities consider the shooting to be a terror attack.
Liege is an industrial city close to the German border in the French-speaking Wallonia region of Belgium.
