AFP ,Brussels :
Brussels airport said it would not reopen yesterday despite drills to test resuming partial services after the suicide bombings that struck its departure hall and a metro train, as Belgium lowered the death toll to 32. Zaventem airport has been closed since twin bombings wrecked the departure hall on March 22, in coordinated suicide attacks that were claimed by the Islamic State group and which also hit Maalbeek metro station in central Brussels.
A total of 32 people were killed in Belgium’s worst-ever attacks, the government said, down from an earlier toll of 35 following confusion between two lists of people who had died at the scene and in hospital. “After thorough verification: number of victims goes down to 32. Still 94 people in hospital,” Health Minister Maggie de Block tweeted.
Hundreds of employees returned to the airport Tuesday for a large-scale test run to determine if services could partially resume from Wednesday-but those hopes were dashed. Airport spokeswoman Anke Fransen said authorities were reviewing the results of the practice run, adding: “We hope to reach a decision on a partial reopening of the airport in the course of (Wednesday) morning.”
Brussels airport said it would not reopen yesterday despite drills to test resuming partial services after the suicide bombings that struck its departure hall and a metro train, as Belgium lowered the death toll to 32. Zaventem airport has been closed since twin bombings wrecked the departure hall on March 22, in coordinated suicide attacks that were claimed by the Islamic State group and which also hit Maalbeek metro station in central Brussels.
A total of 32 people were killed in Belgium’s worst-ever attacks, the government said, down from an earlier toll of 35 following confusion between two lists of people who had died at the scene and in hospital. “After thorough verification: number of victims goes down to 32. Still 94 people in hospital,” Health Minister Maggie de Block tweeted.
Hundreds of employees returned to the airport Tuesday for a large-scale test run to determine if services could partially resume from Wednesday-but those hopes were dashed. Airport spokeswoman Anke Fransen said authorities were reviewing the results of the practice run, adding: “We hope to reach a decision on a partial reopening of the airport in the course of (Wednesday) morning.”
