Just days after celebrating the capture and arrest of Salah Abdeslam, one of the key players in the Paris terrorist attacks that killed 130 last November, Brussels, Belgium has been thrown back into chaos after a series of vicious terrorist attacks killed at least 34 and injured another 170, including three LDS missionaries.
Three coordinated attacks ravaged Belgium's capitol early Tuesday, all within an hour of one another. At least one of the bombings was caused by a suicide attack, according to the New York Times.
The first two bombings occurred at the Brussels Airport departure area just before 8 a.m., killing at least 14. The next attack occurred about an hour later at the Maelbeek subway station, killing at least 20.
In response to the bombings, the First Presidency of the Church promptly issued this statement:
With much of the world, we awoke this morning to the heartbreaking news of the bombings in Belgium. Our prayers are with the families of the deceased and injured, including three of our missionaries who were injured and hospitalized. We also pray for the people of Belgium and France as they continue to deal with the uncertainty and devastation caused by the recent terrorist attacks.
Although there has been no official claim as to who planned the attacks and no certain link has been made between Abdeslam's arrest and the bombings, many ISIS supporters celebrated these deadly terror attacks publicly on social media, according to CNN.
Belgium's Prime Minister Charles Michel called these bombings "blind, violent and cowardly," according to BBC news. He then went on to say: "This is a day of tragedy, a black day . . . I would like to call on everyone to show calmness and solidarity."