Death Toll in Belgian Attack Climbs to Six

Posted December 23rd, 2011 at 12:05 pm (UTC-5)
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A hospital in the Belgian city of Liege says a 20-year-old man wounded in a grenade and shooting rampage last week has died, raising the death toll in the killing spree to six.

The young man sustained critical head injuries when a gunman threw hand grenades and opened fire with an assault rifle on Saint Lambert Square, a busy shopping area in the eastern Belgian city.

The dead included two teenage boys, an elderly woman, and a child under two years old, who died while being treated for injuries. More than 120 others were wounded in the attack.

The attacker, identified as Nordine Amrani, later committed suicide.

Belgian police said they found the body of a woman whom Amrani had killed earlier in a building near his home.

Authorities say Amrani had been convicted in the past of drug and illegal arms possession, among other crimes. They say he had never been linked to terrorist activity. Police have not explained his motive for the attack. However, officials said Amrani had been summoned for police questioning the morning of the attack.