Suicide bombers were on US terrorism lists, says report

The brothers, who carried out the airport and Metro suicide bombings in Belgium’s capital this week, were known to US authorities and listed in American terrorism databases, according to a media report. A NBC television report cited two unnamed US officials as saying that Ibrahim and Khalid El Bakraoui were listed as a “potential terror threat” in US databases but that they would not specify on “which of the many US terrorism databases the brothers were listed.” The National Counterterrorism Center, which coordinates US intelligence on extremist threats, did not respond to requests for comment.

Prior to the deadly attacks, the Belgian brothers had long rap sheets with criminal convictions related to carjackings, robberies and shoot-outs with police.