On Tuesday, March 22, many people all over the world felt the impact and shock of the Brussels explosions. Three nail bombs were set off across the city of Brussels. Two bombs were in the Brussels airport, Zaventem. The third explosion was in the Maalbeek metro station, which was located extremely close to multiple European Union institutions. A fourth bomb was later found while police searched the airport.
Through these attacks, at least 35 people were killed and over 300 were injured. This is Belgium’s single largest terrorist attack to have occurred in the country. The terrorist group who claimed to have carried out the attacks in Brussels is the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Following the attacks, Belgium declared three days of national mourning. Two suspects have been arrested, but one has been released so far. As for other countries, many European countries have stepped up on their airport and metro station security to ensure safety for their people.
But what do the Brussels attacks have to do with us? We see the horrible things that have happened to Brussels on the television. We watch the news and continually learn more and more about who attacked Brussels, why the attacks happened, and how many people died. We take a long look at all of this and we realize that as Americans, we can relate to these attacks in a huge way. The attacks on Brussels were Belgium’s deadliest terrorist attack to have ever hit the country. Similarly, the terrorist attacks on the twin towers in New York City on September 11th were America’s most deadly terrorist attack in the country’s history.
In this way, America and Belgium are linked. We can both remember exactly where we were when the terrorist attacks hit our country. Many Americans have flashbulb memories of 9/11. They can tell you exactly where they were around 9 that morning, what they were doing when they first saw one of the planes fly into the twin towers, and precisely how they were feeling while they watched the attacks being brought upon their country. I was in Kindergarten when 9/11 occurred. Even at that young age, I still remember my mom picking my sister and I up from school. I remember how everyone was very solemn and the teachers looked very unsettled. As a five-year-old, I knew that something wasn’t right.
Men, women and children all over Belgium will feel this same way when they think back to March 22, 2016. They will remember accurately where they were and what they were doing when they realized that their country was under attack. The scope of these attacks will stay with these people for the rest of their lives, just like 9/11 will stay with Americans. These attacks are not something to be taken lightly due to the fact that they impact not only the country that is attacked, but it impacts the entire world. The whole world is on a stand still when a major attack happens, such as this. When the Paris attacks occurred, the world stood still.
When bombings and terrorist attacks such as this happen, countries and people all over the world can help each other out. When something of this magnitude happens to a country, we all feel for them. We know what they are going through and we send a little prayer that way. As Americans, we can help Belgium by knowing that we have been through the same thing. Americans can give Belgium a little solace by knowing that we have survived the worst terrorist attack in our history and we grew stronger from it. We picked ourselves up, brushed ourselves off, and faced the problem head on knowing that this horrible attack would change us in many ways.
