Youths push car down metro stairs, one arrested

A group of young men pushed a small car down the stairs of the Clemenceau metro station in Brussels on Thursday night. The station was closed following the incident, shortly after 20.00. According to a report by Brussels public transport authority STIB, the perpetrators may have acted in response to the arrest of friend, writes Brusselnieuws.

No one was injured in the incident, but traffic on metro lines 2 and 6 was interrupted for about an hour between the stations of Osseghem and Porte de Hal. The Clemenceau station remained closed for the rest of the evening, as the car had to be removed via the metro tracks.  

Also in Anderlecht, vandals set fire to the municipal Christmas tree in front of the town hall.

Elsewhere, two people were seriously injured and police were called out to several violent incidents during Brussels' New Year's Eve celebrations. The two victims were hospitalised in a "worrying" condition after two separate knife fights.

Cars were torched in a number of Brussels streets, and some street lights vandalised. About 10 arrests were made for drunk and disorderly behaviour.

Brussels public transport operator STIB said it carried fewer passengers on New Year's Eve than in previous years. The city had cancelled its fireworks display and closed several main roads amid fears of a terrorist attack.

A group of 250 volunteers, going under the name Responsible Young Drivers, offered free car rides home to 1,700 partygoers.