Brussels Attacks: Two Americans Killed in Bombings

At least two Americans were among the 31 people killed in the double bombing in Brussels Tuesday, several media outlets including CBS News and Reuters reported, citing a U.S. official. However, the identities of the two Americans killed in the attacks are unknown.

In the wake of the attacks, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited Brussels Friday, pledging support to help both Belgium and the European Union in fighting Islamist threats. During his visit, Kerry also dismissed criticism Belgium had received for a failure to track militants before the attacks, as reported by Reuters.

Speaking alongside Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel, Kerry said, "In America, we remember very clearly how in the days after 9/11 Belgians and other Europeans came together around in this city, around the events of the World Trade Center and you showed your solidarity with us, with the victims in New York and Washington and Pennsylvania and then voices all across Europe declared, 'Je Suis Americain.' So now we declare, 'Je suis Bruxellois; ik ben Brussel.'"

"The United States, I want you to know, is praying and grieving with you for the loved ones of those who have been very cruelly taken from us, including Americans, and for the many who were injured in these despicable attacks," Kerry said.

Two Dutch citizens who had been living and working in New York City were also among those killed in the double bombing that occurred at the Brussels Airport and at a metro station. The brother and sister were identified as Sascha and Alexander Pinczowski.

The attacks put the United States on high alert, with major cities including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit taking extra security precautions at major airports and transit hubs. The State Department has issued a travel alert for Americans traveling to Europe this spring to avoid large crowds and take particular caution during holidays. The alert expires June 20.

On Friday, the Pentagon announced the death of "several key ISIS terrorists." Among those killed was Haji Iman, a top ISIS leader, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter told reporters at the Pentagon. Simultaneously, three people were arrested in raids in Brussels on Friday following the arrest of a French national linked to the ringleader of the November attacks in Paris.

Authorities continue to search for two suspected bombers in the Brussels attacks who may be on the run. A total of five men are believed to have played a part in Tuesday's bombings, three of whom are dead.

Photos Courtesy of Paula Borges-Stalker