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Suspicious powder found at Brussels Grand Mosque ‘not nuclear’

Belgian authorities have launched a raid in southern Belgium linked to the Paris attacks but did not detain any suspects.

The raid in Sambreville, 80 kilometers  south of Brussels and close to the French border, was carried out around noon. The area was cordoned off and a mobile lab was on place.

The federal prosecutor’s office refused to divulge any further details.

A man is helped out of his hazmat suit as he stands near the Grand Mosque of Brussels, Thursday, Nov 26, 2015. Emergency personnel responded at the mosque after a suspicious package was found. AP Photo/Michael Probst

READ MORE: Brussels schools reopen, manhunt ongoing for Paris suspects

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A civil protection squad has decontaminated several people as a precaution at the main Brussels mosque after a suspicious parcel arrived.

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The person who opened the package discovered white powder and immediately contacted the authorities. A specialized crew from the fire department was sent, witnesses at the scene said.

Fire brigade Capt. Anne Wibin said 11 people underwent a precautionary decontamination until it could be exactly established what the powder is. She said it will take six hours to analyze the powder, but it is not radioactive.

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