Belgium charges Antwerp suspect with 'attempted terrorist murder' over failed car attack on shopping crowd

Prosecutors note timing of incident a day after the Westminster attack

A forensics expert stands next to a car which entered the main pedestrian shopping street in Antwerp (Reuters)

Belgian prosecutors are investigating an attempt to mow down pedestrians in Antwerp as a failed terror attack.

The federal prosecutor's office in Brussels has charged the suspect with "attempted murder of a terrorist nature, attempted terror assault and battery and weapons legislation violations".

The arrested man, who remains in custody, has been named as Mohamed R, a 39-year-old Tunisian national who lived in France.

No one was injured in the incident at around 10.45am local time (9.45am GMT) on Thursday, a day after a suspected Isis supporter murdered four people in Westminster before being shot dead.

Belgium's federal public prosecutor's office said a France-registered car was driven "at a very high speed" in Antwerp's main shopping street of Meir.

"At several times, pedestrians were put at risk," a spokesperson said. "When soldiers attempted to intercept the vehicle, it fled."

The car was later found and its driver arrested, with knives, a shotgun and a cannister containing an undetermined substance in the boot.

Belgian media reported that police found the suspect asleep in his car after the chase and he was too intoxicated to be immediately interviewed.

Prosecutors noted that the attempted attack happened a day after the car ramming and stabbing in London.

Khalid Masood killed three people when he ploughed his car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge on Wednesday.

He then crashed the vehicle into gates next to the Houses of Parliament, launching himself into a nearby entrance and fatally stabbing a police officer before being shot dead.

Isis claimed responsibility for the attack, which followed detailed instructions released on the group's propaganda channels on how to carry out knife and vehicle attacks.

French President Francois Hollande compared the incidents in Antwerp and London, saying the man was “trying to kill people or create a dramatic event” in Belgium.

Authorities immediately raised security in the centre of Antwerp as Charles Michel, the Belgian Prime Minister, said authorities would remain “extremely vigilant”.

“Our security services have done excellent work,” he added.

The alleged attack came a day after the one year anniversary of Isis' attacks in Brussels, which were marked with nationwide remembrance services.

More than 30 people were killed in bombings at Brussels Airport and Molenbeek metro station, with Belgium in a state of high alert since the Paris attacks in November 2015.