Man detained by police after wires spotted hanging from his coat

A man was detained by police in Brussels after being spotted with wires hanging from his coat.

Police kept the man under armed police guard for several hours in the central part of Brussels, near a library adjacent to Royal Monnaie Opera in the Belgian capital.

Shops nearby were evacuated and nearby streets closed off during the operation, and a bomb squad had been kept on standby.

Roads were closed off during the operation Credit: PA

A statement from Belgian police said that the man was an "innocent student" wearing a belt with wires to carry out research about air waves in Brussels.

The incident comes as Belgium remains on high alert after 32 people were killed in suicide blasts at Brussels Airport and Brussels train station in March.

Security in Brussels has been stepped up ahead of Thursday's independence day celebrations, after an attack in Nice on Bastille Day left 84 people dead and many injured.