Belgian man charged with Charleroi machete attack

Brussels (dpa) - The state prosecutor in Brussels on Tuesday charged a 43-year-old man with Belgian nationality with attempted terrorist murder in connection with the machete attack on two police officers in the city of Charleroi.The man has also been charged with belonging to a terrorist organization, the prosecutor said on Tuesday.The man was arrested last week.Two female police officers were attacked in August with a machete and injured, one of them seriously.The police gunned down the main suspect, who died shortly afterwards in hospital. Earlier reports said he was a 33-year-old Algerian, who had been living in Belgium since 2012.The Islamic State terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack and said via its Amaq media outlet that the shot man was one of its "soldiers."Police searched various houses in the Flanders region in connection with the incident, including in the cities of Antwerp and Bruges.Eight people were arrested on suspicion of providing financial support to Islamic State, among other crimes. No weapons or explosives were found during the searches.