Update: Suspect held after bomb scare in Brussels; no explosives found

[BRUSSELS] An anti-terror operation was underway at a shopping centre in central Brussels on Tuesday, Belgian prosecutors told the Belga News agency, adding that one suspect had been arrested.

No explosives were found.

The suspect called police on Tuesday morning to say that he was walking around with an explosives belt, according to Belga newswire.

After cordoning off an area, the bomb-disposal team determined that the device was a fake, the newswire said, citing a judicial source.

Prime Minister Charles Michel was holding an emergency meeting with members of his security cabinet, Belgian media reported.

The incident began at about 0430 GMT this morning (06:30am local time) after a report of a man acting suspiciously near the City 2 shopping centre triggered a bomb alert, broadcaster RTL reported.

A bomb squad team was deployed at the shopping centre, one of the main retail hubs of the Belgian capital.

Belgium is still reeling from the Islamic State suicide bombings at Brussels airport and on the city's metro on March 22 which killed 32 people and wounded hundreds more.

And the incident comes only days after Belgian authorities charged three men with "attempted terrorist murder" after raiding dozens of homes linked to a reported threat to fans during a Euro 2016 football game.

AFP/BLOOMBERG