Counter Terrorism units wait out at the neighbourhood in Belgium,where four armed men have taken a man hostage.
Counter Terrorism units wait out at the neighbourhood in Belgium,where four armed men have taken a man hostage.Twitter

A new hostage crisis has broken out in Ghent, Belgium, where four armed men have taken at least one person hostage.

A Reuters report citing the state persecution service said that the four gunmen have taken a hostage in an apartment but stated that there was no indication that it was a terrorist act.

Police were, reportedly, called in by an eyewitness after the four men were seen entering the building in the Dampoort district of the city on Monday morning.

A Fox News report noted that the police have blocked off a wide area around the building. However, even after two hours of being on the scene, the police was unclear on the intention behind the act.

A local journalist working with the VRT Journal, Djamel Zerrouk @DjamelZerrouk, however, stated on Twitter that the "#Hostage taking in #ghent possibly drugs related".

He further added: "If I know the neighbourhood a little bit the #hostage taking in #Ghent is much more likely to be organised crime related than terrorism."