Belgian PM suffers hearing damage from gunshot

Belgium's prime minister Charles Michel on Tuesday postponed a parliament meeting in order to seek medical treatment for hearing damage incurred at the start of Sunday's 20km of Brussels, his spokesman confirmed.

Michel was standing next to Princess Astrid at the start of the annual running event, when the princess fired the starting pistol. Initially, the prime minister appeared to have gotten off with only a fright, but he later had a medical examination for his ringing ears.

"The prime minister must follow a number of treatments within 48 hours of the incident," reported his spokesman Barend Leyts.