Belgian rail strike to halt international trains on Friday

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A rail strike in the greater Brussels region on Thursday and Friday will halt most international high-speed trains between Belgium, Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands, rail operators said. Belgian rail operator SNCB/NMBS said the strike, called by the socialist rail union to protest over working conditions, would run from Thursday evening until Friday evening and would severely disrupt national services as many national trains run through the capital. High-speed rail operator Thalys, with services to France, Germany and the Netherlands, said it had canceled two late trains on Thursday and all but two trains on Friday. Eurostar said it had canceled all trains to Brussels on Friday and was operating a limited service on the Brussels-London line terminating at Lille in northern France. It had also scrapped one late train on Thursday. (Reporting by Robert-Jan Bartunek; editing by Barbara Lewis)