Alleged Scheme to Target Belgian Prime Minister Thwarted
Belgian police have detained three people suspected of conspiring to carry out an assault on the country's premier, Bart de Wever.
Prosecutors characterized the suspected scheme as a terrorist act motivated by jihadist ideology targeting the PM and additional politicians.
During raids conducted in Antwerp's Deurne district, in proximity to the prime minister's home, investigators uncovered a potential IED and indications that the suspects were intending to employ a drone.
While the planned victims of the assault were not disclosed by name by the legal authorities, Second-in-command Maxime Prevot revealed that de Wever was among them.
"Information of a planned assault aimed at Premier Bart de Wever is deeply alarming," the official declared in a update on online platforms on the day of the arrests.
"This underscores that we are facing a serious terrorist threat and that we have to remain vigilant," he continued.
The three individuals detained on allegations of terrorism-related attempted murder and engagement in the operations of a terrorist group all live in the Antwerp region, per the legal authorities. They were had birth years in three different years between 2001 and 2007.
As of Thursday evening, one of the individuals was freed, while the other suspects were under interrogation and expected to be presented before a court on Friday.
Legal authorities said that the accused were detained after a court official authorized raids of their dwellings in the location by police officers backed by explosives-trained dogs.
It was during these raids that they found a device which closely resembled a homemade bomb, lead prosecutor Ann Fransen said at a media briefing on Thursday.
Raids also revealed a collection of ball bearings and a 3D printer, with evidence suggesting drone-based payload delivery, she noted.
The official said that there had been 80 terrorism investigations initiated in the nation so far this year - exceeding the total number of investigations in 2024.
Earlier this year, five individuals were sentenced for a 2023 plot to target Belgium's leader while he was holding the position of the mayor of Antwerp.
