Suspected Plot to Attack Belgian Prime Minister Foiled
Belgian authorities have arrested three people suspected of plotting an strike on the country's prime minister, Bart de Wever.
Federal prosecutors characterized the reported scheme as a "jihadist-inspired terrorist attack" targeting the prime minister and other politicians.
During searches conducted in Antwerp's Deurne district, close to the PM's home, authorities discovered a suspected homemade bomb and proof that the individuals were planning to deploy a UAV.
While the intended targets of the assault were not disclosed by name by the legal authorities, Vice Premier Maxime Prevot confirmed that de Wever was among them.
"Information of a planned strike directed toward Premier Bart de Wever is deeply alarming," the official wrote in a post on X on Thursday.
"It highlights that we are facing a serious extremist danger and that we have to keep watchful," he added.
The three individuals arrested on allegations of plotting a terrorist killing and involvement in the activities of a jihadist network all live in the city of Antwerp, as stated by the federal prosecutors. They were had birth years in the early 2000s.
On Thursday evening, one person was released, while two others were undergoing questioning and likely to be presented before a court on the following day.
Federal prosecutors stated that the accused were taken into custody after a judge directed searches of their homes in the city by law enforcement backed by explosives-trained dogs.
It was during these raids that they found a item which appeared to be an IED, legal representative Ann Fransen announced at a media briefing on Thursday.
Searches also revealed a collection of ball bearings and a additive manufacturing device, with signs of drone weaponization plans, she continued.
Fransen disclosed that there had been 80 extremist probes launched in the nation this year - exceeding the full amount of instances in 2024.
During the spring, five individuals were found guilty for a 2023 plot to target De Wever while he was acting as the mayor of Antwerp.
