Alleged Plan to Target Belgian Prime Minister Thwarted
Belgian police have detained three individuals suspected of planning an attack on the country's premier, Bart de Wever.
Federal prosecutors labeled the suspected plot as a extremist assault with jihadist roots targeting the prime minister and other politicians.
During searches conducted in Deurne, Antwerp, in proximity to the PM's personal dwelling, officials discovered a alleged IED and indications that the individuals were intending to deploy a drone.
While the planned victims of the assault were not disclosed by name by the prosecutor's office, Vice Premier Maxime Prevot confirmed that the prime minister was among them.
"Information of a intended attack aimed at PM Bart de Wever is extremely shocking," Prevot stated in a message on social media on the day of the arrests.
"It emphasizes that we are facing a very real extremist danger and that we have to stay alert," he concluded.
The three people taken into custody on suspicion of terrorism-related attempted murder and involvement in the activities of a terrorist group all live in the city of Antwerp, per the prosecutor's office. They were had birth years in the early 2000s.
As of Thursday evening, one suspect was let go, while the remaining two were undergoing questioning and expected to be presented before a court on the following day.
Legal authorities said that the accused were detained after a court official directed searches of their residences in the location by officials assisted by explosive sniffer dogs.
Throughout these investigations that they found a device which closely resembled a homemade bomb, legal representative Ann Fransen announced at a press conference on Thursday.
Raids also revealed a container of metal spheres and a three-dimensional printer, with "indications that they intended to use a drone to attach a payload", she continued.
The prosecutor disclosed that there had been 80 extremist probes opened in the country so far this year - exceeding the total number of investigations in the previous year.
In April, five suspects were found guilty for a 2023 plot to strike De Wever while he was serving as the mayor of Antwerp.
