Alleged Plan to Attack Belgian PM Thwarted
Belgium's law enforcement have taken into custody three individuals allegedly involved in conspiring to carry out an assault on the country's premier, Bart de Wever.
Prosecutors labeled the reported plan as a "jihadist-inspired terrorist attack" targeting the PM and other elected representatives.
During investigations conducted in the Deurne area of Antwerp, close to the premier's personal dwelling, investigators discovered a potential IED and evidence that the individuals were preparing to deploy a UAV.
While the planned victims of the strike were not officially named by the federal prosecutors, Second-in-command Maxime Prevot revealed that de Wever was among them.
"Information of a intended strike targeting PM Bart de Wever is deeply alarming," Prevot wrote in a message on social media on the day of the arrests.
"It highlights that we are confronting a genuine terrorist threat and that we have to remain vigilant," he continued.
The three individuals arrested on suspicion of attempted terrorist murder and participation in the functions of a jihadist network all are based in the city of Antwerp, according to the prosecutor's office. They were born in the early 2000s.
As of Thursday evening, one person was freed, while two others were still being questioned and likely to appear in court on the following day.
Legal authorities said that the suspects were taken into custody after a magistrate ordered inspections of their dwellings in the location by officials assisted by explosives-trained dogs.
Throughout these investigations that they found a device which closely resembled a homemade bomb, lead prosecutor Ann Fransen stated at a news conference on that day.
Searches also revealed a container of metal spheres and a 3D printer, with "indications that they intended to use a drone to attach a payload", she added.
The official said that there had been eighty counter-terrorism cases launched in the country this year - surpassing the total number of investigations in last year.
During the spring, five individuals were sentenced for a 2023 plot to strike De Wever while he was holding the position of Antwerp's mayor.
