Alleged Plot to Target Belgian Premier Foiled
Belgium's police have detained three people suspected of conspiring to carry out an strike on the nation's premier, Bart de Wever.
Federal prosecutors characterized the alleged plot as a terrorist act motivated by jihadist ideology targeting the prime minister and fellow elected representatives.
During searches conducted in Deurne, Antwerp, close to the premier's personal dwelling, investigators found a potential IED and proof that the individuals were preparing to deploy a unmanned aerial vehicle.
While the prospective targets of the strike were not officially named by the federal prosecutors, Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prevot revealed that the prime minister was among them.
"The news of a intended assault directed toward Premier Bart de Wever is profoundly disturbing," Prevot declared in a post on social media on the investigation day.
"It emphasizes that we are dealing with a very real extremist danger and that we have to remain vigilant," he continued.
The three individuals arrested on allegations of plotting a terrorist killing and engagement in the activities of a jihadist network all reside in the Antwerp region, according to the prosecutor's office. They were with years of birth in three different years between 2001 and 2007.
On Thursday evening, one of the individuals was let go, while two others were under interrogation and scheduled to appear in court on the next day.
Legal authorities revealed that the suspects were taken into custody after a judge authorized searches of their homes in the location by officials assisted by bomb detection canines.
It was during these investigations that they found a object which closely resembled a homemade bomb, legal representative Ann Fransen said at a news conference on Thursday.
Investigations also uncovered a "bag of steel balls" and a additive manufacturing device, with evidence suggesting drone-based payload delivery, she noted.
The official disclosed that there had been 80 extremist probes initiated in the nation so far this year - exceeding the overall count of cases in last year.
During the spring, five individuals were found guilty for a scheme last year to attack De Wever while he was serving as the mayor of Antwerp.
