Belgium’s prime minister vowed to combat antisemitism after a pre-dawn explosion damaged a synagogue in the eastern city of Liege on Monday, as federal prosecutors who handle organized crime and terrorism took charge of the investigation. No injuries were reported.
Police said the blast occurred around 4 a.m. local time (3 a.m. Irish time) in front of the synagogue, blowing out windows in buildings across the street. Officers quickly established a security perimeter around the site. Authorities described the incident as causing “only material damage.”
- Advertisement -
“Anti-Semitism is an attack on our values and our society, and we must fight it unequivocally. We stand in solidarity with the Jewish community in Liege and across the country,” Prime Minister Bart De Wever said on social media.
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin condemned what he called a “despicable antisemitic act that directly targeted Belgium’s Jewish community.”
Liege Mayor Willy Demeyer also denounced the blast as “an anti-Semitic act.” In comments to public broadcaster RTBF, he cautioned against importing external conflicts into the city. “We cannot allow foreign conflicts to be imported into our city,” he said, in a seeming reference to the Middle East war that he linked to U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.
A spokeswoman said Belgium’s federal prosecutor’s office, which leads probes into organized crime and terrorism, will direct the investigation. Further information is expected later today as forensic teams assess the scene and review early evidence, including possible surveillance footage.
The Liege synagogue, built in 1899, also functions as a museum chronicling the history of the city’s Jewish community, according to the temple’s website. The building is part of a network of Jewish religious and cultural sites that have faced periods of heightened security in recent years.
Belgium’s Jewish community numbers about 50,000 people, concentrated largely in Antwerp and Brussels. Authorities stepped up protection around synagogues and other community sites after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the war in Gaza that followed. Officials reported an uptick in antisemitic incidents in Belgium during that period and pledged stricter monitoring and rapid-response measures around sensitive locations.
Monday’s blast in Liege prompted fresh calls from national and local officials to bolster security around Jewish institutions and ensure swift accountability. While investigators have not publicly identified a motive, the decision to task federal prosecutors who deal with terrorism underscores the seriousness of the case and the government’s intent to treat potential hate crimes with the highest priority.
As officers and prosecutors work to establish the source and exact circumstances of the explosion, community leaders and authorities urged calm and vigilance. Additional patrols were seen in the area in the hours after the incident, and police said they would maintain an enhanced presence while the investigation continues.
Officials encouraged anyone with information or camera footage from the vicinity of the synagogue around the time of the explosion to contact authorities. The federal prosecutor’s office said updates would be provided as soon as they are available.
The incident adds to concern across Europe about security at religious sites amid geopolitical tensions and the spread of hate speech online. In Belgium, leaders on Monday framed the response in stark terms: a renewed commitment to protect freedom of worship and to confront antisemitism wherever it appears.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
