Car burning in Antwerp Jewish quarter prompts ‘terror’ probe

Two minors have been taken into custody on suspicion of links to a “terrorist” organisation after a car was set ablaze overnight in Antwerp’s Jewish quarter, the city’s public prosecutor said.

The arrests come amid a wave of incidents across Europe targeting Jewish communities since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran, including an explosive attack that struck a synagogue in Liège earlier this month.

Prosecutors said a judge is probing the two suspects on charges of arson and “participation in the activities of a terrorist group,” based on initial findings in the inquiry.

“A claim video circulating online has been added to the case file,” it added

The Antwerp blaze broke out shortly after 11.30pm yesterday, and police arrested the two city residents about 15 minutes later.

The aftermath of a parked car which was set on fire last night in the Jewish quarter of Antwerp

The vehicle had been parked in the diamond district, which is home to much of Antwerp’s Orthodox Jewish population.

Speaking to Flemish public broadcaster VRT at the scene, the car’s owner — identified only by her first name, Fatia, who did not disclose her religion — said items had been taken from the vehicle before it was set on fire.

European security services have been on heightened alert for attacks tied to the Middle East conflict.

SITE Intelligence Group, which tracks jihadist activity worldwide, reported that a recently formed group calling itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI), translated as The Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand, released a video claiming responsibility for the Antwerp fire.

The same group, SITE said, posted another video asserting it had carried out an arson attack that destroyed four Jewish community ambulances near a synagogue in London overnight Sunday into Monday — a claim now under examination by UK authorities.

Four ambulances were set alight at around 1.45am in the Golders Green area of London (Photo: Chaskel Bennett)

HAYI previously circulated videos claiming responsibility for a 9 March explosive attack outside the Liège synagogue and for separate nighttime incidents on 13 and 14 March that targeted a synagogue and then a Jewish school in the Netherlands; none of those incidents resulted in injuries.

Belgian prosecutors said after the Liège blast that they were scrutinising an apparent jihadist video claiming the attack, while treating the material cautiously as part of a broader investigation.

SITE characterises HAYI as pro‑Iranian, and the Dutch-based International Centre for Counter‑Terrorism noted that the London claim video circulated on accounts linked to pro‑Iranian Shia militias.

In response to the Liège explosion, the Belgian government has bolstered protection around Jewish sites: from Monday, soldiers have been deployed to support police patrols around synagogues, schools and daycare centres in Antwerp and Brussels.