Belgian interior minister slams 'anti-Semitic act' as police probe Liège synagogue explosion
- France 24
- 43 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Belgian authorities opened a probe after an explosion took place in front of a synagogue in the city of Liège early on Monday morning. The mayor described the blast, which caused damage to the synagogue and surrounding buildings, as "targeted" and "anti-Semitic".
March 9th 2026
Belgium's prime minister vowed to combat antisemitism on Monday, after a pre-dawn blast damaged a synagogue in eastern Belgium, with prosecutors in charge of organised crime and terrorism heading up the investigation.
The explosion took place around 4:00 am (0300 GMT) in front of the synagogue, causing no injuries, police said.
"Antisemitism 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 slammed a "despicable antisemitic act that directly targeted Belgium's Jewish community".
"Security measures around similar sites will continue to be expanded," Quintin said in a social media post.
Willy Demeyer, the mayor of Liege, where the synagogue is located, condemned what he described as "an antisemitic act".
"We cannot allow foreign conflicts to be imported into our city," he told public broadcaster RTBF, in a seeming reference to the Middle East war triggered by US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
'Material damage'
The pre-dawn explosion blew out the windows of buildings across the road from the synagogue, a police spokesman said, adding there was "only material damage".
A security perimeter was quickly erected, with police at the scene.
The federal prosecutor's office, which handles organised crime and terrorism cases, will lead the investigation, a spokeswoman told AFP.
The office is expected to release further information later on Monday.
Built in 1899, the Liege synagogue also serves as a museum for the history of the city's Jewish community, according to the temple's website.
Belgium's Jewish community numbers 50,000 people, mainly in Antwerp and Brussels, and Jewish places of worship have been subject to heightened security measures on occasion in recent years.
Belgium authorities had stepped up security measures after the Palestinian militant group Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.
Officials pointed to a rise in antisemitic acts in Belgium at that time.
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