🔗 Share this article Alleged Scheme to Strike Belgian Premier Thwarted Belgian law enforcement have taken into custody three suspects allegedly involved in plotting an attack on the nation's premier, Bart de Wever. Prosecutors labeled the suspected plot as a terrorist act motivated by jihadist ideology targeting the prime minister and fellow elected representatives. During searches conducted in Deurne, Antwerp, near the prime minister's personal dwelling, authorities found a alleged IED and indications that the suspects were preparing to deploy a drone. While the intended targets of the strike were not publicly identified by the legal authorities, Second-in-command Maxime Prevot stated that de Wever was included in the targets. "Reports of a planned assault directed toward Premier Bart de Wever is profoundly disturbing," Prevot wrote in a post on online platforms on the investigation day. "It emphasizes that we are dealing with a very real terrorism risk and that we have to stay alert," he concluded. The three people arrested on charges of plotting a terrorist killing and involvement in the functions of a terrorist group all reside in Antwerp, as stated by the prosecutor's office. They were born in 2001, 2002 and 2007. As of late Thursday, one person was let go, while the other suspects were still being questioned and expected to appear in court on the next day. Legal authorities stated that the individuals were taken into custody after a court official ordered raids of their dwellings in the city by law enforcement supported by explosive sniffer dogs. Throughout these searches that they discovered a device which closely resembled a homemade bomb, federal prosecutor Ann Fransen stated at a press conference on Thursday. Investigations also revealed a "bag of steel balls" and a three-dimensional printer, with signs of drone weaponization plans, she continued. The official said that there had been 80 terrorism investigations launched in Belgium so far this year - more than the total number of instances in 2024. During the spring, five suspects were convicted for a previous year's plan to target De Wever while he was serving as the city's chief executive.