Three teenagers were arrested in France on Monday in connection with a terror investigation underway in Belgium. This is what Le Journal de Dimanche writes. On Sunday, four teenagers were arrested in our country for possibly planning an attack on the Brussels Botanique concert hall.
Source: BELGA
Yesterday at 9:18 PM
The French intelligence service arrested three minors on Monday as part of a terrorism investigation. The three, aged between 15 and 17, are associated with an investigation currently underway in our country into a possible foiled attack. The three minors were not directly involved in the plans for an attack, it said. They did adhere to the same Islamist ideology, according to the source, who confirms reporting from the Journal du Dimanche. According to French media, the three were in contact with four young people who were arrested in our country on Sunday.
The Belgian federal police raided four addresses on Sunday morning. They arrested four teenagers, between the ages of 15 and 18. The youngest in Ninove in East Flanders, the oldest in Liège. The other two lived in Brussels and Charleroi. From their conversations in an online chat group, it could be concluded that they had been radicalized. There were reportedly discussions about committing a terrorist attack, which also included the name ‘Islamic State’.
It was not immediately clear whether there was really a concrete plan, but the four had already set a date. Because that date was approaching, the court decided to arrest them preventively on Sunday morning. It was confirmed to our editors that the Botanique concert hall may have been their target.
The adult suspect was placed under an arrest warrant by the investigating judge in Brussels and charged with participation in the activities of a terrorist group and preparatory acts with a view to committing a terrorist attack. The three minor suspects have been made available to an investigating judge in Dendermonde, but no further information has been given about their fate.