Seven arrested in Belgium over March synagogue bombing in Liège amid terrorism probe

Belgian federal authorities arrested seven people on Thursday in a series of coordinated searches as part of a terrorism investigation into the explosive attack on a synagogue in Liège on 9 March. The arrests were carried out under the direction of an investigating judge handling the federal terrorism case. The federal prosecutor's office confirmed the operation but declined to give any details beyond the number of people taken into custody. The searches took place at multiple locations, but authorities have not disclosed where or the identities of the seven people arrested.

“At this stage and in the interest of the investigation, no further information can be communicated.”

The March attack

In the early hours of 9 March, shortly before 04:00, an explosive device detonated at the main entrance of the synagogue on rue Léon Frédéricq in Liège. The blast blew out the building's windows and door, and also shattered glass in several neighboring homes. No one was injured, but the material damage was extensive. Belgian authorities denounced the attack as a heinous antisemitic act.

“a heinous antisemitic act”

Investigation and earlier arrests

Today's arrests come nearly four months after the explosion and mark a new acceleration in the probe. In May, a man suspected of having ordered the attack was arrested in Turkey by U.S. authorities. Two days after the Liège explosion, the federal prosecutor's office said it was analyzing a video possibly made by jihadists that claimed responsibility for the bombing, though its authenticity was not immediately confirmed.

Broader context and similar attacks

The attack occurred against the backdrop of escalating tensions in the Middle East. On 28 February, the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran, triggering reprisals by Tehran in the form of missile and drone attacks on Gulf states. Thousands of people, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, have been killed in the ensuing conflict. A few days after the Liège attack, at least two similar criminal acts targeted Jewish-linked sites in the Netherlands, including a school in Amsterdam. While no official link has been established between the events, claim videos shared on social media by groups identified as pro-Iranian fueled speculation of coordination. The United Kingdom also experienced a series of attacks on Jews and Jewish sites around the same period, according to Flemish broadcaster VRT.

Security measures

In response to the attack and the wider threat level, Belgium decided to deploy military personnel to guard synagogues and Jewish schools in the country.