Belgium Links Iran to Terror Attacks on Jewish Targets

Belgium's top security official has directly implicated Iran in two terrorist attacks targeting Jewish sites in the country last May. Geert Vermeulen, head of Belgium's Threat Analysis Coordination Unit (CUTA), stated in an interview with RTBF that the perpetrators of the attacks acted "certainly" on Tehran's orders, aiming to strike Jewish targets globally.

Last May, an explosive device detonated near a synagogue in Liege, and in the same week, a car was set ablaze in Antwerp's Jewish quarter. No injuries were reported in either incident. Vermeulen emphasized that these were not isolated acts of vandalism but part of a coordinated campaign, noting similar incidents in the Netherlands and Britain during the same period.

Intelligence services have thwarted several simultaneous plots, including one to bomb a synagogue in Hemstede, Netherlands. Belgium maintains its national terror threat level at "serious," the third of four levels, which has been in place since the October 2023 Brussels shooting that killed Swedish football fans.

CUTA relies on continuous intelligence to assess radicalization and threats within Belgium. In May, Turkish authorities arrested Saad Daoud Al-Saadi, suspected of being a key organizer of attacks across Europe, dismantling a major cell in the network. No further attacks have been recorded by Belgian security services since his apprehension.