The Threat Analysis Coordination Body OCAD has decided that the terror threat alert level in Belgium should remain at 3, the second highest level on OCAD’s 4-level scale. The decision to keep the terror threat alert level at 3 means that Belgium will not be following France in raising the country’s state of alert. Meanwhile, in the light of last Friday evening’s attack in Moscow, the Belgian Justice Minister Paul Van Tigchelt (Flemish liberal) says that ISKP now forms the greatest Islamist threat to security here.
Terror threat alert level in Belgium remains at 3, Justice Minister warns against threat from ISKP
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Following the Islamist terrorist attack on a concert hall in Moscow at the weekend, in which at least 137 people were killed, France decided to raise its terror threat level to the highest level.
In Belgium, the threat level remains at 3, which means that the threat is deemed to be "serious". The level has remained at 3 since 16 October 2023, following the attack on Swedish football fans in which 2 people were killed. The terror threat level has remained at 3, not least because of the tensions in the Middle East and the rise in anti-Semitism.
In a statement OCAD said that as things stand it is not necessary to raise the terror threat level to 4 (very serious and imminent).
Justice Minister: "We must use all means at our disposal to stem the growth of ISKP"
Speaking in an interview with the daily ‘De Standaard’, the Federal Justice Minister Paul Van Tigchelt said that the terrorist group ISKP that claimed responsibility for last Friday’s terrorist attack in Moscow is now the greatest jihadist threat to Belgium.
ISKP (Islamic State Khorasan Province) is the Central Asian arm of Islamic State. Mr Van Tigchelt told ‘De Standaard’ that “There have been arrests of suspected ISKP sympathisers in neighbouring”. The Justice Minister added that the Belgian State Security Service warned of the threat from ISKP.
However, "We have not yet seen any concrete evidence of plans for attacks emanating from this organisation here".
According to Mr Van Tigchelt, ISKP is not aiming to bring people from Central Asia to Europe to carry out attacks, but is instead relying on the use of local sympathisers.