Neglect halted anti-terror moves: Belgian minister

Let me translate this article for you - "In Belgium, as in most European countries, multiculturalism has had such a choke hold on the people and governments that they set themselves up as lambs to slaughter."

There.  Fixed it.

The story comes from Al Arabiya.

Neglect halted anti-terror moves: Belgian minister

Belgium's interior minister says the Belgian government has invested $670 million into police and security services over the past two years but acknowledged that neglect over decades had caused deficiencies that have hampered an effective response to violent extremism.

Minister Jan Jambon said errors were made in the run-up to the March 22 Brussels attacks that killed at least 31 people and wounded 270 others, but says fresh investments need time before they become visible. He said Sunday that hiring anti-terror specialists and specialized equipment could not happen in weeks or months.

Jambon says “it is also not because you put the money in now, that tomorrow all this is visible on the ground.”

Meanwhile on Sunday, Brussels prosecutors have charged another man with participation in a terrorist group, the Belgian press agency Belga said.

Belga named the man arrested as A. Abderrahmane who prosecutors had said on Saturday was being detained for a further 24 hours after being shot during a raid in the Brussels district of Schaerbeek.

It said he was charged in connection with a related raid in France this week that authorities say foiled an apparent attack plot.

The prosecutor's office could not immediately be reached for comment.

Belgian Television Meterologist Fired For Posting the Truth About Muslims On His Facebook

From Family Security Matters.

Juan Williams, Meet Luc Trullemans: All Too Frank Speech in Belgium Leads to Firing


In a case reminiscent of National Public Radio (NPR)'s 2010 firing of commentator Juan Williams, the Belgian television meteorologist Luc Trullemans has lost his job after posting angry and abusive comments upon his Facebook page concerning Muslim immigrants. Trullemans wrote the comments following threatening personal encounters with individuals from such backgrounds. His experience indicates once again the politically incorrect controversies concerning Islam in many modern Western societies and raises questions concerning the limits of free speech on these issues.

Trullemans's employer, Belgium's RTL television, suspended him until further notice on Friday evening, April 26, 2013, for a post on his Facebook page described in a 7 Sur 7 Belgian press account as having a "racist and Islamophobe character." RTL spokesperson Sophie Bailly explained that Trullemans's "racist words" were "unacceptable for RTL." As reported by the Belgian newspaper L'Avenir online earlier on April 26, Trullemans's posting was a self-professed "rant" circulating in the internet for some years accusing Muslim immigrants of being backward and deficient in assimilation. L'Avenir's story displayed as well various satirical photos posted within the last day by Trullemans to his Facebook page criticizing increased Islamic influence in Belgium and France.

The anonymous writer warned in the L'Avenir-linked French text that he "would not be delicate in my words" but rather would "speak like a true Walloon" from Belgium's French-speaking region. "I," added the writer, "will probably appear as a racist, but you know what? I DO NOT GIVE A DAMN!!!" The writer considered "it time to speak openly that which many think inside" and sought to defend "European values" as a self-professed atheist against Muslims. In particular, this atheist devoted several sentences to advocating an unapologetic societal celebration of Christmas traditions, something which he curiously defined as "not a religion, but an event."

The writer described Muslims immigrating because of "war, violence, hatred, and death" in order to receive from "OUR LAND ... everything" in social welfare for successful societal integration. According to such analysis, Muslim immigrant cultural expectations of "importing your crap [merde]" are a self-defeating and ungrateful response to such "hospitality." The writer had "ENOUGH" of such attempts "to change our traditions ... to restrict our rights ... because they are contrary to your religion," and "to treat us as racists because one does not like your manner of behavior." After all, the writer argued, those who did not respect Muslim norms were "subject to death in certain of your countries of monkeys!!!" The writer called upon Muslim immigrants to "throw your hijabs and niqabs in the trash ... forget your primitive demands," and "assimilate or take off!"

Meeting with L'Avenir reporters on the evening of April 26, Trullemans "took responsibility" for his postings condemning immigrants and Islam, yet by 11:00 pm that evening, L'Avenir reported that Trullemans had already reversed course. Gone from his Facebook page were the controversial postings, and in their place was a "personal" apology to the "Muslim community" quoted by L'Avenir and shown in the 7 Sur 7 story. Trullemans explained that "following an assault on a public way and under a fit of emotion in a state of great fatigue, I wrote this text seized by anger." Trullemans emphasized that he was "not a racist at all." Nonetheless, L'Avenir reported that RTL had suspended him shortly before midnight.

Trullemans later explained to 7 Sur 7 that while he was driving on April 26 at about 30-35 mph, a following car's driver found this speed too slow, as Trullemans had decelerated for an upcoming red light. The driver passed Trullemans and suddenly slowed down, prompting Trullemans to honk, whereupon the driver repeatedly made sudden fluctuations in speed. At the light, the occupants described by Trullemans as "people from the south clothed in traditional garments" exited the car.

These individuals told him in a "very aggressive" manner to exit his car as well and that he should not have honked. Remaining in his car, a fearful Trullemans stated that traffic regulations deserved obedience. The other car occupants then said that he could "not impose my rules" as a "little Belgian" upon them in "their" neighborhood, and one of them struck Trullemans's car. After the light changed, Trullemans drove on, followed by the other car until he arrived at the RTL parking lot.

In his interview, Trullemans reiterated again that he was not a racist and had indeed previously had a five-year relationship with an Algerian woman, who in turn confirmed that "Lucky" was not prejudiced. Indeed, Trullemans's Facebook page shows among his preferences various vintage African-American music stars like Sam Cooke. Further support for Trullemans has come from two Facebook pages -- one with 21,026 likes, the other, calling Trullemans a "victim of political correctness," with 7,686.

The Belgian lawyer Mischaël Modrikamen, son of a Polish Jewish immigrant who escaped the Nazis, has also taken up Trullemans's reinstatement claim as a matter of free speech. Modrikamen attributed to Trullemans' words a "political," not a "racist character," under assault from "thought police." Modrikamen, meanwhile, might say as much about the restrictive immigration policies advocated by the Parti Populaire led by him and by his past warnings against the "fascist aspects" of "political Islam."

Trullemans's experience indicates the considerable legitimate concerns many Europeans have with respect to Islamic immigration, however poorly expressed by him in the heat of passion. As the Belgian reactions showed, Trullemans's temporary postings dealt with popular controversies often linked to immigration in general and Islamic immigration in particular, such as disproportionate consumption of social services, deficient assimilation, and native/newcomer conflicts over societal norms. Only the single fleeting pejorative and literally dehumanizing reference to Muslim-majority lands as "countries of monkeys" in the "rant" (one wonders how carefully Trullemans analyzed this text before posting) would count as a purely prejudicial insult, possibly punishable in Belgium and elsewhere under various laws. As Modrikamen would argue, though, only through free speech can such passions find a proper venting, cold critique, and channeling into more fruitful long-term policy discussions.

“Racist Hate Speech” Conviction in Belgium for Tearing up Koran in Front of a Group of Muslims

A Belgian man has been convicted of hate speech for the act of tearing up a Qur'an and his sentence is four months in prison.  Four months in prison for tearing up a book while hundreds of Belgian Muslims get off with nothing for rape, arson, and intimidation of Belgian citizens.

Welcome to dhimmified Belgium.  Welcome to the lost continent of Europe.

The story comes from Tundra Tabloids via The Religion of Peace.

“Racist Hate Speech” Conviction in Belgium for Tearing up Koran in Front of a Group of Muslims


In Belgium a man was convicted for ‘racist hate speech’ because he publicly tore up a Koran, before the eyes of a group of Muslims. The case illustrates the need to protect free speech against those seeking to criminalise ‘Islamophobia’.

On 8 June 2012 a man, identified as Arne S., participated in a demonstration organised by a radical right-wing political party, Vlaams Belang (‘Flemish Interest’), opposing the construction of a mosque in the Belgian coastal city of Ostend. In the aftermath of the demonstration S. tore up a Koran in the presence of a small group of Muslims, with whom he had exchanged words. The public prosecutor indicted S. for incitement to hatred, discrimination and violence on the basis of race and ethnic origin.

The defendant’s attorney called for an acquittal, arguing that no infraction on the anti-racism legislation had occurred. The criminal court in Bruges convicted the man, however, on 11 March 2013. Due in part to the unfavourable criminal history of the defendant, the sentence was relatively severe, consisting of an effective prison sentence of four months and a fine of 600 euros. The court held that the facts were serious and testified to “a blatant lack of tolerance and a highly questionable attitude”.

Four Months In Prison For Shredding a Qur'an. Egypt? Saudi Arabia? Nope. Belgium

The story comes from Family Security Matters.

Thrown in Prison for Shredding the Koran


A Bruges, Belgium criminal court convicted a man for shredding a Koran on March 6, 2013. The court imposed a four-month prison sentence and a 600 euro fine upon him. He now additionally faces a revocation of a previous suspension of an 18-month prison sentence for having set a fire in a wood. This case highlights yet again the greater restrictions on speech in free societies outside of the United States and how these restrictions can limit open debate about Islam.

The man, identified in print only as Arne S., attended a demonstration on June 8, 2012, in Ostend, Belgium, before retiring to a café. There Arne exchanged words with a dozen Muslims and tore apart a Koran before them. As described in a Belgian press account, Arne's counsel at trial claimed that the Muslims had thrown the "sacred book" at Arne, striking him in the head. Arne's lawyer, Olivier Ryde, thus claimed that no infraction of Belgium's law on hate speech had occurred. No reports of assault charges against the Muslims have appeared.

Arne's case demonstrates that Belgium, like many other European countries, has laws against what is commonly called "hate speech." In particular, Article 22 of the Belgian Law of May 10, 2007, Aiming to Struggle Against Certain Forms of Discrimination, prohibits incitement of hatred, discrimination, violence, and/or segregation against persons of various protected classes in public settings defined by Article 444 of the Belgian Penal Code. Article 3 of the May 10, 2007, laws defines these protected classes

based upon age, sexual orientation, civil state, birth, fortune, religious or philosophical conviction, political conviction, trade union views, language, actual or future state of health, handicap, physical or genetic characteristic, or social origin.

Cheradenine Zakalwe of the website Islam versus Europe has asked in relation to Arne, "Is Sharia already in force in Europe?" Yet Arne is not the first individual in Europe convicted of destroying a "sacred book," nor is the Koran the only book in Europe that qualifies for this designation. Poland's supreme court ruled on October 29, 2012 that a lower court was wrong to exonerate the Polish heavy metal musician Adam Darski on blasphemy charges for having ripped apart a Bible as a "book of lies" during a September 2007 concert.

In Darski's case, though, the European Union's (EU) executive body, the European Commission (EC), came to Darski's defense. An EC statement on October 31, 2012 expressed the traditional justification for free speech that "[t]his right protects not only information or ideas that are favorably received or regarded as inoffensive or as a matter of indifference, but also those that offend, shock or disturb." It remains to be seen whether the EC will make the same defense à la Voltaire for Arne's anti-Islam sentiments.

Controversies about blasphemy aside, Belgium's equation of "religious" and other "convictions" with physical characteristics such as a person's place of "birth" is troubling. Such a conception of "hate speech" encompasses not just the debatable proposition of proscribing animus expressed against individuals, but also the prohibition of at least certain forms of opposition to ideas like Islam. In effect, an individual's identification with an idea like Islam helps shield this belief from attack in a kind of ideological umbrella.

The cases of Arne, Darski, and others continue to show that criticism and/or condemnation of Islam can be legally perilous in European societies traditionally restrictive of free speech out of deference to group sensibilities and social harmony. Now that Muslim communities have established themselves in an often politically correct modern Europe, rejection of Islam is no longer a merely academic matter involving distant peoples. Precisely the proximity of Islam to Europe, however, demands unfettered critical evaluation of this faith now more than ever. Modern expansive notions of "hate speech" and traditional concepts of blasphemy, now applied not just to Europe's historically dominant Christian faith but also to an increasingly prominent Islam, can only hinder this necessary inquiry into Islam.

Islamic Group in Belgium Calls For the Death of Canadian Lesbian Author

The Belgian Muslim group, Sharia4Belgium, has called for the death of a Canadian Muslim author who just so happens to be a lesbian. And boy, we know the tolerance of Muslims for gays and lesbians right? But to call for her murder? Are you effin' kidding me?

From Care2:

An Islamist group called for a Muslim lesbian author to be killed and invaded a discussion on Islam in Amsterdam last week.

A December 8 debate, which included the Canadian Muslim lesbian author Irshad Manji and MP Tofik Dibi on a panel, was disrupted when extremists from the group Sharia4Belgium stormed the event, held at the De Balie theater in Amsterdam. The mob threw eggs and called for Manji’s neck to be broken.

The group of about 20 men and boys arrived halfway through the evening, chanted slogans and pelted the audience with eggs. A police mobile unit had to be called to eject the rioters, and two Belgian men aged 19 and 22 were arrested.

The people who disrupted the debate were members of the Belgian group Sharia4Belgium, an offshoot of Sharia4Holland. Irshad Manji has experienced death threats for several years since her outspoken attack on traditional Islam in her book The Trouble with Islam Today.

Manji was in Europe to promote her new book, Allah, Liberty and Love. She says that the key teaching of the book is “moral courage, the willingness to speak up when everyone else wants to shut you up.”

The mob made clear that they felft that Dibi and Manji had no right to talk about Islam because they were too liberal, said Dibi. When the riot started, the audience made efforts to protect both speakers

And uninformed people in America just can't figure out why I and many others are so adamant that sharia doesn't take hold in our America. Well, this is why, people. This is why.

Islamic Extremists Call for Lesbian’s Death


An Islamist group called for a Muslim lesbian author to be killed and invaded a discussion on Islam in Amsterdam last week.

A December 8 debate, which included the Canadian Muslim lesbian author Irshad Manji and MP Tofik Dibi on a panel, was disrupted when extremists from the group Sharia4Belgium stormed the event, held at the De Balie theater in Amsterdam. The mob threw eggs and called for Manji’s neck to be broken.

The group of about 20 men and boys arrived halfway through the evening, chanted slogans and pelted the audience with eggs. A police mobile unit had to be called to eject the rioters, and two Belgian men aged 19 and 22 were arrested.

The people who disrupted the debate were members of the Belgian group Sharia4Belgium, an offshoot of Sharia4Holland. Irshad Manji has experienced death threats for several years since her outspoken attack on traditional Islam in her book The Trouble with Islam Today.

Dibi is a young, gay Dutch-Moroccan GreenLeft (GroenLinks) MP. In September, he launched a campaign calling on Muslims around the world to stop blindly following decrees issued by a handful of extremists, and to start thinking for themselves.

Manji was in Europe to promote her new book, Allah, Liberty and Love. She says that the key teaching of the book is “moral courage, the willingness to speak up when everyone else wants to shut you up.”

The mob made clear that they felft that Dibi and Manji had no right to talk about Islam because they were too liberal, said Dibi. When the riot started, the audience made efforts to protect both speakers.

“What was really nice to see, and I have never seen, was that the whole audience stood up for us. And we have said, while they were shouting: ‘We will not move. We do not go off the stage, we continue to stand here. You only have to listen to us. And if you do not like to hear us speak, then you zapping’” said Dibi.

Manji said:

I never felt afraid. Not once. Neither did Tofik. In fact, all of us refused to leave, even when police asked. We wouldn’t play on Jihadi terms. Some things are simply more important than fear.

Said Dibi:

The disruption shows that even in the Netherlands it is necessary to continue the debate on reforming Islam.

Muslim Family In Belgium Goes On Trial For Murdering Their 20 Yr Old Daughter/Sister Who Refused An Arranged Marriage

Sadia Sheikh, a Belgian law student of Pakistani origin, was shot dead by three bullets allegedly fired by her older brother Mudusar. - File Photo

A horrific honor killing in Belgium has come to this point where the mother, father, sister and brother of Sadia Sheikh are all going to trial now for the fact that the brother shot his sister through the head for dishonoring Islam when she lived with a Belgian and refused an arranged marriage. Even though the brother is charged with the shooting, the mother, father and sister are charged with aiding and abetting the murder.

Unreal.

Imagine for a moment that you have your sister's face in the site of your handgun....and you squeeze the trigger and you see part of her face blow off her head....and then I ask you, isn't there part of your brain that would experience such disgust in horror in that you'd be physically ill? Did this brother hear the voice of Mohammed in his head telling him to kill his sister? What about the mother? Didn't the mother of this young woman think about the day that her little girl emerged from the birth canal and took her very first breath? Doesn't that mother remember when her new baby girl was placed in her arms? How can any mother, any father kill their child? And moreover, how can anyone kill their child for the honor of a pedophile?

The story is from DAWN.

Pakistani family stand trial for ‘honour killing’


MONS, Belgium: A Pakistani family of four went on trial on Monday for the “honour killing” of their 20-year-old child and sister, who defied them by living with a Belgian and refusing an arranged marriage.

Sadia Sheikh, a Belgian law student of Pakistani origin, was shot dead by three bullets allegedly fired by her older brother Mudusar on October 22, 2007, when visiting her family in the hopes of patching up their quarrel.

Her parents and sister are accused of aiding and abetting the killing.

The four face sentences of life imprisonment if found guilty by a jury of five women and seven men at a high-profile trial also involving rights groups pleading for gender equality as part of a civil suit at the hearings.

The trial is expected to last three to four weeks.

Sadia Sheikh left the family home to study after her shopkeeper parents tried to arrange a marriage with a cousin living in Pakistan she had never met.

Before moving in with a Belgian man her age named Jean, she was helped by fellow-students and teachers and also spent some time in a centre for victims of domestic violence, where she drew up a will as she felt threatened.

She had nonetheless agreed to visit the family in hopes of making peace the day she was shot.

Her father Tarik Mahmood Sheikh, 61, mother Zahida Parveen Sariya, 59, and sister Sariya, 22, also facing charges of “attempting to arrange a marriage,” have denied involvement in the murder, saying Mudusar, now aged 27, killed his sister in a fit of anger.

Goodbye Belgium....25% of Belgian Capital Is Now Muslim

When 25% of your population is Muslim, you might as well kiss your way of life, your culture and your freedoms goodbye and that is exactly what appears to be the case in Brussels, Belgium.

From the article at EurasiaReview:

More than 250,000 residents out of a total population of one million in Brussels have Muslim roots, according to a study carried out by the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium and published in the Belgian media Friday.

The study was carried out by Felice Dasetto, a sociologist and a professor at the university who is considered to be an expert in issues relating to Muslims in Belgium.

Brussels the political capital of the European Union accounts for half of the total number of Muslims in Belgium.

The figure puts Belgium among other European cities with a big Muslim presence like Birmingham in the UK, says the study.

Last night on my Blog Talk Radio show we were discussing the possibilities of Sharia Law happening in America and there was discussion of the fairly low percentage of Muslims in America but this article shows what happens when a Muslim population skyrockets - I ask you, if you live in an American city that would see the Muslim population get to 25 or 30 percent, you don't think that there would be sharia courts popping up?

Belgium: 25 Percent Of Brussels Population Is Muslim


More than 250,000 residents out of a total population of one million in Brussels have Muslim roots, according to a study carried out by the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium and published in the Belgian media Friday.

The study was carried out by Felice Dasetto, a sociologist and a professor at the university who is considered to be an expert in issues relating to Muslims in Belgium.

Brussels the political capital of the European Union accounts for half of the total number of Muslims in Belgium.

The figure puts Belgium among other European cities with a big Muslim presence like Birmingham in the UK, says the study.

It claims that the Islamic presence is becoming more and more visible in Brussels with more mosques and minarets, more women wearing a veil and more Muslim organisations.

The study argues that the Islamic faith has the power to mobilise people to a a very big extent, more than for example the Catholic church or political parties.

Belgium to ban the burka. Get ready for Islam and Muslims to resort to.....violence

Belgium is on the verge of becoming the first country in Europe to ban the burka. The burka is the face veil that is required in many Islamic countries and has long been considered one of the tools of women's oppression under Islam and shariah law. The burka has come under attack as it prohibits the ability to identify the person who is wearing it. In Islam, women must be covered from head to toe from the prying eyes of men. In many Islamic countries, women are prohibited from going out in public unless they are completely covered up wearing a burka and hajib. Hopefully Belgium will not be the last European country to do ban the burka. I would not be at all surprised to see Muslim protests erupt over this and become violent. Just look what a few cartoons did to upset muslims a few years ago.

---

Belgium moves to become first European country to ban the burka.

dailymail.co.uk, Belgium is on the verge of becoming the first European nation to ban the burka.

A parliamentary committee agreed yesterday to outlaw the wearing of face-covering veils in public. The full Parliament will vote later this month.
Under the proposals, women could face a week in prison or a fine for wearing a veil in public.

There are an estimated 650,000 Muslims in Belgium – 6 per cent of the population.

The text of the new law does not specifically mention burkas but makes it illegal for anyone to wear clothing ‘that covers all or most of the face’ in any public place.

Left-wing MP Denis Ducarme left no doubt the rules were targeting-Muslim extremists.

He said after the vote by the home affairs committee: ‘This sends a very strong signal to radical Islamists.’

The French- speaking liberals who have proposed the law argue that an inability to identify people presents a security risk and that the veil is a ‘walking prison’ for women.

Daniel Bacquelaine, the bill’s chief promoter, said the ban might also be used against potentially violent demonstrators who covered their faces.

He estimated that only a few hundred women in Belgium wore facial veils,
but said it was a rising trend.


The MP said Belgium did not wish to follow the ‘bad examples’ of Britain and the Netherlands, where he said many Muslims lived in separate communities.

The proposal is expected to become law as early as June as it has the support of all five parties in the coalition government. But opponents may appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.

There have been debates over banning the burka in France, Switzerland and Italy.

This week France’s highest administrative body said a full burka ban, which is supported by all political parties, could violate the French constitution and European law.

Brussels has been linked to Islamic extremist terror operations a number of times since September 11. In 2003, 18 men were convicted of involvement in a terror cell with links to Al Qaeda.

Cross posted from Patriot's Corner

14 Al Qaeda Linked Terrorists Detained In Belgium For Suspeced Terror Plot

This might have been a very close call here folks - the Belgian security forces detained 14 jihadists today who have links to al Qaeda on suspicions of a serious terror plot targeting a European Union summit meeting. Here are the details from Breitbart:

Police detained 14 suspected al-Qaida-linked extremists on Thursday in raids in
Brussels and eastern Belgium, including one militant who allegedly was plotting
a suicide attack.
The terror sweep came only hours before a European Union
summit brought together the heads of 27 countries in Brussels, though the site
of the purported attack was unclear. Nearly 250 police officers raided 16
locations in the capital and one in the eastern city of Liege overnight,
confiscating computers, data storage equipment and a pistol.
"There was no
other choice than to intervene today," federal prosecutor Johan Delmulle told
reporters. He said one suspect had recorded what looked like a martyrdom video,
including a farewell message.
"It is clear that we have to take the terror
threat seriously," Prime Minister Yves Leterme said as he entered the EU summit
building.

So, who is the mastermind of all of this or at least, who is inspiring all of these terror plots in Europe lately? Well, here's one possibility ...from the article:

The investigation centered on people linked to Nizar Trabelsi, a 37-year-old Tunisian sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2003 for planning to a drive a car bomb into the cafeteria of a Belgian air base where about 100 American military personnel are stationed.
Security services in several European nations suspect Trabelsi, who trained with al-Qaida in Afghanistan, had links with extremists in Britain, France and elsewhere in Europe.

I don't know about you but it seems likely to me that one of these days, the Europeans' luck is gonna run out and one of these plots is going to get by security teams and it is going to be bad. This is exactly why there needs to be such a vigil here in the U.S. to stand up to the soft jihad starting here - the Europeans naiively let the islamists infiltrate their countries in the idea of immigration and multiculturalism and they find themselves now with their lands full of these terrorist cells who are intent on takeover of the countries.

If you look at all of the situations we have had in America, whether it be the flying imams or the footbaths in community colleges or the Somali workers refusal of handling pork in check out lines...these are all signs that the islamists have NO INTENTION of assimilating to American culture and the next face is their trying to force a change to theirs.

14 alleged Islamic extremists detained in Belgium

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Police detained 14 suspected al-Qaida-linked
extremists on Thursday in raids in Brussels and eastern Belgium, including one
militant who allegedly was plotting a suicide attack.
The terror sweep came
only hours before a European Union summit brought together the heads of 27
countries in Brussels, though the site of the purported attack was unclear.
Nearly 250 police officers raided 16 locations in the capital and one in the
eastern city of Liege overnight, confiscating computers, data storage equipment
and a pistol.
"There was no other choice than to intervene today," federal
prosecutor Johan Delmulle told reporters. He said one suspect had recorded what
looked like a martyrdom video, including a farewell message.
"It is clear
that we have to take the terror threat seriously," Prime Minister Yves Leterme
said as he entered the EU summit building.
Helicopters flew overhead and
police guarded dozens of motorcades traveling to the summit cordon.
Delmulle
said it was unclear where the attack had been planned to take place. The
suspects had traveled to both Pakistan and Afghanistan, and it was possible the
suicide bombing might have been drawn up there.
Thursday's raids were linked
to a similar pre-Christmas sweep last year and Delmulle said the investigation
showed at the time "a group of people were in Brussels with the task of
committing an attack."
Investigators waited a year before moving in—opting
to ferret out the entire cell rather a single part.
"It is now clear to all
that we were dealing with a real risk," the justice and interior ministers said
in a statement. "It is more than likely that an attack in Brussels has been
prevented."
The investigation centered on people linked to Nizar Trabelsi, a
37-year-old Tunisian sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2003 for planning to a
drive a car bomb into the cafeteria of a Belgian air base where about 100
American military personnel are stationed.
Security services in several
European nations suspect Trabelsi, who trained with al-Qaida in Afghanistan, had
links with extremists in Britain, France and elsewhere in Europe.
At the
time of last year's arrests, authorities tightened security, warning of a
heightened threat of attacks despite the arrests. Police stepped up patrols at
Brussels airport, subway stations and the downtown Christmas market, which
traditionally draws large crowds of holiday shoppers.
Leterme told reporters
that the investigation justified the extreme security measures that were taken
over the past year.
Authorities did not give a rundown of all the people
under detention.
But Claude Moniquet, the president of the Brussels-based
think tank European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center, and national
media said they included Moroccan-born Malika El Aroud, a 48-year-old Belgian
who writes online in French under the name of Oum Obeyda.
"She is extremely
active as a Jihadist who motivates" terrorists, Moniquet said in an interview.
"She was writing online as recently as three weeks ago. She is very dangerous."

Belgium Arrest 14 Jihadists in Terrorist Plot

Belgium has foiled what could have been a pretty devastating terrorist plot. The plot apparently involved trying to free a prisoner that Belgium is holding for his plot of driving a car bomb into a Belgian military facility that has around 100 American military personnel. With 14 jihadists involved in planning, this could have been a major operation.

Here's the full story with all of the details.

Belgium Arrests 14 in Terrorist Plot

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Belgian police Friday arrested 14 Muslim extremists suspected of planning to free an al-Qaida sympathizer imprisoned for planning a terrorist attack on U.S. air base personnel, officials said.
Security was heightened at airports, subway stations and other public places across the capital, and the U.S. Embassy warned Americans of "a heightened risk of terrorist attack in Brussels" although it had no indication of any American targets.
Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt said the government had information suggesting "preparation of an attack."
"Other acts of violence are not to be excluded," he said.
The prisoner, Nizar Trabelsi, a 37-year-old Tunisian who played soccer for several German teams, was sentenced to the maximum 10 years in prison four years ago. He had admitted planning to drive a car bomb into the canteen at Kleine Brogel, a Belgian air base where about 100 American military personnel are stationed.
The base is home to Belgian F-16 warplanes equipped with nuclear weapons that are under U.S. control, according GlobalSecurity.org, a U.S.-based military affairs think tank.
Trabelsi, who testified that he intended kill U.S. soldiers, says he met Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan and asked to become a suicide bomber. He was arrested in Brussels on Sept. 13, 2001. Police later discovered the raw materials for a huge bomb in the back of a Brussels restaurant.

The federal prosecutor's office said the 14 were planning to free the terrorist by force. "Trabelsi would be helped by a group of people, driven by an extremist vision of Islam," the prosecutor's office said.