Belgium reinforces police forces at Antwerp harbour to fight drug violence
Belgium is reinforcing maritime police forces at the harbour of Antwerp to fight rising drug violence.
While attending daily inspections of the Antwerp maritime police forces, Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin confirmed the hiring of 100 extra people. ""They currently have 212 people and will increase to 333. So, more than a hundred people extra," the interior minister said.
The fight against drug violence starts in the port of Antwerp. More than 7,000 people were checked at the port last year. 51 suspects have already been arrested this year, mostly so-called 'drug collectors'.
Combatting drug violence is a key goal of Belgium's new government under Prime Minister Bart De Wever. These efforts are being accelerated after the country's capital Brussels saw a wave of drugs-related violence in recent weeks.
Six shootings took place around Clemenceau Metro station in the area of Anderlecht in the span of two weeks, killing two people.
Quintin and Justice Minister Annelies Verlinden held emergency talks on Monday to discuss the issue of drug-related violence. Measures include reinforcing police forces in Brussels and Antwerp.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
2 days ago
- France 24
Belgium seeking to put ex-official on trial over killing of Congo's Lumumba
Belgian prosecutors said Tuesday that they were seeking to put a 92-year-old former diplomat on trial over the 1961 killing of Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba. Etienne Davignon is the only one still alive among 10 Belgians who were accused of complicity in the murder of the independence icon in a 2011 lawsuit filed by Lumumba's children. If he goes on trial, Davignon would be the first Belgian official to face justice in the more than six decades since Lumumba was murdered. A fiery critic of Belgium's colonial rule, Lumumba became his country's first prime minister after it gained independence in 1960. 02:09 But he fell out with the former colonial power and with the United States and was ousted in a coup a few months after taking office. He was executed on January 17, 1961, aged just 35, in the southern region of Katanga, with the support of Belgian mercenaries. His body was dissolved in acid and never recovered. Davignon, who went on to be a vice president of the European Commission in the 1980s, was a trainee diplomat at the time of the assassination. He is accused of involvement in the "unlawful detention and transfer" of Lumumba at the time he was taken prisoner and his "humiliating and degrading treatment", the prosecutor's office said. But prosecutors added that a charge of intent to kill should be dropped. It is now up to a magistrate to decide if the trial should proceed, following a hearing on the case set for January 2026. "We're moving in the right direction. What we're seeking is, first and foremost, the truth," Juliana Lumumba, the daughter of the former Congolese premier, told Belgian broadcaster RTBF. The prosecutor's decision is the latest step in Belgium's decades-long reckoning with the role it played in Lumumba's killing. In 2022, Belgium returned a tooth -- the last remains of Lumumba -- to his family in a bid to turn a page on the grim chapter of its colonial past. The tooth was seized by Belgian authorities in 2016 from the daughter of a policeman, Gerard Soete. A Belgian parliamentary commission of enquiry concluded in 2001 that Belgium had "moral responsibility" for the assassination, and the government presented the country's "apologies" a year later.
LeMonde
13-06-2025
- LeMonde
In Kenya, two young Belgians sentenced for attempting to illegally export around 5,000 ants
David L. and Seppe L., two Belgian teenagers from Mol in the province of Antwerp, became internationally known on April 5: Kenyan police from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, accompanied by inspectors from the Kenya Wildlife Service, discovered about 5,000 ants stored in syringes and test tubes in their hotel room in Naivasha, Northwest of Nairobi. The two friends, ages 19 and 18, claimed at the time that they were unaware that capturing these insects was illegal under Kenyan law and that they were simply pursuing a "hobby." This version has since been widely challenged following investigations by the Belgian press. Appearing before a magistrate on charges of "biopiracy" in mid-April, the two Belgians cited their "stupidity" and "naivety." Appearing in court alongside a Vietnamese and a Kenyan national, they were let off with a relatively light sentence and each was fined €6,800 on May 7, before being allowed to return to Belgium the following day. Highly sought after by enthusiasts Kenyan law imposes fines of up to €140,000, and even prison sentences, for trafficking in species that could disrupt the ecosystem. Penalties can be even harsher elsewhere. An Italian man and his son were fined €188,000 in Sri Lanka for attempting to export various insects in 2024, while in 2019, a Japanese butterfly and cockroach enthusiast was sentenced to two years in prison in Ecuador.
Euronews
05-06-2025
- Euronews
Sweden reaches deal with Estonia to rent prison cells to house inmates
Sweden has reached an agreement with Estonia to house up to 600 inmates in rented prison cells in the Baltic country in a bid to alleviate its prison overcrowding crisis. The deal, which was confirmed on Wednesday by Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer, will allow Sweden to rent 400 cells in the prison in Tartu in the south-eastern part of Estonia. "Sweden and Estonia have reached an agreement that will significantly relieve the burden on the Swedish prison system," Strömmer said. The cost of a prisoner in Estonia is estimated to be €8,500 per month, excluding costs for transport to and from Sweden. In Sweden, the cost is around €11,500 per month. The entire prison will be made available to Sweden and Estonian law will apply on site, according to the agreement. Swedish prison staff will be on the ground to train Estonian guards. Differences in the legislation on prison sentences in the two countries have been analysed. "Estonia is bound by the same international commitments as Sweden and there is established cooperation between the countries in the area of criminal law," a statement from the Swedish Justice Ministry read. Certain exceptions have been agreed, so that the experience will be similar to that of a Swedish prison sentence, the ministry added. Whether an inmate can be sent to Estonia to serve their prison sentence will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Broadly speaking, only men over the age of 18, who have been convicted of serious crimes such as murder or sexual offences will be considered for transfer. They must not be considered to pose a major security risk. Those with an extensive need for care or who are deemed to pose a higher security risk, for example those convicted of terrorist crimes, crimes against national security or who have links to serious organised crime, will not be eligible. Renting prison places abroad was a key component of the Tidö Agreement, the government agreement for the Swedish coalition between the Sweden Democrats, the Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals following the 2022 elections. The aim was to remedy the shortage of places in Swedish prisons, caused by a stream of inmates arising due to gang crime escalating in recent years. This trend has resulted in the Nordic nation topping the rankings of deadly gun violence per capita in Europe. Sweden and Estonia negotiated the deal this spring. An investigation concluded that there are no legal obstacles in either the Constitution or the European Convention against renting prison cells abroad. The agreement is expected to be signed in mid-June. Meanwhile, legislation that makes it possible to place convicted persons in Estonia is intended to come into force on 1 July 2026. However, legislative changes must be approved by Sweden's parliament, the Riksdag, where a qualified or three-quarters majority is required.
