Dutch far-right politician Wilders fears he may have been a target of Belgian attack plotters
Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders said on Friday he “won’t go anywhere” until reports that he is the possible target of a suspected plot to kill politicians in Belgium using an explosives-carrying drone are investigated.
Three people were detained on Thursday after police used explosives sniffer dogs to search their homes in the port city of Antwerp. Prosecutors said a homemade bomb was found in a house, but it was not operational at the time.
A bag of steel balls was also found here, while a 3D printer, thought to be used to make parts for the planned attack, was found in another residence. Prosecutors said it appeared that “the purpose was to build a drone to carry cargo.”
Prosecutors said the police raids were part of an investigation into “attempted terrorist murder and participation in the activities of a terrorist organization”. They did not identify politicians who could be targeted.
However, Belgian government ministers identified Prime Minister Bart De Wever as one of the targets. On X, Wilders published a Belgian news report stating that he and De Wever’s successor, Antwerp mayor Els van Doesburg, were also on the target list. All three are right-wing politicians.
Wilders said the investigation into whether the reports were true was ongoing and “I’m not going anywhere until we find out.” He canceled his participation in an election debate with other political leaders on Friday ahead of an early general election in the Netherlands on October 29.
Flemish broadcaster VTM was the source of some of the reports but did not provide details on how it learned of the list. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said in an interview with VTM that both Belgian and foreign politicians were targets. He did not explain in detail.
World leaders frequently visit the Belgian capital, Brussels, for European Union and NATO summits, among other events.
De Wever has not spoken publicly about the case but responded positively to television cameras at a meeting of government ministers on Friday. Police raids were carried out near his home in Antwerp.
One of the suspects was later released. The other two were expected to appear before a judge, possibly to be formally charged.
Wilders has been a target of extremists for years and lives under 24-hour guard. The Freedom Party is leading the polls ahead of the election, which was held after it withdrew from the ruling four-party coalition over a dispute over a crackdown on immigration.
The suspects’ intention “was to carry out a jihadist-inspired terrorist attack targeting politicians,” Belgian prosecutors said on Thursday. They gave no details about how they reached these conclusions.
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Mike Corder contributed to this report from The Hague, Netherlands.
