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Belgian authorities opened a probe after an explosion took place in front of a synagogue in the city of Liège early on Monday morning. The mayor described the blast, which caused damage to the synagugue and surrounding buildings, as "targeted" and "anti-Semitic".
Issued on: 09/03/2026 - 10:26Modified: 09/03/2026 - 10:44
By: FRANCE 24 Police stand near barricades as they secure an area after a blast took place near a synagogue in Liege, Belgium on March 9, 2026. © Valentin Bianchi, AP The Belgian federal prosecutors' office in charge of organised crime and terrorism said it will probe a blast that damaged a synagogue Monday in eastern Belgium, with the local mayor and the country's interior minister denouncing an "anti-Semitic act".
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said the explosion directly targeted Belgium’s Jewish community, and that updated security measures would continue to be enforced around similar sites.
Belgium's Interior Minister Bernard Quintin reacts on X to an explosion targeting a synagogue in Liege on Monday, March 9, 2026. © Bernard Quintin via X "This is all intentional and targeted. We condemn this anti-Semitic act as strongly as possible," Willy Demeyer, the mayor of Liege, where the synagogue is located, told public broadcaster RTBF.
"We cannot allow foreign conflicts to be imported into our city," he said of the early morning blast, which caused no injuries.
The explosion took place around 4am (0300 GMT) in front of the synagogue, blowing out the windows of the buildings across the road, a police spokesman said, adding there was "only material damage".
A security perimeter was erected, and the federal police were expected at the scene, according to RTBF.
Built in 1899, the synagogue also serves as a museum for the history of Liege's Jewish community, according to the temple's website.
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