BELGIUM: 36-year-old man arrested for throwing home-made bomb outside Brussels Assembly

The police in Belgium have arrested a 36-year-old man after he threw a home-made bomb in front of the Brussels Assembly, hurting no one but causing superficial damage to the pavement.

After his arrest, police found documents in his car suggesting he may have had “extreme beliefs” but the suspect has not claimed ties to any extreme right-wing or left-wing group.

“He explained under questioning that the reason for his act was that the political world has badly handled the COVID-19 health crisis,” Brussels prosecutors’ spokesman, Denis Goeman said late on Monday.

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“At this stage no terrorist motive has been alleged.”

The suspect is from Limbourg in the east of Belgium. An investigating magistrate will decide on any charges.

Belgium has suffered one of the worst per capita COVID-19 infection rates in Europe, with 66,428 confirmed cases, 18,132 hospitalisations and 9,822 deaths.

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