Extremist Terror Plot Thwarted in Belgium
Various media outlets reported on a thwarted terror attack against police officers in Belgium. According to report, 13 people were arrested by authorities in the country. According to the report, “Police found Kalashnikov assault rifles, explosives, ammunition and communications equipment — along with police uniforms that could have been used for the plot, said Belgian federal magistrate Eric van der Sijpt during a Friday news conference.”
It is wonderful to hear that authorities were able to stop an attack before it occurred. With the attacks in France, and in Nigeria, it is important for the state to continue to be active in the fight against any extremist group, all the while continuing to ensure support for civil liberties. In terms of the individuals that were believed to be planning the attacks, according to reports, “Some of the suspects had recently returned from Syria. On a per capita basis, more people from Belgium, with a population of 11.2 million, have taken part in the fighting in Syria than any other European state. The Belgian government believes about 100 of its nationals have come back with combat experience. A further 40 may have been killed and about 170 are still in the ranks of fighters in Syria and Iraq.”
It is imperative that the government monitor individuals that it believes might be planning violence, and, in this case, it seems that the government was thankfully able to prevent an attack. In this story, it is important that we do not generalize from this attempted attack, nor from the one in France, to say that this is how all individuals in a group (such as Muslims, for example), think or act. These attacks and planned attacks were carried out (or planned) by a very small minority, one in which clearly is aimed at causing harm, something that they do not have in common with the very vast Muslim communities throughout the world. Again, the vast majority of Muslims are not violent, and are active and peaceful members of their respective communities.
