In Brussels, the capital of Belgium, a passerby was injured in a shooting this Thursday in broad daylight. The city has been experiencing relative insecurity over the last 18 months due to drug trafficking and territorial battles between criminal gangs. The new Belgian government, which was just formed this week, has promised to strengthen the police forces as part of a government agreement to address this rising violence.
The police have acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and announced an increase in surveillance in response to recent episodes of violence. While the issue was previously concentrated mainly in the city of Antwerp, in the north of the country, it has now shifted to Brussels. Belgium serves as one of the main gateways into Europe for cocaine and other narcotics from Latin America, given its favorable geographical conditions, according to a French media outlet.
The Brussels prosecutor's office reported that a new shooting occurred in the early hours of this Wednesday, the third in a 24-hour period, which is possibly linked to drug trafficking. This incident took place near a metro station where gunfire had already been reported the previous day. According to reports from RFI, the prosecutor's office mentioned that the shooting seemed to be part of a power struggle between different neighborhoods in the northeast of the city, where just last year 2,000 arrests related to drug trafficking were made.
Throughout Wednesday, several metro and tram lines had to be interrupted for several hours after a shooting in which the alleged perpetrators escaped through the subway tunnels. Violence and insecurity persist in Brussels, raising concerns for authorities and the local population.
