Three young men arrested on Thursday on suspicion of plotting a terrorist attack against politicians are aged 24, 23 and 18, and all live in Antwerp.
The 24-year-old suspect was released later that day due to a lack of evidence.
According to VRT all three suspects are Belgian nationals. The 18-year-old and 24-year-old are of Moroccan descent, while the 23-year-old is of Chechen descent. The three are reported to have known each other personally.
The 18-year-old is studying Defence and Security at the Sint-Norbertus Institute in Antwerp, where police carried out a search on Thursday and in whose possession police reportedly found an explosive device.
Interviewed by VTM NEWS, his school's headteacher said, "He wasn't on our radar. He was always very polite and never showed any worrying behaviour."
She also stressed that students in the programme do not receive any weapons training.
The 23-year-old, identified as A.B., is studying Cybersecurity at AP University College.
The two remaining suspects, aged 18 and 23, are due to appear before an examining magistrate today.
The magistrate will decide whether they are to be formally charged and detained.
Investigators are now working to determine whether the young men were self-radicalised or had links to others.
