On Thursday parliament approved a bill drawing up a framework enabling the intervention of special foreign units in Belgium. The bill falls within the context of the fight against terrorism and major organized crime, which has been particularly topical in recent years. It enables an increase in cooperation between European agencies.
The intervention of these special units should remain intermittent. Such a unit can be solicited during a crisis by the Belgian police, immediately they lack the necessary means to act either alone or at all. An example would be that they do not have the time to go to the given premises. When such an intervention occurs, these units have to respect Belgian law and report to the Belgian police forces.
Currently, the foreign units covered by the bill are part of the Atlas network, formed under the aegis of the European Union. There are presently around 30 such units, falling within 23 states, including France, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy.
The Brussels Times
