The Federal Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into a serious accident during a mortar exercise that left a Belgian soldier critically injured.
The incident occurred on Friday, and Minister of Defence Theo Francken and Chief of Defence General Frederik Vansina confirmed that the soldier remains in a life-threatening condition as of Saturday.
An internal investigation has also been initiated by the Defence Ministry to determine the exact circumstances of the accident. A federal magistrate, along with two investigators from the Federal Police specialising in military affairs, travelled to the site on Saturday as part of the inquiry.
The prosecutor’s office has stated that it will not provide further information at this stage of the investigation. Since this summer, several Belgian military units have been deployed in Lithuania under the mission “Forward Land Forces Lithuania”. This operation is part of NATO’s efforts to bolster defence along its eastern flank and is scheduled to continue until the end of January.
