Aalst carnival is back in the news, UFO spotted over Belgium turns out to be an Irish weather balloon and Belgian exports to the UK begin to fall as Brexit looms.
Here’s a recap of the news you might have missed this morning:
1. Tax hike on residence permit applications for foreigners overturned
A decree by the former state secretary for migration to increase the fees foreigners pay when applying for a residence permit has been overturned by Belgium’s highest administrative court. Read more.
2. Aalst mayor to defend city carnival against UNESCO’s anti-Semitism accusations
Authorities from the Flemish city of Aalst will defend the controversial use of stereotyped Jewish figures in a city parade before the UNESCO headquarters in Paris on Tuesday. Read more.
3. Police violence complaint lodged after incident in Ixelles
A complaint against Brussels-Ixelles police officers was lodged by three young Ixelles residents and neighbourhood educators, it was announced on Tuesday. Read more.
4. Turkish minister: EU and Turkey disagree on almost everything
The relations between EU and Turkey have been tense in recent years but have now reached an all-time low in all major issues such as the accession process, visa liberalisation, counter-terrorism, migration, trade and the situation in Syria. Read more.
5. ‘UFO’ spotted above Ghent was exploding weather balloon
A luminous object spotted flying above Ghent at the weekend and which triggered dozens of reports to Belgium’s UFO hotline turned out to be an Irish weather balloon gone astray. Read more.
6. Brexit: Belgian exports to the United Kingdom begin to fall
Belgian exports to the United Kingdom fell by 12.27% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, according to National Bank data on Monday. Read more.
7. ‘Coffee with a cop’ project launched by Brussels police
Brussels residents will have the opportunity to meet police in an informal setting as part of a new project being launched by the Brussels-Capital Ixelles police zone on Monday. Read more.
Jules Johnston
The Brussels Times
