The Chief of Police for Antwerp’s local police force gave his reaction, on Tuesday, by video, to the violence which his agents had faced in recent days. This took place in certain areas of Borgerhout, a district in the Flemish city. He strongly asserted, “This must now end.”
Recently Antwerp’s local police were faced with several incidents. With eggs pelted on Saturday evening and attacks on Sunday afternoon and Monday evening, the Chief of Police felt the need to give his reaction in a video. He said, “This is not normal...and we absolutely cannot allow it.”
He said that the violence against the Antwerp police is, however, not a new thing. “When I was a ‘bobby on the beat’ in 1997...we were even back then assisting teams in Borgerhout...during the Ramadan period and shortly afterwards...However we should take the aggression of recent days very seriously and we have to respond to it.”
The Chief of Police indicated that additional district and intervention police reinforcements are now being deployed, along with mobile units and possibly, in time, police dog units. Reinforcements have been provided for the emergency services. He concluded, “This is because this violence truly must end.”
The Brussels Times
