One of the arrested civilians has filed a complaint for discrimination.
According to media reports, the drill consisted of a simulated shooting which involved around 1,100 participants.
The apology was issued after Hamed Jabarkhel, one of the two wrongfully detained civilians who works in the vicinity of the Sportpaleis, shared his account of the events on Facebook on May 1.Tijdens de veiligheidsoefening is er een fout gemaakt waardoor 2 personen zijn gearresteerd die geen deel uitmaakten van de oefening. Het parket en onze dienst intern toezicht onderzoeken de zaak. We betreuren deze fout en zullen ons formeel verontschuldigen. pic.twitter.com/KIG2xEAvK4
— Politie Antwerpen (@PZAntwerpen) 1 mai 2019
"At least two agents asked me if I would participate in the exercise. I said that I knew nothing, that I am innocent and that I do not know what is going on."
In his post, Jaberkhel said the incident made him feel "powerless and humiliated," as he described how and his colleague were held at gunpoint by "nine heavily armed agents, pushed to the ground and handcuffed."
"There were no explanations," he says, adding that he was put in a van with other participants, but that, unlike them, he remained handcuffed.
When he asked police if he was in custody "because [he] was brown," he said he received threatening replies from the agents, and complained that he only managed to lodge a complaint after insisting at length.
A spokesperson for the Antwerp police forces said the incident "should never have taken place."
Jaberkhel said that his arrest was filmed by bystanders, and calls on his post to be shared and on footage of the events to be shared with him.
"I hope this helps me ensure that the police take my complaint seriously," he stated.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times