The cost of soldiers deployed on the street rose to 168 million euros at the end of last year, which comes down to 110,000 euros on a daily basis, according to figures from Minister for Defence Didier Reynders (MR). In January 2015, the soldiers were deployed in the streets for the first time after the attack on the editors of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
At the height of the terror threat in Belgium, more than 1,800 soldiers patrolled the streets and several public places. A few weeks ago, the government decided that at least 550 soldiers would remain in the streets until the beginning of June, according to Belgian media.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
