A 16-year-old Jewish teen was attacked while returning from yeshiva on a central street in Antwerp on Friday. Members of the volunteer Jewish security group Shomrim detained the attacker and handed him over to police for questioning. Authorities confirmed the suspect is known to them.
The attack is part of an alarming surge in antisemitic violence in Belgium, with at least eight assaults against Jews recorded in Antwerp in recent weeks, four of them targeting children.
Shomrim reports the incidents have increased dramatically since the outbreak of the U.S.-Israeli operations against the Iranian regime.
The heightened threat comes after an explosion outside a synagogue in Liege last week, which the mayor described as “criminal and antisemitic.” J
Jewish security patrols have been stepped up across Antwerp’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods as community leaders call on authorities to increase protection before a potential tragedy occurs.
