BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – In January 2015, during counterterrorism raids in Verviers, Belgian police detained a number of people on suspicion of preparation of terrorist attacks.
According to the Belgian broadcaster RTBF, the suspects prepared to kidnap a high-ranking Belgian official, or a judge, or a police chief.
Only five of the 16 suspects appeared before the court, while the rest of them, including the citizens of Belgium, France, Morocco and Netherlands faced the trial in absentia, the broadcaster added.
In the past months, security concerns sparked in various countries as several major terrorist attacks were carried out by Islamic radicals in a number of states, including in Belgium and France.
