adminBelgian authorities are searching for an armed man who killed three people and injured a fourth at the Jewish Museum in Brussels. Two of the three victims of Saturday’s attack were Israeli tourists from Tel Aviv, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry told AFP yesterday. Deputy prosecutor Ine Van Wymersch said yesterday that the suspect “probably acted alone, was armed and well prepared”. He said he could not confirm whether the shooting was a “terrorist or anti-Semitic act” and added that all leads remained open.
Israel’s foreign minister and prime minister condemned the shooting, saying it was the result of “anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic incitement”.
Belgian authorities say the shooting was the work of a solitary gunman, who remains at large.
The European Jewish Congress called for greater security at Jewish institutions and tougher legislation in dealing with anti-Semitic crime.
In a statement issued yesterday, Moshe Kantor said: “Such acts will continue if no additional resources are put into place to guarantee the security of our communities, to share intelligence and law enforcement cooperation and tougher punishments.
“How many more deadly attacks at Jewish institutions does our community need to endure until European governments get serious with a climate of increasing hate towards Jews?”
Belgian officials, including the foreign minister, have expressed their shock at the crime.
Belgium’s interior minister, Joelle Milquet, said on Belgian television: “All of this can lead to suspicions of an act of anti-Semitism.”
Yesterday, the French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said two Jewish men were attacked as they left a synagogue in Creteil, southeast of Paris, on Saturday night. He ordered more security around Jewish and Israeli establishments. — Al Jazeera
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