In a significant development, Belgium’s justice minister, Vincent Van Quickenborne, has tendered his resignation in the wake of revelations surrounding the tragic Brussels terror attack. The attack, perpetrated by Abdesalem Lassoued, an Islamic extremist, claimed the lives of two Swedish nationals and wounded another individual. It has come to light that Lassoued had been denied asylum and was subject to extradition requests by Tunisia.
Van Quickenborne, in a late-night announcement, revealed that he and other officials had been engaged in efforts to unravel the circumstances of how Lassoued, having been denied asylum, managed to evade authorities for two years. Startlingly, the justice minister disclosed that an extradition request from Tunisia was made on 15 August 2022 but was seemingly mishandled.
“This demand was transmitted on 1 September, as it should have been, by the justice expert at the Brussels prosecutor’s office. The magistrate in charge did not follow up on this extradition demand, and the dossier was not acted upon,” Van Quickenborne lamented.
He characterized this as a grave individual error with far-reaching and lamentable consequences, declaring it as “a monumental error” and “an unacceptable error.” Consequently, he submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Alexander De Croo.
Van Quickenborne emphasized his sense of duty, acknowledging that the new information provided by the prosecutors deeply affected him, as he had diligently pursued judicial system improvements.
The attack, which unfolded on Monday, involved Lassoued using a semiautomatic rifle to kill two Swedish men and injure a third individual. In response, more than 35,000 people attending a football match in Brussels were placed under lockdown.
Official documents indicate that Lassoued had submitted asylum applications in several European countries, including Norway, Sweden, Italy, and Belgium. His rejection for asylum in Belgium in 2020 did not deter him from staying in the country illegally.
Prior to the attack, Lassoued had been on the radar of law enforcement agencies, having faced suspicions of involvement in human trafficking, illegal residence in Belgium, and posing a risk to state security. Information received from an undisclosed foreign government suggested radicalization and a potential intent to participate in foreign conflicts, but Belgian authorities were unable to corroborate these claims, consequently failing to categorize him as a potential security threat.
The resignation of the justice minister underscores the serious implications of security lapses and the imperative need for heightened vigilance in the face of evolving threats.
