The Belgian prime minister has vowed to combat anti-Semitism after a pre-dawn blast damaged a synagogue in eastern Belgium, with prosecutors in charge of organised crime and terrorism heading up the investigation.
The explosion took place around 4am (3am Irish time) in front of the synagogue, causing no injuries, police said.
"Anti-Semitism is an attack on our values and our society, and we must fight it unequivocally. We stand in solidarity with the Jewish community in Liege and across the country," Prime Minister Bart De Wever said on social media.
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin slammed a "despicable antisemitic act that directly targeted Belgium's Jewish community".
"Security measures around similar sites will continue to be expanded," Mr Quintin said in a social media post.
Willy Demeyer, the mayor of Liege, where the synagogue is located, condemned what he described as "an anti-Semitic act".
"We cannot allow foreign conflicts to be imported into our city," he told public broadcaster RTBF, in a seeming reference to the Middle East war triggered by US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
'Material damage'
The pre-dawn explosion blew out the windows of buildings across the road from the synagogue, a police spokesman said, adding there was "only material damage".
A security perimeter was quickly erected, with police at the scene.
The federal prosecutor's office, which handles organised crime and terrorism cases, will lead the investigation, a spokeswoman said.
The office is expected to release further information later today.
Built in 1899, the Liege synagogue also serves as a museum for the history of the city's Jewish community, according to the temple's website.
Belgium's Jewish community numbers 50,000 people, mainly in Antwerp and Brussels, and Jewish places of worship have been subject to heightened security measures on occasion in recent years.
Belgium authorities had stepped up security measures after Palestinian militant group Hamas's 7 October, 2023 attack on Israel which sparked the war in Gaza.
Officials pointed to a rise in anti-Semitic acts in Belgium at that time.
