Manhunt for Belgian military expanded, help from the Netherlands

Police warn that civilians should not approach Conings themselves, but notify the police immediately. The soldier is about 6 feet tall, bald and has several tattoos. He was wearing a dark Timberland T-shirt when he left home on Tuesday.

Anxiety in schools

Het Belang van Limburg reports that dozens of primary school children in the region have stayed at home today. “We’ve already had several worried parents on the phone,” a school principal told the newspaper. The gate around his school building was therefore closed when all the children were inside.

For the time being, no additional security measures are being taken, the governor of Belgian Limburg told Belga news agency. Several mosques in the area will remain closed as a precaution. Islamic places of worship are additionally guarded in Maasmechelen. It is unclear whether the mosques are a concrete target for Conings.

Minister under fire

The Belgian Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder, who herself has also received extra security, has been strongly criticized as a result of the Conings case. The soldier was known to the Belgian counter-terrorist services as a “potentially violent extremist with extreme right-wing ideas”, but was nevertheless able to take heavy weapons with him from a barracks for target practice.

In a parliamentary debate the minister said today that stricter action will be taken against soldiers who express themselves racist, sexist or fascist. For example, stricter punishments will be imposed or such soldiers will be fired.

A parliamentarian from the Social Democratic party Vooruit reminded Dedonder that there have been concerns about extremist soldiers for some time. “When I asked you about it the other day, you said, ‘There’s not much we can do about it.

Belgian Prime Minister De Croo warned in the debate that repression is not the only solution to radicalization in society. “The key is an inclusive society in which everyone counts. We do not allow ourselves to be divided by situations like this.”

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