More and more minors are involved in terrorism files in Belgium. This is the conclusion of the annual report of the coordination body for the analysis of the threat (OCAM), made public this Thursday, June 12. The trend has been particularly marked since 2022 and after-Cavid: Over the past three years, A third of the attacks of attacks involved young people under the age of 18.
In total, these statistics, notably obtained via the TER common database, made it possible to identify around thirty ill -intentioned individuals. If the Belgian authorities deplore an increase in the number of young people involved in terrorist actions, these are two thirds of them for isolated profiles – also called “Lone Actors”. But it is the increase in small cells that alarms Belgian security services, mainly in a jihadist context.
“These were often unstructured networks, where jihadist propaganda circulates cheerfully, and whose members had met through social networks and private discussion groups”points the report, adding that “In many cases, these were young, often minor, who seem to have radicalized in a short time. »»
“A few weeks are sometimes enough between the first exposure to extremist content and the planning of a violent act”
The OCAM also underlines the speed with which some minors change: a few weeks are sometimes enough between the first exposure to extremist content and the planning of a violent act. This vulnerability is reinforced by mental disorders or situations of discomfort, frequently observed in these young people.
The targeted Jewish community
If the threat of political extremism persists – in particular in connection with jihadism -, the OCAM is mainly concerned about the way in which the youngest are exposed to these groups, which communicate online through coded messages. In 2024, 287 reports were thus recorded by the institutions.
More than half (57 %) was considered to have a low threat (level 1), almost a third (31 %) as an average threat (level 2), and 12 %as serious or serious threats (level 3). No report was classified at level 4 – corresponding to an imminent threat.
Regarding targets, the body notes that 15 % of the projects identified targeted the Jewish community directly. A figure he links to the news and the gradual rise in anti -Semitism in the country. However, the causes underlying the reports of threats were various and often multiple.
The authors frequently have hybrid profiles: both influenced by extremist ideologies (jihadism, ultra-right, anti-etablishment), but also bearers of personal or conspiratorial motivations. A “Ideological hybridization”, which complicates the work of detection.
“” More than fifty threats from bombings made by minors were identified last year “
The report also stresses that tensions related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict acted as a “Major emotional trigger” Throughout the year 2024, especially among young people in Muslim confession radicalized online. Other targets have been regularly identified in reports: specific people, police, soldiers, public places, institutional buildings, even individuals designated as “Disbelievers” Depending on the vocabulary used in certain extremist circles.
A threat always “serious” for the Belgian state
The level of general threat remains set at 3 (serious) since the attack on October 16, 2023 in Brussels. If no attack was committed on the territory in 2024, the security services have dealt with several files reporting violent intentions. The OCAM alerts for example on the growing attractiveness of the ideology carried by the ISKP, the Afghano-Pakistani branch of the Islamic State, whose propaganda seduces a young audience, eager for violent stories and identity symbols.
However, this phenomenon is not limited to Belgium: the security services recorded, last year, attacks and projects of attacks involving adolescents in France, Sweden and Germany. Faced with this reality, he calls for strengthening cooperation between security services, medico-social and educational world. More than fifty threats of attacks uttered by minors were identified last year.
