Why Belgium Keeps Popping Up in Terror Attacks

At Der Spiegel, "The Brussels Connection: Why Belgium Keeps Popping Up in Terror Attacks":

The Molenbeek district in Brussels is a well-known hotbed of Islamist activity. It has been linked to four major terrorist attacks in recent years. It is also illustrative of the problems facing Europe as it tries to deal with its radicals.

Confirming that the building you're standing in front of is in fact one of Brussel's largest mosques requires asking a passerby. There's no minaret and not even a sign noting that the building on Rue Delaunoy 40 is an important house of Muslim worship. The roller shutters and the large aluminum doors look more like a car repair shop. But on Fridays, as many as 600 Muslims come to pray in the Al-Khalil mosque, as the janitor proudly explains.

It is believed that the mosque has ties with the Syrian arm of the Muslim Brotherhood and it is considered to be one of the biggest and most influential mosques in Molenbeek, the Brussels neighborhood that seems to always be popping up when acts of Islamist violence in Europe are investigated. There was a link to the foiled terrorist plot on a high-speed Thalys TGV train bound from Paris to Brussels in August and there were links to the massacre of the editorial staff of Charlie Hebdo in January. It has popped up in the news again following this weekend's horrific attacks in Paris. Authorities say that seven suspects have been arrested in Molenbeek and that several apartments have been searched.

On the streets here, people express shock over the attacks. "That's not Islam," says a man with a stubbly beard, cap and brown coat who is standing in front of the mosque with acquaintances on Sunday. The longer he speaks, the more worked up he gets and, in the end, there are tears in his eyes and his voice trembles. "I just don't understand it."

That's the one side of Molenbeek, a city district that could look like a working class district in any major city in Germany. For the overwhelming majority of its residents, the idea of killing in the name of Allah is inconceivable.

A Focal Point of the Islamist Scene

But there's another side to Molenbeek: The one that is considered to be the focal point of Western Europe's Islamist scene. Following Friday night's terrorist attacks in Paris, a suspect was arrested on Saturday afternoon at the Osseghem metro station in Molenbeek. A short time later, heavily armed police removed a man from a gray VW Golf not even 100 meters away who is believed to have been in Paris at the time of the attacks. A total of seven people have been arrested so far in Molenbeek.

It is estimated that Muslims make up 6 percent of the Belgian population, but that figure is 25 percent in Brussels and 40 percent in Molenbeek. The unemployment rate in the district is 30 percent, but it is believed to be even higher among immigrants. "Most of the Muslims are moderate, but there are also sharply radicalized groups with connections, for example, to the Salafists," says Brussels-based journalist Mehmet Koksal, who has been covering the Islamist scene for years. "They tell young people that they aren't European or Belgium and that it's 'us against the others.'"

The result of this can be tangible in the district. "If a person eats publicly during Ramadan or a woman doesn't wear a headscarf, they may become the subject of hostility," he explains...

That's not good. Not good at all.

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