Latest Brussels News

Today in History: March 18, FDR signs executive order on internment of Japanese-Americans

Mar. 18, 2024 00:01 AM EDT

Today in History Today is Monday, March 18, the 78th day of 2024. There are 288 days left in the year. Today’s highlight in history: On March 18, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order authorizing the War Relocation Authority,...

Hungary's Orbán rails against the EU and 'the Western world' in a speech on a national holiday

Mar. 15, 2024 13:23 PM EDT

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán sought to mobilize support for his brand of right-wing populism in a holiday speech on Friday, urging his spectators to help him “occupy Brussels” in European Union elections this summer. Orbán’s address,...

European Union members should open talks with Bosnia on joining, the EU's executive branch says

Mar. 12, 2024 14:49 PM EDT

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's executive arm will recommend that member countries open membership negotiations with Bosnia-Herzegovina, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday, despite lingering ethnic divisions in the Western Balkan country. ...

A Belgian court sentences a prominent far-right activist to 1 year in prison for spreading hate

Mar. 12, 2024 11:59 AM EDT

BRUSSELS (AP) — A court in Belgium sentenced prominent far-right activist Dries Van Langenhove to a year in prison on Tuesday for running an organization that a judge said spread “racist, hateful, Nazi and negationist speech,” in a major ruling on how the nation deals with extremism. ...

Police in Belgium arrest 4 people suspected of planning attack against Brussels concert hall

Mar. 04, 2024 11:32 AM EST

BRUSSELS (AP) — Police in Belgium have arrested four people suspected of plotting an attack against a concert hall in Brussels, the federal prosecutor's office said Monday. The adult arrested has been charged with "participation in the activities of a terrorist group” with the...

Tractor protests threaten to drive the EU's green farming policies into a ditch

Feb. 25, 2024 19:37 PM EST

WESTROZEBEKE, Belgium (AP) — It was the puddles of green sludge left by the tires of massive tractors in western Belgium’s industrial farmlands that drew the attention of biological engineer Ineke Maes. The slime was destructive algae, the result of the excess of chemicals used...

Cocaine City? Gang wars on the rise as drug dealers fight for territory in EU capital Brussels

Feb. 15, 2024 09:25 AM EST

SAINT-GILLES, Belgium (AP) — Cocaine and crack keep flowing. Shootings among rival gangs rage close to the very heart of Brussels. Police seize drugs and arrest traffickers almost daily. But dealers keep coming back, and the population is fed up. As record amounts of cocaine are...

NATO chief hails record defense spending while warning that Trump's remarks undermine security

Feb. 14, 2024 08:22 AM EST

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday that its European members and Canada have ramped up defense spending to record levels, as he warned that former U.S. President Donald Trump was undermining their security by calling into question the U.S. commitment to its...

Pentagon chief Austin remains hospitalized, will not travel to Brussels for Ukraine, NATO meetings

Feb. 12, 2024 16:09 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has canceled his trip to Brussels to meet with NATO ministers and work on Ukraine military aid as he remains hospitalized while dealing with further health issues following prostate cancer surgery, the Pentagon said Monday. Austin,...

Chief of UN aid agency in Gaza calls EU funds 'absolutely critical' but the bloc wants an audit

Feb. 12, 2024 13:02 PM EST

BRUSSELS (AP) — The head of the U.N. agency that delivers most aid to people in Gaza expressed guarded optimism Monday that the European Union will provide it with a vital financial lifeline in coming weeks, although divisions within the EU threaten to derail the move. The aid...