“A gunman fired an automatic weapon in front of children in my village,” Spinette informed reporters. “There are bullet marks in the ground.” Customers at a pizzeria were forced to take cover as gunshots erupted, according to Belga. The shooter escaped and remained at large as of Tuesday morning.
Saint-Gilles has been struggling with drug-related violence for years, especially around the train station. In June 2024, a shooting incident at a café near Brussels-Midi station left two people dead and three others wounded when attackers opened fire with automatic weapons, in what authorities linked to drug trafficking. In response, authorities increased police presence in several hotspots in the area, though not adequately, according to Spinette.
“I have been requesting reinforcements for three years,” he stated.
Approximately 700 police officers work in Saint-Gilles and the broader Midi police zone, with the municipality having raised its annual contribution to the police force by €1.8 million last year. At least 66 shooting incidents have been recorded across the broader Brussels region in 2026, as reported by Le Soir.
“Drug criminals are issuing threats because we are disrupting their activities,” Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin told Belgian public broadcaster VRT. “We must persist in this battle with determination. It will be a lengthy one.” Quintin mentioned having already deployed 77 additional officers to Brussels and is considering sending more.













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