It is the first time that Minister of Justice Paul Van Tigchelt (pictured) has admitted that Palestinian terrorist organizations often operate in Belgium through shadow operations. In the name of supporting the Palestinian cause, organizations want to protect and promote Hamas’ image.
Belgium’s Minister of Justice Paul Van Tigchelt has confirmed that Hamas is active in Begium and that there are organizations in the country that lobby and raise funds for terrorist organizations designated as such by the European Union. admitted that it was.
The minister was responding to a question from Michael Freilich, a member of parliament from the opposition NV-A (New Flemish Union).
This is the first time that the Minister of Justice has acknowledged that Palestinian terrorist organizations often operate in Belgium through shadow operations. In the name of supporting the Palestinian cause, organizations want to protect and promote Hamas’ image.
Mr. Van Tigchelt is working in Europe as a fundraising and lobbying proxy for Hamas, the terrorist group responsible for the Oct. 7 massacre in southern Israel, in which at least 1,2000 people were killed and 240 were kidnapped. Nominated the Palestinian Political Relations Council (EUPAC). £
EUPAC is headed by Majid al-Zir, who is recognized by German security services as the leading figure in Hamas activities in Europe, Der Spiegel revealed in mid-December 2023. He has even been named the representative of Hamas in Germany. . More than a decade ago, he was named Hamas’s operative in Europe by Israel, along with the Palestinian Repatriation Center he founded in London.
The other leader of EUPAC is Mazen Kahir, another Israeli-appointed leader of Hamas in Europe, who reportedly works with another group, the Committee for Charitable Support for Palestine (CBSP He is said to have served as treasurer of the French Palestine Security Committee. He was added to the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists by the United States in 2003 because of his economic ties to Hamas.
Legally, EUPAC is dedicated to the development of youth music, culture and sport. But is music, culture and sport for young people really the purpose of his EUPAC? The location of its headquarters suggests otherwise. Schumann Square in Brussels, directly opposite the European Commission, is the center of European politics. In fact, the nonprofit organization serves as a lobbying vehicle for Hamas.
The minister stressed that to date in Belgium no extremist messages could be traced back to organizations associated with Hamas. But what happens to the money raised, or how does that lobbying translate into reality, such as among politicians who speak positively about Hamas?
“This is unprecedented and shameful,” Freilich declared.
The minister is the former head of Orcam, the country’s threat analysis coordinating body.