Boris Dilliès calls Brussels security council after renewed gun violence
Brussels Minister-President Boris Dilliès has called the Regional Security Council for Wednesday afternoon after five reported shooting incidents in four days in Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles.
In 30 seconds
- Dilliès scheduled CORES for late Wednesday afternoon after renewed shootings in Brussels.
- Five shooting incidents were reported over four days in Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles.
- BX1 reported 57 drug-related shootings in Brussels during the first seven months of 2026.
- The Brussels hotspot programme currently covers 18 priority areas.
Updated: 25 August 2026 (CEST)
Minister-President called the Regional Security Council, known as CORES, on Tuesday, 25 August, for a meeting in Brussels late Wednesday afternoon after a new series of shootings in and . His office told La Dernière Heure that the authorities would examine the recent violence and the regional response, with Dilliès promising that no neighbourhood would be left behind.
The meeting follows five reported shooting incidents over four days. BRUZZ reported that gunmen fired at the Brussels-Midi police station on Rue Démosthène in Anderlecht on Friday night before fleeing on a scooter; nobody was injured. The Brussels Times, citing Saint-Gilles mayor Jean Spinette and police information, reported further gunfire in Saint-Gilles, including two incidents that injured people and one in which a bullet entered an occupied home on Rue Fontainas.
Another burst of automatic gunfire was reported near Place des Deux Bancs in Saint-Gilles at about 21:00 on Monday. Spinette told Belga, as reported by The Brussels Times, that customers in a nearby pizzeria took cover and that nobody was injured. Police had not announced an arrest in that incident by Tuesday afternoon.
The violence has renewed scrutiny of Brussels’ response to drug-market conflicts. BX1 reported that police counted 57 shootings linked to drug trafficking during the first seven months of 2026, with two deaths and 21 injured people. The outlet also found that 63% of the year’s shootings occurred outside the designated drug hotspots, underscoring the limits of concentrating enforcement in fixed priority areas.
CORES brings together regional authorities, the mayors of Brussels’ 19 municipalities and the chiefs of its six police zones. BX1 reported that the hotspot system created through the council in 2024 now covers 18 areas and allows intensified surveillance and identity checks, while leaving municipalities room to adapt local measures.
Where this is happening
View on map Brussels →Federal Justice Minister said on Sunday that organised criminal networks operate across institutional and national boundaries and require coordinated policing, prosecution, prevention and social policy. Brussels opposition parties and local officials are pressing for faster reinforcement: Les Engagés has requested an emergency plan for the Brussels-Midi police zone, while Spinette has called for 80 additional officers. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin told BX1 that federal authorities had already supplied 77 reinforcements and would examine further needs.
Wednesday’s council is expected to assess deployments, investigations and the geographic reach of the hotspot policy. Any new operational measures, the status of the outstanding investigations and the precise links between the shootings remain to be announced.
What to do
Residents and workers in Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles should follow updates from local authorities and police, respect any security cordons and report immediate danger through the emergency services. The next concrete decision point is Wednesday afternoon, when CORES is expected to discuss the coordinated response. Readers should watch for announcements affecting local policing, hotspot boundaries or regional security measures. The information provided does not establish that the five shootings are linked, so claims about a single coordinated campaign should be treated cautiously pending investigative findings.
Impact
Regional — The immediate impact is concentrated in Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles, within the Brussels-Midi police zone, but regional figures show that gun violence is not confined to the officially designated drug hotspots.
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Voices & reactions
What the main actors are doing
Reported positions, summarised — not direct quotationsBrussels opposition and local officials
Les Engagés and Saint-Gilles mayor Jean Spinette argue that the recent shootings require urgent additional personnel and a dedicated operational plan for the Brussels-Midi police zone, including stronger investigative capacity.
Federal and regional executives
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin says the federal level has already provided reinforcements and will assess further requests, while Dilliès points to regional security spending, the forthcoming drugs commissioner and tighter coordination.
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