Brussels reels from three shootings in one weekend as gun violence accelerates
Unknown gunmen fired on an Anderlecht police station before two further shootings in Saint-Gilles, leaving one man wounded and a bullet lodged in a resident’s bedroom.
In 30 seconds
- Gunmen struck an Anderlecht police station at about 23:40 on 21 August; no one was injured.
- A man was shot in the leg in Saint-Gilles at about 21:15 on 22 August and survived.
- A bullet entered an occupied bedroom near Porte de Hal at about 07:00 on 23 August.
- Federal police recorded 57 Brussels shootings, two deaths and 21 injuries through July 2026.
Updated 24 August 2026, 10:00 CEST — . Unknown gunmen fired repeatedly at the South police zone station on Rue Démosthène in at about 23:40 on Friday, 21 August, damaging the building but injuring no one. The police zone told BRUZZ that the attackers fled and remained unidentified; the Brussels prosecutor’s office appointed a ballistics expert.
The attack began a weekend of unusually brazen gun violence. At about 21:15 on Saturday, a man was shot in the leg near the junction of Rue Gustave Defnet and Rue du Monténégro in . BRUZZ reported that he was taken to hospital and was not in a life-threatening condition. The suspect fled and is being sought.
At around 07:00 on Sunday, another shot was fired near the Porte de Hal. According to Saint-Gilles mayor Jean Spinette and BRUZZ, the bullet entered the bedroom window of a first-floor apartment on Rue Fontainas while the resident was in bed. She was not physically injured. Investigators have not announced whether the two Saint-Gilles incidents are connected or whether any of the weekend’s shootings involved the same people.
The police station shooting prompted the South zone to reinforce patrols and vigilance around its buildings. Police chief Jurgen De Landsheer said the use of a heavy firearm against a police building represented a serious attack on public order and the institutions responsible for public safety. The motive remains unconfirmed, and authorities have not classified the incident as terrorism.
The weekend’s events add to an already severe trend. figures reported by Het Nieuwsblad recorded 57 shootings across the Brussels-Capital Region during the first seven months of 2026, with two deaths and 21 injuries. The same report counted 101 shootings in all of 2025. Earlier official and media assessments have linked much of Brussels gun violence to competition in the drug trade, but no such link has been established publicly for the attack on the station.
Where this is happening
View on map Brussels →Spinette has requested 80 additional federal officers for Saint-Gilles, while the federal government continues to promote a merger of Brussels’ six police zones. Municipal leaders argue that structural reform does not replace immediate staffing and investigative capacity. The next developments will come from the ballistics examinations, searches for the perpetrators and any decision on extra federal support. For residents, the central unanswered question is whether these were isolated attacks or part of a connected escalation.
What to do
Residents who hear gunfire or find bullet damage should move away from windows, avoid touching cartridges or damaged objects, and contact police so evidence can be preserved. Anyone facing an immediate threat should call 101 for police or 112 for emergency assistance. People living near the affected police buildings may notice heightened vigilance, but no closures, transport disruption or new public restrictions were reported in the article. Readers should watch for updates from Brussels South police and the Brussels prosecutor’s office on arrests, confirmed links between the incidents and any local security measures.
Impact
Regional — The incidents directly affect Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles and have led to increased vigilance around South police zone buildings. They also intensify pressure on regional and federal authorities over staffing, coordination and the planned consolidation of Brussels’ six police zones.
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Voices & reactions
What the main actors are doing
Reported positions, summarised — not direct quotationsSaint-Gilles municipal leadership
Mayor Jean Spinette argues that the immediate priority is additional operational capacity, requesting 80 federal officers to confront armed criminal networks. This position treats staffing and investigative reinforcement as urgent needs that cannot wait for wider institutional reform.
Federal institutional reform advocates
Federal officials have presented the planned merger of Brussels’ six police zones as a route to clearer command and stronger coordination. Municipal leaders respond that consolidation alone does not supply the officers, prosecutors, detention capacity and specialist investigators required now.
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