Two more Brussels shootings leave two people wounded and deepen pressure on Belgian authorities
Two shootings wounded two people in Saint-Gilles and Molenbeek-Saint-Jean overnight into Monday, 24 August, while police detained two suspects near the Saint-Gilles scene.
In 30 seconds
- Police responded in Saint-Gilles at about 02:40 and found one injured person.
- Two suspects were detained during an initial search near the Saint-Gilles scene.
- A man was shot in the lower leg near Avenue Jean Dubrucq in Molenbeek and was reported out of danger.
- No connection between the two overnight incidents has been established.
Two shootings wounded two people in the municipalities of and overnight into Monday, 24 August, intensifying pressure on Belgium’s local and federal authorities after another violent weekend in the capital. Police detained two suspects near the Saint-Gilles scene; no arrest had been reported in the Molenbeek case by late Monday morning.
For residents, commuters and international staff who use the neighbourhoods around Porte de Hal and Belgica, the immediate significance is straightforward: gun violence has again reached ordinary streets and homes rather than remaining confined to an abstract dispute between criminal groups. The incidents concern Brussels as a city governed through municipal, regional and federal institutions—not Brussels in its separate role as the seat of the EU and NATO.
Police were called at about 02:40 to the Chaussée de Forest area in Saint-Gilles, close to Square Jacques Franck. Officers found an injured person, administered first aid and transferred the victim to hospital, according to BX1 and reporting by De Standaard and Het Nieuwsblad. Two people were detained during an initial search nearby. Police Zone Brussels-Midi, which covers Saint-Gilles, Anderlecht and Forest, had not disclosed the victim’s condition, the suspects’ alleged roles or a possible motive.
Around midnight, officers responding to shots near Avenue Jean Dubrucq, close to Belgica metro station in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, found a man wounded in the lower leg. Het Nieuwsblad reported that he was taken to hospital and was not in danger of death. No suspect had been arrested, and investigators had not established whether the two overnight shootings were connected.
The incidents followed three shootings elsewhere in Brussels during the weekend. In Saint-Gilles, a man was shot in the leg on Saturday evening near Place des Deux Bancs. On Sunday morning, another shot fired near Porte de Hal entered a bedroom window while the resident was in bed, BRUZZ reported. Mayor , a Socialist, linked that area’s disorder provisionally to its known drug market, although judicial investigations—not municipal statements—must determine the motives.
The accumulation matters more than any single headline. Federal-police figures reported by BRUZZ show 57 shootings across Brussels’ 19 municipalities between January and July 2026, with two deaths and 21 people wounded. In all of 2025, police recorded 101 shootings, eight deaths and 43 injuries. Comparisons require care because incidents differ greatly and Monday’s investigations remain preliminary, but the figures show that recurrent firearms use has become a structural public-safety problem.
Belgian officials agree about the seriousness but differ over responsibility and remedies. Spinette has called for a permanent reinforcement of frontline policing and investigations, arguing that the Brussels prosecutor’s office and federal judicial police lack personnel. He has also warned that merging Brussels’ six police zones would not, by itself, stop the violence. Federal Interior Minister Bernard Quintin of the liberal MR instead says years of fragmented or permissive Brussels governance helped create the present conditions. He points to federal support for local zones, additional judicial-police capacity and surveillance investment as evidence that the national government is acting.
Where this is happening
View on map Brussels →Federal Justice Minister has framed the violence as an expression of organised crime whose networks possess substantial resources, cross borders and continually adjust their business model. That wider view is important: Brussels’ street-level drug markets are local endpoints of international supply chains, but there is no verified basis yet for attributing either Monday shooting to a particular network.
The next steps belong to Police Zone Brussels-Midi, Police Zone Brussels-West and the Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office: identify the shooters, clarify the status of the two detainees, establish motives and determine whether any recent incidents are linked. Authorities had not announced a new coordinated measure in direct response to Monday’s shootings. Until investigators provide those answers, claims that the attacks were gang reprisals—or parts of one campaign—should remain hypotheses rather than conclusions.
What to do
People living in or travelling through the affected areas should follow instructions from Police Zone Brussels-Midi, Police Zone Brussels-West and commune authorities, and avoid any active police perimeter. Anyone who witnessed either incident or has relevant footage should preserve it and contact the police rather than sharing identifying material publicly. The two cases remain separate unless prosecutors announce evidence of a connection. Readers should watch for updates on the two Saint-Gilles detainees, the investigations and any security measures announced after 24 August; no new restrictions, costs or legal obligations have been reported.
Impact
Regional — Saint-Gilles and Molenbeek residents face renewed concern around Porte de Hal, Square Jacques Franck, Avenue Jean Dubrucq and Belgica station. The incidents also increase pressure on police zones elsewhere in Brussels to coordinate intelligence and operations.
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Voices & reactions
What the main actors are doing
Reported positions, summarised — not direct quotationsJean Spinette and the local resource-first case
Saint-Gilles mayor Jean Spinette argues that the immediate deficit is operational capacity. His appeal is for a durable daily police presence, more federal investigators and stronger prosecutorial resources; he cautions that merging Brussels’ six police zones is not by itself an answer to armed drug violence.
Bernard Quintin and the federal governance case
Federal Interior Minister Bernard Quintin argues that Brussels’ insecurity also reflects long-standing local political and administrative failures. He says the federal government is already supplying exceptional support, including reinforcements for judicial police, assistance to local zones and surveillance funding, and presents structural reform as part of the response.
Annelies Verlinden and the cross-border crime framing
Justice Minister Annelies Verlinden places the shootings within a wider struggle against well-financed, adaptive and cross-border criminal organisations. This framing shifts attention beyond visible patrols toward investigations, prosecutions, financial disruption and cooperation across Belgian and international jurisdictions.
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