Mayor of Antwerp bets on heavy artillery against Muslim immigrant gangs

The mayor of Antwerp has mobilized great resources to put an end to the organized crime which is rampant in the Belgian port metropolis.

Last week, the local police of Antwerp launched the operation Nachtwacht [Night watch], classed as the “biggest security mission of the last twenty years”.

The cabinet of the mayor Bart De Wever (N- VA, New Flemish Alliance) confirmed the initiative intended to fight against the abuses in the drug industry and repeated violence in recent years. In particular, it provides for the engagement of additional patrols, more regular identity checks and the closing of certain high-risk streets when necessary.

Since 2017, 66 grenade attacks and shootings, most often linked to settling of scores in the narcotics industry, have been recorded in Antwerp. Previously such incidents rarely resulted in injuries and usually consisted of intimidation or calling the attention of the police to rival gangs.

In recent weeks however, the violence has increased drastically. Among the visible measures decreed by the municipal authorities, is the acquisition of imposing BearCats. These American armored vehicles will now reinforce the arsenal of the Antwerp police.

Made by Lenco, these vehicles are usually only sold to the Military, or SWAT units. It is America’s most in-demand police vehicle offering seating to a 10-officer team. The armored tank takes bullets too, making it the most popular armored personnel carrier to SWAT teams in the United States.

“Criminals use weapons of war. We must fight them with the same weapons”, warned Bart De Wever, expressing concern not only about the rise of drug-related violence in Antwerp, but also his re-election.

In Belgium as well as in the Netherlands, the gang criminals are known as the “mocro-maffia”, or Moroccan mafia. Gang members in the narcotics trade are mostly from the impoverished Rif mountains of northern Morocco.

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