Two Israeli soldiers accused of war crimes in Gaza were arrested and interrogated by Belgian authorities before eventually being released, media reports and an advocacy group have said.
According to Belgian media reports, the arrests followed urgent legal complaints filed by the Hind Rajab Foundation and the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) earlier this week. The soldiers were detained at the Tomorrowland music festival in Boom, Belgium.
After examining the case, prosecutors decided they had jurisdiction under Article 14/10 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which grants Belgian courts extraterritorial authority over international crimes such as war crimes covered by the Geneva Conventions and torture as defined by the UN Convention Against Torture.
Following these developments, police located and formally interviewed the two soldiers before releasing them. Belgian authorities have confirmed that a criminal investigation is ongoing but declined to provide further details.
In a statement, the Hind Rajab Foundation welcomed the move as "a turning point in the global pursuit of accountability," noting it was the first time in Europe that Israeli suspects linked to alleged war crimes in Gaza were arrested and questioned.
"To the victims and survivors in Gaza: we see you, we hear you, and we carry your demands for justice forward. To those who believed impunity was permanent: this moment shows that it is not," the foundation said, calling for the investigation to be pursued fully and independently.
Israel has killed over 59,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. The genocidal military attacks have devastated the enclave, collapsed the health system, and led to severe food shortages and deaths by starvation.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
