The terrorist attacks in Belgium

The attack carried out last week at Brussels’ airport as well as Zaventern and Maelbeek Metro Stations, both in Belgium, was another dark chapter in the cowardly, senseless acts of terrorism that the world has increasingly become used to. Already, the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant [ISIL] has claimed responsibility for the bloodbath that […]

The attack carried out last week at Brussels’ airport as well as Zaventern and Maelbeek Metro Stations, both in Belgium, was another dark chapter in the cowardly, senseless acts of terrorism that the world has increasingly become used to. Already, the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant [ISIL] has claimed responsibility for the bloodbath that led to the death of 35 persons and the wounding of 300 others. Reports said at least three persons are still under investigation for the bombings.
The attacks have, no doubt, put security operatives in Belgium and those in the rest of Europe to test. From all indications Europe’s security apparatus have been stretched to its limits because the continent has become a constant target of attack by ISIS in recent times. Since January 2015 there have been more than 10 terrorist attacks in Europe. The bloodiest one was carried out on Friday, November 13, 2015, when suicide bombers simultaneously attacked the national sports stadium Stade de France during an international football match while their collaborators attacked the Bataclan music venue in central Paris. The attacks killed 129 persons and injured 352 others.
Reports have it that terrorists successfully struck in Belgium because security agencies did not follow up on intelligence reports and tip-offs on plots by ISIS to hit the country. There had been reports that ISIS had recruited and had been training some Europeans with the objective of carrying out terrorist acts on European soil at least two times in a year. In the case of last week’s attack on Brussels there were media reports that a resident near the apartment where the bombs used in the March 22 attacks were made, reported ‘strange comings and goings’ from the building to the police, but not much was done to investigate the tip-off.
Also, the landlord of the building was said to have noticed strong chemical odours emanating from the apartment but failed to investigate further.  Belgian police also received a tip-off on where Saleh Abdeslam, one of the masterminds of last November’s Paris bombings was hiding. The information was found to be correct but the police in Belgium didn’t arrest him until recently. Abdeslam, considered to be the most wanted terrorist in Europe, had been on the run for four months.
We join all peace loving peoples of the world in mourning the victims of these senseless attacks and in commiserating with the Belgians. Nigerians very much know what it feels like to suffer from such attacks, since we have in our country a terrorist group that attacks soft targets in an even more callous fashion than ISIL does. Needless to say, our security agencies must step up their alert to prevent terrorist copy cats from taking their cue from ISIL’s murderous deeds. While no country is able to completely protect its soft targets, we urge security agencies to adopt a creative approach to protect such soft targets including airports, motor parks, markets, schools, relaxation spots and worship centres.
It is instructive that the Belgian authorities were quickly able to identify some of the suspects of last week’s attacks through Close Circuit Television (CCTV) footages. This is why authorities in Nigeria need to move fast to ensure that our CCTV projects, which have been mouthed many times by successive government, should become a reality. If CCTVs in Abuja were functional, they would have been able to help track down the suspects of Police Headquarters, United Nations House, Nyanya, Kuje, Wuse and other bomb blasts that killed many in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the last few years.
Terrorists do not respect borders or boundaries, so it is the duty of all nations to come together and team up in the fight against this scourge. When countries such as Nigeria were battling with Boko Haram, many people thought it was our problem alone. With outrages such as the ones in France and Belgium, everyone now knows better.