The Hamas Presence in Belgium and the Rising Tide of Antisemitism
Belgium has indeed emerged as a significant operational center for Hamas-affiliated networks in Europe, with Belgian authorities officially confirming the organization’s presence through shell companies and fundraising operations. Several factors have combined to make Belgium particularly attractive to Hamas operations, while troubling patterns of infiltration among asylum seekers raise serious counterintelligence challenges.
Belgian Justice Minister Paul Van Tigchelt officially confirmed in February 2024 that Hamas operates in Belgium through a network of shell companies focused on lobbying and fundraising activities. This represents the first formal acknowledgment by Belgian authorities of Hamas’s systematic presence in the country, marking a significant shift from previous denials. The primary entity under investigation is the European Palestinian Council for Political Relations (EUPAC), led by Majed al-Zeer, a senior Hamas representative in Europe. EUPAC operates from Brussels, strategically situated near the European Commission and Council to maximize its lobbying influence on EU institutions. German intelligence services have confirmed al-Zeer’s role at the center of Hamas activity in Europe.
On October 7, 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department (OFAC) designated Majed Al-Zeer as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). According to the official statement, he is identified as a senior Hamas representative in Europe, particularly in Germany and the United Kingdom, involved in material support and financing activities for this terrorist organization — claims which he predictably denies. However, photographic evidence demonstrates that al-Zeer has been in contact with the late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, lending credibility to intelligence assessments of his central role. Following this designation, German authorities issued a European arrest warrant against al-Zeer, further validating his prominent position in Hamas’s European operations.
Al-Zeer’s influence extends through multiple organizational structures, including his role within the Palestinian Return Centre (PRC), based in London, and EUPAC, located in the Belgian capital. According to British press reports, the PRC participated in financing the Mediterranean cruise undertaken by Rima Hassan and Greta Thunberg, dubbed the “selfie cruise” by critics. This so-called Freedom Flotilla, while presented as a humanitarian mission, demonstrates how Hamas-linked organizations exploit Western sympathy and high-profile activists to advance their propaganda objectives while maintaining plausible deniability about their true nature.
Belgium’s unique position as host to major EU institutions makes it an ideal base for Hamas operations. The concentration of diplomatic representatives in Brussels — the second largest after New York — provides an environment where foreign intelligence activities can operate with relative impunity. This positioning allows Hamas-connected organizations to access EU decision-makers directly, coordinate with other Hamas-linked groups across Europe, and exploit Belgium’s prominent role in EU foreign policy.
Hamas has also made extensive use of Telegram as its primary communication platform in Europe. Their channels serve propaganda, recruitment, radicalization, and counterintelligence purposes, including efforts to identify and target opponents. Though specific confirmation of the “Imsik Ameel” (catch a spy) channel operated by Mohammed Othman was not found in available sources, the broader pattern of Hamas using European-based operatives to manage digital counterintelligence operations is well established. Belgian security services are monitoring increased online threats and radicalization activities following the October 7 attacks, demonstrating authorities’ acute awareness of these digital operations.
Perhaps most alarmingly, concerns over Hamas operatives infiltrating Europe disguised as asylum seekers continue to grow. German intelligence has provided concrete evidence of terrorist infiltration among refugee populations, and Belgium has acknowledged the challenge of screening evacuees from Gaza, specifically monitoring individuals with connections to Belgium. This points to a broader weakness in Europe’s asylum system, which sophisticated adversaries like Hamas are well positioned to exploit.
The political implications of these developments in Belgium are deeply concerning, particularly regarding the rise of Fouad Ahidar and his political ambitions. Despite documented associations with Hamas-linked networks, Fouad Ahidar continues to display his ministerial ambitions in the Belgian capital with support from left-wing parties. Ahidar, who founded Team Fouad Ahidar after being expelled from Vooruit for his controversial positions, gained significant representation in the Brussels Parliament and has become the second largest Dutch-speaking party in Brussels with over 16% of the vote. His platform deliberately targets the city’s large Muslim community with positions on ritual slaughter, government employees wearing veils, and the Gaza conflict — issues that align suspiciously with Hamas propaganda objectives.
The fact that Ahidar is reportedly invited to conferences organized by EUPAC, the same organization led by designated terrorist financier Majed al-Zeer, reveals the depth of these troubling connections. This reflects European politics’ current state — a situation where individuals with documented associations to Hamas-connected networks can achieve significant electoral success and maintain serious political ambitions with mainstream left-wing support.
The impact of these developments on Jewish communities in Europe is severe and urgent. The influx of individuals from conflict zones like Gaza — where antisemitic and anti-Israeli rhetoric is central to state media and education — raises the risk of increased harassment, intimidation, and even violence against Jewish diaspora communities. There are credible reports of genuine anti-Hamas asylum seekers being targeted, harassed, or intimidated by fellow asylum seekers who are, in fact, Hamas operatives. This climate not only threatens the safety and well-being of Jews in Europe but also undermines the core values of multicultural integration and civil rights.
Western governments’ ongoing embrace of “suicidal empathy” — manifested in indiscriminate or poorly scrutinized acceptance of Gaza evacuees — risks fueling a dramatic escalation in antisemitism and terrorism on European soil. Without robust vetting mechanisms and honest acknowledgment of the ideological drivers accompanying some arrivals from Gaza, Jewish communities are likely to become even more vulnerable to organized campaigns of harassment and radicalization. The patterns are clear: terrorist networks have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to exploit gaps in Western security and migration systems. The consequences for Jewish communities — and European security overall — are likely to grow more dangerous unless policies adapt to these realities.
The Hamas network in Belgium represents a systematic exploitation of European democratic institutions and asylum processes. The organization’s ability to operate through legitimate-appearing entities while maintaining connections to designated terrorist leadership demonstrates sophisticated operational security and long-term strategic planning. The political mainstreaming of figures with documented connections to these networks, such as Fouad Ahidar’s electoral success despite his controversial associations, reveals how deeply these influence operations have penetrated European political systems.
European Jews now face unprecedented danger from Hamas’s operations in the Belgian capital, where the organization has established a sophisticated network that threatens Jewish communities across the continent. According to the Ministry of Justice, Belgium lacked any legislation to prevent extremist organizations from lobbying on behalf of Hamas under the pretense of operating as legitimate NGOs. Until recently, Belgium’s only relevant legal framework was the 2017 anti-terrorism law, designed specifically for Belgian nationals returning from Syria after fighting for ISIS and committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. With new legislation known as “Arizona” and recent developments targeting organizations like Samidoun — whose coordinator’s refugee status was cancelled today — Belgium is finally taking action. However, given the depth of Hamas’s entrenchment in Brussels and the extent of its influence operations, these measures may be arriving too late to prevent the network from achieving its objectives of undermining European security and targeting Jewish communities across the continent.
