The new year saw widespread violence in Brussels, with thugs attacking police and firefighters and setting dozens of fires in the European Union's de facto capital.
Brussels police announced that they had arrested at least 159 people and intervened in more than 1,700 incidents with members of the public during New Year's Eve. le soir report.
Meanwhile, firefighters in the EU capital said at least 30 cars were set on fire, and in some areas several cars were set on fire at the same time. Three electric bicycles were also set on fire in the evening.
Brussels firefighters said there were at least 54 other fires that destroyed various pieces of street furniture, trash cans and trees.
Police, paramedics, and firefighters all reported being attacked by fireworks or Molotov cocktails.
Several buses and trams in the city were also attacked with fireworks, resulting in a tram passenger being hospitalized.
Announcement by Belgian sovereignist party Vlaams Belang picture They said they recorded it overnight. Breitbart News could not immediately confirm the source of the footage, but it showed police being attacked with fireworks.
There was also chaos in Antwerp, Belgium's second-largest city after Brussels, with riots breaking out just after midnight. After being attacked with fireworks, police were able to bring the mob under control around 2 a.m. local time. According to to de standard.
Antwerp police spokesperson Kim Bastians said 49 people were arrested, including 28 minors, and four of them were charged with public vandalism.
Five other people have died in fireworks-related incidents in Germany, including a 24-year-old man in North Rhine-Westphalia and two men, aged 45 and 50, in separate cases in Saxony. , a 20-year-old man from Hamburg, and a 21-year-old man from Brandenburg.
In the Netherlands, a 14-year-old boy reportedly lost his life when a firework exploded too quickly.
