Brussels:Belgian police detained 16 suspected Islamist militants, mostly of Chechen origin, on Monday, after a series of raids prompted by investigations of people who had returned from Syria and a possible attack in Belgium.
The 21 raids focused on two suspected Islamist groups - one on the coast and the second in and near the Belgian university city of Leuven, where investigators discovered evidence pointing to a planned attack in Belgium.
Prosecutors began their investigation into the suspected attack plot in January, after intercepting communications on mobile messaging service WhatsApp with the help of U.S. authorities.
The investigation into the coastal group began in February after a person suspected of joining jihadist fighters in Syria had returned to Belgium wounded, to seek medical treatment.
Prosecutors said they had carried out the coordinated action because of contacts between the two groups, whose members had trained in Syria, Chechnya and Afghanistan.
In January, Belgian police killed two men who opened fire on them during a series of raids against an Islamist group that federal prosecutors said was on the point of launching attacks across the country.
Jean Thoreau, a spokesman for federal prosecutors, said there was no indication any of those detained on Monday had been planning an imminent attack.
Prime Minister Charles Michel praised the work of police and justice departments in a statement. "We will not allow any place in our democracy for those people who represent a menace for our citizens," he said.
