Geens wants Belgian mosques to report 'every visiting imam'

In an interview with the Flemish current affairs programme Terzake, Belgium's justice minister Koen Geens responded to news that the imam considered to be the brain behind the recent terror attacks in Catalonia had in the past preached in Belgium.

The investigation into the attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils revealed that Spanish imam Abdelbaki Es Satty was sacked from a Belgian mosque in 2016 over suspicions about his radical beliefs and hate-mongering. Even after his departure, however, the radical imam continued to return to Belgium on several occasions.

In the Terzake interview, Geens explained the need for more transparency around preachers in Belgium. He will therefore ask the Muslim Executive “to require every mosque in Belgium, whether recognised or not, to report all visiting imams”. The Muslim Executive will be required to pass the information on to State Security.