A touchscreen pen in the colours of the national flag has been voted the winner of Belgian Beauties, a competition to find the country’s best souvenir. The competition was launched as part of the Handmade in Belgium programme, which is sponsored by Unizo, the organisation that represents the self-...

Belgium’s justice minister Koen Geens has plans to expand the government’s surveillance capabilities. In addition to tapping telephone conversations, the minister would also like to tap private messages sent via WhatsApp, Facebook and Skype, reports De Morgen. He cites the fight against terrorism...

Belgian police agents should be allowed to take their service weapons home with them, even when off-duty, police unions said on Tuesday in various Belgian media. Many agents would like to remain armed at all times due to recent terrorist threats following last week’s attacks in Paris which left 12...

A total of 2,678 dogs were reported missing or stolen in Belgium in 2014, 8.5% less than the previous year. It is the first decline in 10 years, reports Het Gazet van Antwerpen. On average, seven dogs disappear in Belgium every day, and the vast majority of them are stolen. The most coveted breeds...

Barak Friture Barak Friture offers a loving tribute to what used to be a linchpin of small-town Belgium – the frietkoten or roadside chip stands that are fast disappearing from local streets. For this bite-size photo book, Jesse Willems, a self-taught Antwerp photographer, visited 80 frietkoten...

Popular Schuman afterwork haunt Piola Libri returns after the holidays with an opening concert by indie singer songwriter Il Cile on Friday (January 16). The Italian café/bookshop in Rue Franklin, hosts regular concerts, talks and events. Are you ready to barter for an original work at Art Truc...

Brook Waters was working in marketing when he first encountered an escape room on holiday. It was a game in which players are locked in a room and must find clues, use gadgets, solve puzzles and work as a team to escape. “I thought: Wow! It gives you a buzz, and we don’t have anything like that in...

Belgian justice minister Koen Geens has announced new measures aimed at preventing jailed extremists from converting other prisoners to their cause. The announcement comes in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris last week that sent shock waves across Europe. It emerged that the terrorists...

The fire brigade was called to the Royal Conservatory in Brussels’ Rue de la Régence yesterday in response to a call from a spokesperson for the CD&V party, who happened to be in a building across the street. The building was evacuated and the street closed to traffic. The emergency services...

The Royal Observatory of Belgium measured 79 earthquakes in Belgium in 2014, according to its website. Last year was a quiet year in terms of earthquakes both in Belgium and worldwide, says seismologist Koen Verbeeck of the Observatory. The figure takes into account only naturally occurring...