2023 in Belgium
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| See also: | Other events of 2023 List of years in Belgium | ||||
Events in the year 2023 in Belgium.
Incumbents
[edit]- Monarch: Philippe[1]
- Prime Minister: Alexander De Croo[2]
Events
[edit]- 10 March – Belgium banned TikTok from all federal government work devices over cybersecurity, privacy, and misinformation concerns.[3]
- 5 May – Belgian authorities arrest an Iraqi Al-Qaeda member and charge him with murder, terrorism, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, for his role in the deaths of at least 376 people and the wounding of over 2,300 others more than a decade ago in Iraq.[4]
- 9 May — Flemish Canon published.
- 13 May – Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023[5]
- 3 September — Luc Terlinden consecrated as Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels.[6]
- 4 September — Belgian state makes unprecedented retail bond issue for €22 billion.[7]
- 16 October — 2023 Brussels terrorist attack: Two Swedish nationals are killed during a shooting near the central railway station in Brussels, Belgium. The perpetrator escaped from the scene.[8]
- 17 October — Police in Brussels, Belgium, fatally shoot Tunisian Abdesalem Lassoued, 45, an Islamic State sympathizer in a cafe, who shot two Swedish tourists the previous day.[9]
- 15 December — A joint text message traffic investigation by the Financial Times, Der Spiegel and Le Monde reveals that Belgian Vlaams Belang politician Frank Creyelman accepted bribes from the Chinese Ministry of State Security for three years to influence discussions within the European Union. He was subsequently expelled from the party.[10]
- 18 December — Largest criminal trial in Belgian history begins in Brussels, with 125 defendants accused of drug trafficking, arms trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, forgery, and money laundering.[11][12]
Sports
[edit]- 4 February – 19 March: 2023 Rugby Europe Championship
- 11 – 15 July 2023: 2023 European Amateur Team Championship[13]
Deaths
[edit]- 3 January – Jean-Marie André, 78, scientist
- 5 January – Pierre Joassin, 74, film director and screenwriter (Maigret, Josephine, Guardian Angel)[14]
- 25 August – Tijl De Decker, 22, cyclist[15]
- 31 October – Jaak Broekx, 109, centenarian and oldest man in Belgium[16]
References
[edit]- ^ "Philippe, king of Belgium". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ "Alexander De Croo named prime minister of new federal government". The Bulletin. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ "Belgium bans TikTok from government phones after US, EU". Associated Press. 10 March 2023.
- ^ "Belgium arrests Iraqi suspected of terror attack involvement". AP NEWS. 2023-05-05. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
- ^ "Preselectie 'Eurosong' keert terug om in 2023 Belgische inzending te kiezen". Songfestival.be (in Dutch). 20 August 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-17.
- ^ Bosco d'Otreppe (3 September 2023). "Ordonné archevêque, Luc Terlinden donne le ton de son épiscopat". La Libre.
- ^ Lyubov Pronina (4 September 2023). "Belgium Sells Record €22 Billion of Bonds to Retail Investors". Bloomberg News.
- ^ Blenkinsop, Philip (2023-10-16). "Two Swedes shot dead in Brussels, Belgium raises terror alert to top level". Reuters. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
- ^ "Brussels shooting: Police shoot dead attacker who killed Swedes". BBC News. 2023-10-17. Retrieved 2023-10-17.
- ^ "Chinese spies recruited European politician in operation to divide west". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2023-12-15.
- ^ Lauren Walker (18 December 2023). "Sky ECC probe: Belgium's largest-ever correctional trial starts into vast drug network". The Brussels Times. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
- ^ Thomas Saintourens; Jean-Pierre Stroobants (18 December 2023). "Drug mega-trial set to lift curtain on European trafficking". Le Monde. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
- ^ "Royal Waterloo Golf Club - Home". www.rwgc.be. Retrieved 2022-11-17.
- ^ Uytterhaeghe, Marc. "Décès du réalisateur belge Pierre Joassin". lavenir.net (in French). Retrieved 2023-01-05.
- ^ "Belgian cyclist Tijl De Decker, 22, dies after training crash". The Independent. 2023-08-25. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
- ^ Chini, Maïthé (31 October 2023). "Belgium's oldest man dies at the age of 109". Brussels Times. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
