Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Belgium’s OCAD tracks extremist group 764 and “The Com,” linked to hate, sextortion, and minors. 2 Members are on the terror list. Ministers Quintin and Van Tigchelt lead the crackdown.
AS VRT News reported, in Belgium, the extremist group “764” and others like “No Lives Matter” are being watched by the country’s threat team OCAD. These groups are part of a larger online world called “The Com.” It stands for “The Community.” They spread hate and violence. They mix ideas like neo-Nazism, Satanism, and believing in nothing.
The FBI first warned about them in 2023. Now they are active in Europe. They mentioned that these groups are not like normal terror groups. They do not have a leader or one place where they meet. They use secret chats online. They target young people. They trick them or threaten them.
They use things like sextortion and online abuse. OCAD says they make crime seem like a game. People get points or praise for doing bad things. This is very dangerous. 2 people linked to 764 are now on Belgium’s terror list.
What is Belgium doing about the rising 764 extremist threat?
This week, Paul Van Tighel, a former Justice Minister from the Open VLD party, spoke about the 764 threat. He asked questions in the Home Affairs Committee. He used to lead OCAD. He asked Bernard Quintin, the current Interior Minister from the MR party, about the danger.
Quintin said that OCAD knows these groups are a growing risk. Belgium’s terror threat level is still at level 3. But OCAD warns that more young people are getting involved in these groups. About 1 out of 3 new cases of radical ideas involve minors. The 764 group is not planning a big attack right now, but it still worries OCAD.
These groups are now part of a system that tracks threats. OCAD says many members act alone and are hard to find. They are spread out and use the internet to grow. That makes it harder to stop them. Belgium works with other countries to follow these groups and block them online.
“The 764 Network represents an emerging, cross-border threat of nihilistic violent extremism, with elements of Satanism, neo-Nazism, and accelerationism,” Quintin responds.
The government is cracking down on hate groups. Minister Bernard Quintin is working with the Minister of Justice. They want OCAD to track groups that spread hate speech. A new law allows OCAD to do this. OCAD can now register groups that spread hateful ideas, even if they don’t use violence.
OCAD is updating its systems with help from other agencies. Local teams, including police and social services, will watch these groups. They will step in if needed. This is a new way to stop radicalisation before it turns violent.
Paul Van Tigchelt, a former Justice Minister and Director of OCAD, noted that he found Minister Quintin’s answer “reassuring” and cautioned against simply political disputation of left-wing and right-wing extremism. Van Tigchelt argued that Belgian security is still considering jihadi Salafism to be the most serious threat. Most people in Belgium’s counterterrorism databases are linked to jihadist ideas.
However, the systems also include people with right-wing and left-wing extremist beliefs. Now, even 2 people linked to the 764 ideology have been added. Belgium is changing its strategy to include more types of threats, especially those that target young people online or try to cause trouble through hate and digital violence.
