During a memorial service held on the seven-year anniversary of the 2016 terror attacks in Brussels, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo stated that his government had not offered enough support to the attacks' victims, Belga News Agency reports.
Speaking at the memorial situated near the Schuman roundabout at the end of Rue de la Loi, De Croo paid tribute to those who were killed on that fateful day seven years ago when suicide bombers attacked the Maelbeek metro station as well as the Brussels Airport in Zaventem. He said that "(Belgium) has learned a lot since then and we are now better prepared to help" and added that "we will continue to help the victims as much as we can."
The Prime Minister also addressed the recent criticisms by victims over the lack of support they had received from the Belgian State, a criticism that De Croo seemed to agree with: "We have not been able to give the support to which people were entitled."
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Victim Support Europe's (VSE) executive director Levent Altan recently told The Brussels Times that those affected "have suffered significantly as a result of poor responses" to the attacks.
Altan also revealed that the ongoing trial of the perpetrators has raised more questions than have been answered. He said that the trial is not focussed on "measuring the success of our system on the safety and well-being of victims" despite the victims' recovery being "just as important to the outcome as the sentencing."
