EU lawmakers condemn attack on Belgian colleague's house

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) - Leading EU lawmakers on Monday expressed solidarity with a Belgian colleague whose house was attacked over the weekend.

“The whole European Parliament stands in solidarity with MEP Pascal Arimont after a cowardly attack on his family home,” President of the EU institution David Sassoli said on Twitter.

“We will never tolerate this kind of hatred. In a democracy, disagreement must be solved with words, not violence. Those responsible must be brought to justice,” Sassoli added.

Arimont, a Christian democrat, announced on Facebook that a Molotov cocktail had been thrown under his children’s room windows and a threatening message had been painted to the garage door of his house on Friday night.

“Lying, blackmailing, inciting hatred and division… you will pay for it,” the message read in German.

Speaking to the Belgian news website VRT, Arimont said he was attacked for being a committed advocate for vaccinations against COVID-19.

Arimont is the only Belgian EU lawmaker from the country’s German-speaking region. He lives in the town of Bullingen.

Manfred Weber, the leader of the center-right European People Party, also condemned the incident.

“We will never give in to this kind of hate. You have our full solidarity and support,” said Weber.