Anonymous TikTok Calls Prompt Police Monitoring and Arrests in Brussels

Brussels police are tracking unnamed TikTok accounts that posted AI-generated flyers for protests, while nine people were arrested after a large demonstration on 24 October.

Anonymous TikTok accounts have been circulating artificial-intelligence-generated images that promote protests at major sites in Brussels, including the central and south railway stations and Schuman Square, without revealing who is behind them. Robin De Becker, the spokesperson for the Brussels-Capital/Ixelles police zone, confirmed that officers are closely monitoring these online calls and evaluating various scenarios ahead of the advertised dates.

A prior attempt to target luxury retailers on Avenue Louise failed to attract participants despite police preparations. On 24 October, roughly 400 people gathered around Place de l’Albertine and later moved toward Anderlecht and Saint-Gilles, prompting police to detain five individuals for public-order disturbances and arrest four on charges of possessing prohibited weapons and inciting riots, with pepper spray also deployed.

The Coordination Unit for Threat Analysis, represented by Laura Luyten, cautioned against assuming that anonymous or AI-generated posts indicate extremist or foreign meddling, emphasizing the need for further evidence. Joseph Di Vincenti of the Université libre de Bruxelles added that such digital propaganda does not automatically delegitimize a protest, and analysts examine account behavior to assess coordinated influence operations. Future dates of 31 October and 2 November remain unverified, and police have not announced new enforcement actions.