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Nervous Belgium Deploys Troops To Maintain Security


Authorities in Belgium are deploying troops to maintain security across the country one day after a raid on a suspected Islamist terrorist cell left two suspects dead.

The office of Prime Minister Charles Michel said on January 17 that about 300 troops are being deployed in the capital, Brussels, and the northern city of Anvers, which has a large Jewish population.

Troops may also be sent to Verviers, where police killed the two suspected terrorists in a shoot-out late on January 15. One man was arrested in that incident and he has denied involvement in any terrorist activity.

After that incident, Belgian security forces arrested 13 people in raids across the country and charged five of them with "participating in the activity of a terrorist group." Belgian officials said several of the detainees had spent time in Syria.

Also on January 15, police in France arrested 12 people and questioned them about possible support roles played in the January 7 attack on the satirical journal Charlie Hebdo.

Based on reporting by dpa, AFP, and AP

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