Belgian army personnel patrol a street as part of a deployment of soldiers outside Jewish institutions in Antwerp and Brussels following attacks at Jewish sites in Belgium and other European countries, in Antwerp, Belgium, March 23, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman

Belgian authorities have indicted two mohels for allegedly performing illegal circumcisions, amid a government probe into the Jewish ritual — with Jewish and political leaders warning the case is a direct threat to religious freedom.

A mohel is a trained practitioner who performs the ritual circumcision in Jewish tradition known as a bris.

On Wednesday, the Antwerp Public Prosecutor’s Office formally indicted two local mohels for “intentional assault or bodily harm with premeditation against minors, as well as the illegal practice of medicine.”

Prosecutors in the northern Belgian city announced they have concluded their investigation into suspected illegal circumcisions and found sufficient evidence to refer the case to criminal court.

The two men are now set to appear before a closed-door pre-trial chamber on June 18, which will decide whether the case proceeds to trial.

The prosecution comes as the Belgium Jewish community is sounding the alarm over a surge in hostility and targeted violence against Jews across the country. In March, following an explosion at a synagogue in Liege that authorities called an antisemitic act, soldiers were deployed on the streets of leading Belgian cities to bolster security for the Jewish community.

With Jewish leaders warning their way of life is being threatened, the legal proceedings against the mohels have sparked fierce backlash, escalating into a public row involving Belgian authorities and Israeli and US officials.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the case as an attack on Jewish religious practices, calling on the Belgian government to intervene immediately and seek a swift resolution.

“With this act Belgium joins a short and shameful list, together with Ireland, of countries that use criminal law to prosecute Jews for practicing Judaism,” the top Israeli diplomat wrote in a post on X.

“This is a scarlet letter on Belgian society,” Saar continued.

Belgium have just announced the indictment of the three Mohels who were investigated last year in Antwerp.

With this act Belgium joins a short and shameful list, together with Ireland, of countries that use criminal law to prosecute Jews for practicing Judaism.

This is a…

— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) May 6, 2026

US Ambassador to Belgium Bill White also condemned the legal action, calling it a “shameful stain” on the European country.

“The prosecution of these religious figures (mohels), one of whom is American, is wrong and won’t be tolerated,” White wrote in a post on X.

“The Trump Administration condemns this judicial action and also condemns the political inaction by the Belgian Government to find a solution with the beautiful Jewish communities here in Belgium,” he added.

The US diplomat had previously slammed the Belgian government’s probe against the mohels as a “ridiculous and antisemitic prosecution.”

In response, Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot urged White to “exercise greater restraint” and to view his role in “its proper context.”

“It is inappropriate to publicly criticize a country and tarnish its image simply because you disagree with judicial proceedings,” the top Belgian diplomat said in a post on X. 

“To portray this as a country’s effort to undermine the religious freedom of Jews is defamatory. This freedom has never been called into question and never will be in our country. Our Constitution protects it,” he continued.

Prévot also noted he would be willing to travel to Israel to discuss the issue, adding that he remained open to dialogue.

“Enough with these caricatures,” he further said. “In Belgium, the judiciary is independent and makes its decisions — whether one agrees with them or not — free from any political influence.”

Saar responded by saying that Prévot’s comments “completely miss the point,” insisting that the core issue was being misrepresented and must be addressed directly.

“There should never have been such an investigation, had the issue of Brit Milah been regulated like in other European countries that respect Jewish religious freedom,” the Israeli diplomat posted.

“Especially so in a country with one of the oldest Jewish communities in Europe,” he said. “Had Belgium had a strategic plan to fight antisemitism and foster Jewish life, you might have known this. Alas, it doesn’t.”

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said on Wednesday evening that his country “is not an antisemitic state,” dismissing such accusations as “nonsense” and arguing that Belgium has always been able to reconcile its laws with Jewish traditions.

“Circumcision is essential to the Jewish faith and Islam, but so are the quality standards of our legislation. You have to reconcile the two,” he said.

The highly controversial case began a year ago when Belgian police raided the homes of several mohels in Antwerp, seizing their circumcision tools after a local anti-Zionist Jewish rabbi filed a complaint.

Last May, Belgian authorities specifically raided three locations in the Jewish Quarter, searching for knives and other equipment allegedly used in unauthorized or illegal circumcisions. 

Among the homes raided by the Belgian police was that of Rabbi Aharon Eckstein, a highly experienced mohel and a prominent leader within the Antwerp Jewish community.

According to a police report, the searches were ordered by a judge following a complaint filed in 2023 by Rabbi Moshe Aryeh Friedman, an anti-Zionist activist previously accused of Holocaust denial, against Eckstein and other mohels within the Jewish community.

Since 2024, prosecutors have been investigating illegal circumcisions in the country amid concerns from local authorities that some Jewish circumcisions were being performed by individuals without proper medical training.

In his complaint, Friedman accused six mohels, whom he identified to the police, of endangering infants by performing the metzitzah b’peh ritual, in which the mohel uses his mouth to suction blood from the circumcision area.

However, Eckstein and other rabbis, along with parents of children circumcised by them, have denied such accusations, insisting that they do not perform this practice.

At the time, Jewish and political leaders accused local authorities of using the raids as part of a broader effort to intimidate religious figures in Belgium.

In Antwerp, Friedman is known for publicly criticizing several customs that are important to ultra-Orthodox Jews, who represent the majority of the city’s 18,000 Jewish residents.

Despite several attempts to ban it across Europe, ritual circumcision remains legal in all European countries – though many, including Belgium, limit the practice to licensed surgeons and often perform it in a synagogue.

Last July, dozens of European Jewish leaders called on the European Union to take action against Belgium, arguing that the Belgian police’s actions “represent a breach of an EU fundamental right, that of freedom of religion” and warning that this “echoes one of the darkest chapters in European history.”