A Telegram loop with 600 users called for violence against LGBT + people. Internet users even shared videos of LGBTphobic attacks.

600 people on Telegram and 5,000 on Instagram. Louvain police opened an investigation last week, after an online discussion group called for violence against LGBT + people. Internet users even invited them to film the attacks to share them.

In one of the videos, a young man is beaten up in the middle of the street. On others, the attackers force their victim to kneel, to apologize or even to lick their shoes, says France 3 Hauts-de-France . One of the victims, a 16-year-old boy, testifies to RTL info : "When they told me that, I was very shocked. I didn't know what to do. Stressed, I knelt down and I I said sorry because they are dangerous guys. You don't want to be hit. Now I'm very scared to walk down the street ." Some of the videos were recorded in Leuven, east of Brussels.

Users were sharing these videos and calling for violence in a Telegram loop titled "Criminal system". According to the Flemish daily Het Nieuwsblaad , a group with 5,000 Internet users on Instagram also existed. Above, the attackers sought information about their future victims. They contacted them online and tracked them down using their IP address. According to the Belgian newspaper 7 sur 7 , the attackers were armed with firearms and bladed weapons, some of which are fake. Both groups have since disappeared, but police have opened an investigation. Read more via Tetu