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Belgian police have detained three suspects suspected of planning an assault on the government's PM, Bart de Wever.

Federal prosecutors characterized the suspected scheme as a terrorist act motivated by jihadist ideology targeting the prime minister and other elected representatives.

During searches conducted in Deurne, Antwerp, close to the prime minister's home, investigators uncovered a suspected IED and proof that the individuals were preparing to employ a unmanned aerial vehicle.

While the intended targets of the assault were not officially named by the legal authorities, Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prevot confirmed that the prime minister was one of them.

"Information of a intended attack aimed at Premier Bart de Wever is extremely shocking," the deputy prime minister declared in a post on online platforms on Thursday.

"This underscores that we are dealing with a genuine extremist danger and that we have to keep watchful," he continued.

The three individuals detained on allegations of terrorism-related attempted murder and involvement in the operations of a jihadist network all live in the Antwerp region, according to the federal prosecutors. They were had birth years in 2001, 2002 and 2007.

By Thursday evening, one suspect was let go, while two others were under interrogation and likely to be presented before a court on the following day.

Federal prosecutors said that the suspects were detained after a judge directed searches of their homes in the location by police officers backed by explosive sniffer dogs.

Throughout these searches that they discovered a object which "bore strong resemblances to an improvised explosive device", lead prosecutor Ann Fransen stated at a press conference on that day.

Searches also uncovered a "bag of steel balls" and a 3D printer, with evidence suggesting drone-based payload delivery, she noted.

The official disclosed that there had been 80 extremist probes initiated in Belgium this year - exceeding the total number of investigations in 2024.

Earlier this year, five suspects were convicted for a scheme last year to strike De Wever while he was acting as the city's chief executive.