With the launch of the holiday market, video online showed demonstrators moving through the market area carrying smoke bombs, beating drums, and wearing keffiyehs among Christmas stalls and decorations.
Wilders criticized the display message, translated from Dutch: “Christmas market in Brussels turns into an Islamic hell. Elsewhere in Europe, Christmas markets are under extra surveillance. The result of decades of open borders. We must stop the Islamisation of the West. Freedom instead of terror. Islam does not belong with us.”
The post went viral in Dutch circles and abroad, and was reshared by a number of high-profile commentators, including UK activist Tommy Robinson, whose post received more than 187,000 views. Wilders’ remarks also prompted backlash from critics, with opponents accusing him of racism and inflammatory rhetoric.
The protest itself was aimed at Belgium’s federal government and Brussels Mayor Philippe Close. Demonstrators objected to the arrest and detention of several asylum seekers from Gaza who had previously participated in the protests and were later placed in return centers. Belgian authorities have not announced any new charges connected to the demonstration.
Several Belgian politicians slammed the protest. Flemish MP Sam Van Rooy expressed opposition to the demonstration, while fellow Brussels parliamentarian Bob De Brabandere condemned the disruption of the Christmas market. MP Darya Safai also called the protesters out, referring to them as “extremists," according to the Brussels Times.
Wilders has faced accusations of racism over his statements on immigration and Islam for years, including from the Brussels Times, accusations he has rejected. In 2020, he was convicted over remarks made in 2014 in which he asked supporters whether they wanted “more or fewer Moroccans,” later saying he would “take care of that” after the crowd responded.
In July 2024, Wilders’ Party for Freedom entered the Dutch governing coalition for the first time. The coalition collapsed in June 2025 after Wilders withdrew over disagreements related to asylum policy, with other parties refusing to support his proposed measures.
