Photo of the Belgian army (Facebook)
“For a while a military helicopter has been flying over Nivelles. Do you know why?” Asks Sandra this Friday morning shortly before 8 a.m. via the orange Alert us button.
As part of the “Nemesis” military exercise, the center of Nivelles actually experienced a restless early morning. About 80 paracommandos infiltrated the town hall and the post office building in response to a (false) hostage-taking by the (real) mayor Pierre Huart, when he arrived at the town hall around 05:00 a.m. morning. Around 7:15 a.m., the mayor was able to be exfiltrated thanks to the intervention of a helicopter, which landed on the Grand-Place.
Once the operation was over, the 250 soldiers from the 2nd Defense Commando Battalion as well as the French soldiers from the 8th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment who were taking part in the maneuver were picked up not far from there, on the football field. of the Sainte-Gertrude college, by several helicopters.
Another exercise with an F16 tasked with inspecting a complex area
The objective of the exercise was to conduct a special operation in real conditions in a civilian environment. According to the first elements collected on the spot, the operation went well. “Nemesis” also allowed the 2nd Belgian commando battalion and the 8th French parachute regiment, paired, to work together for three days.
After the exfiltration of the mayor of Nivelles, the exercise must continue in particular in the air, with an F16 responsible for inspecting a complex area. About 90 soldiers will then have to recover a “target” identified following intelligence work carried out for several days.
