A Belgian mayor has confirmed an internal investigation is underway after a video surfaced showing a police officer slapping a handcuffed woman during an arrest in Nivelles.
The footage, recorded September 12 in the city south of Brussels, shows three officers attempting to place the woman into a police van after a minor traffic accident. When she appears to resist entering the vehicle, a male officer strikes her across the face before forcefully shoving her inside. Two female officers stood nearby during the incident.
Nivelles Mayor Bernard De Ro, who also heads the local police district, confirmed the probe will review the circumstances leading up to the recording and why the officer used force. Law enforcement authorities have urged the public not to form opinions based solely on the short clip circulating online.
The video has accumulated hundreds of thousands of views across social platforms, drawing fierce condemnation from viewers who questioned the necessity of striking someone already in restraints. “He should be subject to disciplinary, and dismissal for that. She was already restrained; he did not need to strike her like that,” one person commented on social media. Another fired back: “It’s exactly these behaviours why the police are no longer respected.”
Some commenters raised broader legal concerns, questioning whether the act violated EU laws and basic human rights given the woman was already handcuffed when struck.
However, a contingent of viewers defended the officer’s conduct. “Very effective against a troublemaker,” one person argued. Another praised the response: “Well done to the police officer. Belgian police have been most effective.” One user added that applying “violence in moderation” seemed “acceptable.”
The exact reason for the woman’s initial detention remains unclear. The footage emerged just days after a separate police brutality incident in France, where an officer is under investigation after video showed him throwing a homeless man to the ground during a music festival in June. The 29-year-old man, Youssef E, was not the target of police intervention and was not arrested. He was found in cardiac arrest at his camp on July 3, prompting an investigation into his death. While an initial autopsy ruled out third-party injuries, prosecutors have since launched a judicial review into the officer for intentional violence.
The Nivelles incident adds to growing scrutiny of police use of force across Europe, with social media clips increasingly driving public accountability even as officials caution against snap judgments from partial footage.