Belgium points to Iran as responsible for the attacks that, earlier this month, affected numerous refrigeration facilities of supermarkets in the country, thus joining the accusations made by France this week.
"Also in Belgium, security services have detected indications that point to possible links with known Iranian actors. The Federal Prosecutor's Office is examining these indications more closely. We take these cyberattacks very seriously and are mobilizing all necessary resources to assess the threat," stated Interior Minister Bernard Quintin to the Belgian agency.
"Iran has attacked France and may also have attacked Belgium. We cannot stand idly by. Our country must unequivocally support the call for European sanctions against countries that carry out cyberattacks on our territory," continued the Belgian official, referring to the aforementioned accusations from Paris.
This Monday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot asserted that "the responsibility for the attack" that also affected French refrigeration facilities "lies with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of the Islamic Republic of Iran."
"It is an attack of unprecedented scale and aggression. It is the first large-scale sabotage cyberattack on French territory and a serious attack against the interests of the nation and the safety of the French people," added the French official, who during the G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris stated that the attacks affected around 700 facilities. In this case, the attacks occurred last month, on October 11 and 12.
Following France's accusation, Iran denied any involvement in the attacks on Tuesday. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs categorically rejects the unfounded and biased accusations of the French government against Iran for alleged participation in cyber activities in France and strongly condemns the blatant policy of making accusations against Iran," stated the Iranian Ministry in a statement reported by EFE.
Tehran added that the accusations aimed to "divert public opinion from France's destructive policies towards Iran and the West Asian region, and especially its long history of hosting terrorist groups and supporting the genocide of Palestinians." It advised "French officials to allocate their resources to meet the basic and educational needs of their own people, rather than spending large budgets intervening in other countries, even abusing diplomatic cover and seemingly cultural projects."