Jürgen Conings

Jürgen Conings   (Soldier)
Born	28 September 1974
Died	May 2021 (Age 46) Hoge Kempen National Park, Belgium
Cause of death	suicide?
Nationality	Belgian
Interests	Marc Van Ranst
Belgian soldier who threatened the Covid narrative and establishment in his country physically.

Jürgen Conings was a Belgian soldier who gained notoriety in May 2021 for his disappearance and subsequent manhunt by Belgian authorities. Conings was an experienced sniper and had been employed by the Belgian Armed Forces for over 20 years.

Background

Conings was born on March 6, 1974, in Dilsen-Stokkem, a municipality in the Belgian province of Limburg. He joined the Belgian Armed Forces in 1992 and trained as a paratrooper. Conings was a corporal in the Belgian Air Component and shooting instructor. He was a former elite soldier and experienced sniper. Over the course of his career, he took part in eleven foreign missions in Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Lebanon, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

Disappearance and Manhunt

On May 17, 2021, Conings went missing from his barracks in Leopoldsburg, Belgium, allegedly taking with him various weapons, including an FN P90 submachine gun and M72 LAW rocket launchers. He had reportedly expressed extremist and violent views online, including threats against virologist Marc Van Ranst, who had advised the Belgian government on its COVID-19 response.Conings' disappearance sparked a massive manhunt, with over 400 soldiers and police officers from Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany searching for him. The Belgian government also raised the national terror threat level to its highest point, citing the danger posed by Conings. The manhunt lasted for over a month and covered a large area of Limburg province, including forests, fields, and residential neighborhoods. On June 20, 2021, Conings' body was found in the national park Hoge Kempen, near the Dutch border. He had allegedly taken his own life using a firearm. The narrative about who first discovered the body shifted regarding the mayor of Maaseik and a local hunter.

Controversy and Political Fallout

Conings’ aunt told local media she believed security forces had killed her nephew. “He wouldn’t commit suicide,” she said. “He was killed.” Conings' family sent a bailiff to the funeral parlour to prevent the cremation of his body and demanded a second autopsy. A judge decided, however, that the showing of Conings' body was not necessary. In addition, the funeral director received death threats from unknown sources.

Conings' disappearance and subsequent manhunt sparked controversy and political fallout in Belgium. Many criticized the Belgian government for not taking Conings' extremist views seriously enough and for failing to prevent him from accessing weapons. Some also accused the government of using the manhunt as a distraction from other issues, including its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Others criticized the media for sensationalizing the manhunt and contributing to the glorification of Conings as a martyr for the "far-right". The incident also reignited debates about extremism and radicalization in the Belgian Armed Forces and raised questions about the military's screening procedures for its personnel.

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