By Bart Biesemans

STREPY-BRACQUEGNIES. Belgium (Reuters). A car drove fast into a group Belgian carnival performers who were preparing a parade on Sunday morning. Six people died and 10 others sustained serious injuries. Authorities claimed that it was not a militant attack.

Damien Verheyen, prosecutor for the case said that “at this stage there are not elements to suggest that it had a terrorist motivation.” According to media reports, the police denied that the car had been involved in a high speed chase.

It happened in Strepy Bracquegnies (southern Belgium) at 04:00 GMT.

Jacques Gobert was the mayor of La Louviere. He said that 150 to 200 people had gathered in preparation for the annual folklore march, which included costumes and drums.

“A speeding vehicle drove in the crowd… Gobert said that the driver continued his journey.

They were later intercepted and taken into police custody. The police said that they were two local men in their 30s, and had never been known to the police.

Over the last seven years, Belgium has been trying to eradicate militants. An Islamic State cell based in Brussels was behind the attacks against Paris that claimed 130 lives in 2015 and Brussels that resulted in 32 deaths in 2016.

Experts agree that the practice of driving vehicles into crowds is more widespread than ever as an attack weapon by white supremacists and militants in Europe.