Walloon Mayor Bans Night Activities After Wolf Attacks: 20 Camps Affected
The mayor of Léglise in southern Belgium has issued a decree banning all nighttime forest activities for youth camps following a wolf attack that killed 21 sheep, affecting approximately 20 summer camps and reigniting debate over how to manage the return of wolves to the region.
Context
Wolves have naturally returned to Belgium after more than a century of absence, first appearing in Flanders around 2018 and subsequently establishing territories in Wallonia. A wolf pair has been residing in the Anlier Forest near Léglise since approximately 2025, feeding exclusively on wild animals until recently. According to VRT NWS, Wallonia recorded 23 wolf attacks on sheep or goats in 2025, and no attacks on humans have ever been recorded since the species’ return.
The Attack and the Decree
On the night of July 2-3, 2026, a wolf pair attacked a sheep flock in Louftémont, a hamlet within the municipality of Léglise. The attack killed 15 sheep outright and forced the euthanasia of 5 more. A Suffolk breeding male was also killed in a separate nearby pasture, bringing the total to 21 sheep lost. The Department of Nature and Forests (DNF) confirmed through DNA evidence that wolves were responsible, as RTBF reported.
Mayor Simon Huberty (MR — Mouvement Réformateur), who at 31 became the youngest mayor in the province of Luxembourg in 2024, visited the site on July 4 and expressed concern about 19 planned summer camps. After consulting with specialists, he issued a decree on July 6 banning youth movements from entering forests between 8:00 PM and 6:00 AM. The camps themselves are maintained, but nighttime forest activities are prohibited.
“In consultation with specialists, we decided to maintain the camps organized in Léglise this summer,” Huberty told La Libre. “However, we have taken a decree prohibiting youth movements from entering the woods between 8 PM and 6 AM.”
According to RTBF, this is the first time a Walloon municipality has banned nighttime activities due to wolf presence.
Precaution vs. Scientific Evidence
The mayor’s decision highlights a fundamental tension between political precaution and scientific risk assessment. Huberty acknowledged that experts consider an attack highly unlikely but argued that absolute guarantees are impossible.
“All experts say it’s unlikely that anything will happen,” Huberty explained to RTBF. “But when I ask if they can guarantee me that there is no risk at all for young people walking alone in the forest, nobody wants to sign a paper saying ‘Go ahead, do it.’”
Biologists strongly dispute the need for such measures. Joachim Mergeay, a wolf expert at the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), told VRT NWS that canceling camps is “absolutely not necessary.” He noted that the specific wolf pair in the Anlier Forest has hardly been seen since settling there. “They are certainly not wolves that seek out people,” Mergeay said.
Nicolas Yernaux, spokesperson for the Public Service of Wallonia (SPW), placed the risk in perspective: “Over the past 20 years, there have been 9 incidents with wolves in Europe, each time with non-fatal bites. By comparison, in the same area and period, there were between 600 and 800 biting incidents with dogs. The chance is clearly much greater that you will be attacked by a wild boar, or that a tree branch will fall on your head, than that a wolf will get you.”
Controversy Over Selective Application
The ban has drawn criticism from the Belgian Scout Federation for applying only to youth movements. Spokesperson Gilles Beckers questioned why similar measures are not imposed on other forest users.
“We don’t understand why similar measures are not being taken for other groups or hikers, to also guarantee their safety,” Beckers told VRT NWS.
Scout leader Emile Demelenne, whose camp is among those affected, said his group will have to adjust its program. “We were actually planning to set up ambushes along the forest paths,” he told VRT NWS.
Broader Implications
The incident feeds into the wider European debate about wolf management, balancing biodiversity conservation — wolves are strictly protected under the EU Habitats Directive — with livestock protection and public perception of risk. Wallonia had recorded 107 livestock attacks attributed to wolves since 2023, and the regional government was planning adjustments to wolf management policies as of early 2026.
As wolf presence in Wallonia continues to grow, the question of whether other municipalities will follow Léglise’s precedent remains open. For now, the decision reflects a mayor unwilling to take chances — even when the scientific consensus suggests the danger is vanishingly small.
What’s Next
The scout federation’s call for equal application of safety measures has yet to be addressed by the municipality. Experts will be watching whether the wolf pair in the Anlier Forest is classified as “problem wolves” if attacks continue, which could trigger management measures including potential culling under EU law — a step previously taken in the Netherlands.