BRUSSELS (AP) — Police in Belgium detained three men over a suspected plot to carry out a jihadi-style attack on the country’s politicians, after finding a home-made bomb in one of the suspect’s houses, federal prosecutors said Thursday.

During a number of searches, “an improvised device” was found at the home of one of the suspects but it was not operational at the time. A bag of steel balls also was found there, while a 3D printer believed to be used to make parts for the planned attack was found at another residence.

“There are also indications that the intention was to build a drone to attach a load,” the prosecutors said.

The three young men all lived in the port city of Antwerp. They were taken into custody after an anti-terrorism judge ordered searches of their homes in the city by police officers backed by explosives sniffer dogs.

The raids were “part of an investigation into, among other things, attempted terrorist murder and participation in the activities of a terrorist group,” the prosecutors said in a statement.

“There are indications that the intention was to carry out a jihadist-inspired terrorist attack targeting politicians,” prosecutors said. They did not identify the politicians who might have been targeted.

Several Belgian media outlets reported that Prime Minister Bart De Wever — a former mayor of Antwerp who lives in the city — was one of the targets, without providing details about their sources. Prosecutors declined to confirm the reports.

The suspects were not identified, but were described as “young adults,” born in 2001, 2002 and 2007. Two of them were still being questioned by Antwerp police late on Thursday and were due to appear before the investigating judge on Friday. Police said the third suspect was released.

Belgian justice authorities and police have been under strain in recent months due to a series of shootings in the capital Brussels, and drug-related crime in Antwerp, one of Europe’s major shipping hubs.

The Belgian justice system was already creaking under its load, with too few judges and court personnel to handle cases ranging from simple divorce proceedings to major crime. Threats to officials are also a danger. A former justice minister and a senior prosecutor were forced to live under police protection.

In Thursday’s statement, the prosecutors appealed to the government for more support, saying that it’s “important to ensure that the police and the judiciary always have sufficient capacity to guarantee the security of our society.”

They noted that around 80 new terrorism investigations have been opened by the federal public prosecutor’s office this year, already more than the total number of cases for 2024.

Belgium’s biggest ever attack remains strong in the public memory. Thirty-two people were killed and hundreds wounded on March 22, 2016, when suicide bombers detonated explosive vests at the main Brussels airport and a central commuter line.