Police have raided the headquarters of the Belgian Catholic church over allegations of child sex abuse.

A Brussels prosecutor said the raid followed accusations "denouncing abuse of minors committed by a certain number of church figures".

Jean-Marc Meilleur said police entered the archdiocese of Brussels-Maline, north of the Belgian capital, "in order to establish if these accusations are backed up or not".

The Roman Catholic church in Belgium was rocked in April when 73-year-old Roger Vangheluwe, its longest-serving bishop, resigned from his Bruges post after admitting sexually abusing a boy for years.

Belgium is one of a number of countries in Europe, along with the United States, in which abuse claims have recently been made against the Roman Catholic church.

Pope Benedict XVI has condemned paedophile priests several times, and met with abuse victims in Australia, the US and Malta.