THE HAGUE:Police took to the streets of Dutch towns and cities in force Tuesday night in an attempt to prevent violent rioting that shook the country for three successive nights after a nationwide curfew was introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
By late night, the increased police presence appeared to have paid off, with no major rioting or clashes between youths and police reported.
“We are seeing a different picture to yesterday,” police chief Willem Woelders told Dutch current affairs show Nieuwsuur.
“I think what has also helped is that you see an atmosphere among the population that this (rioting) is unacceptable,” Woelders told another talk show, Op1.
Police in Rotterdam said they arrested 33 people for minor offences and vandalism before the nightly curfew took effect at 9 p.m. Local broadcaster Rijnmond reported that riot police were deployed in the south and west of the city, but police did not immediately report any major disturbances.
In Amsterdam, riot police were dispatched to a commercial street where a large group of youths had gathered and set off fireworks, but there were no violent confrontations.
The rioting, which started with the torching of a coronavirus testing center in a fishing village on Saturday night, is the worst to hit the Netherlands in years. It was initially triggered by anger over a tough coronavirus lockdown that has been in force since mid-December, but calls for rioting swirling on social media and mainly spread among young people increasingly fueled the unrest.
Schools have been closed in the country since the Christmas holidays. Police said Tuesday afternoon that video images showed that many rioters were young teenagers and that many of the people they arrested were picked up close to their homes.
“I join others in appealing to parents to keep their children at home. Certainly after 2100, stay indoors,” said North Holland regional Police Chief Anja Schouten.
The violence has stretched the police and led at times to the deployment of military police. On Monday night, rioters pelted police with rocks, fireworks and Molotov cocktails and looted shops in at least two cities, Rotterdam and Den Bosch.
A total of 184 people were arrested in Monday night’s unrest. Police ticketed more than 1,700 for breaching the 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. curfew, which carries a fine of 95 euros ($115). Officers around the country also detained dozens suspected of inciting rioting through social media.
Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus said earlier Tuesday that riots would quickly be brought before the courts and face possible prison terms if convicted.
“They won't get away with it,” he told reporters in The Hague.
“If you rob people who are struggling, with the help of the government, to keep their head above water, it's totally scandalous,” Grapperhaus told reporters. He stressed that the curfew is necessary in the fight against the coronavirus.
Populist right-wing opposition lawmaker Geert Wilders called for the army to be used to quell rioting, something the government has so far ruled out.
Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb posted a video message on Twitter, asking rioters: “Does it feel good to wake up with a bag full of stolen stuff next to you?”
He also appealed to parents of the young rioters, asking: “Did you miss your son yesterday? Did you ask yourself where he was?”
The municipality in Den Bosch designated large parts of the city as risk areas for Tuesday night, fearing a repeat of the violence. Residents took to the streets Tuesday to help with the cleanup, and the city’s mayor said he would investigate authorities’ response to the rioting.
“This criminal violence must stop,” Prime Minister Mark Rutte tweeted.
“The riots have nothing to do with protesting or struggling for freedom,” he added. “We must win the battle against the virus together, because that's the only way of getting back our freedom.”
The rate of new infections in Netherlands has been decreasing in recent weeks, but the country's public health institute warned Tuesday that the new variant of the virus first detected in Britain is gaining ground and like was responsible for more than one third of infections over the last week. The country has registered more than 13,650 confirmed COVID-19 deaths.
AP Newsroom
Tue Jan 26 2021
A police officer speak to youths on scooters at a road block during a nation-wide curfew in Amsterdam. - AP Photo/Peter Dejong
Selangor rekod kes jenayah seksual tertinggi dalam tempoh tiga tahun
Siti Kamisah berkata, kepadatan penduduk, aktiviti ekonomi, desakan hidup serta capaian internet yang meluas menjadi antara faktor.
Zii Jia, Jun Hao lepasi halangan pertama Terbuka Thailand
Zii Jia melepasi halangan pertama dalam misi memburu gelaran kedua Terbuka Thailand selepas mengiringi rakan senegara Leong Jun Hao mara ke pusingan kedua di Stadium Nimibutr di sini hari ini.
INNOVATHON musim kedua sasar tarik bakat muda, pupuk minat pada STEM
INNOVATHON musim kedua memfokuskan kepada penghasilan tenaga kerja dan bakat masa depan yang mampu bergerak seiring dengan kemajuan dalam bidang sains, teknologi, kejuruteraan, dan matematik (STEM) serta penyelidikan dan pembangunan (R&D).
Tuanku Zara Salim rasmi Pameran Limar anjuran Muzium Seni Asia, UM
Raja Permaisuri Perak Darul Ridzuan Tuanku Zara Salim berkenan untuk merasmikan Pameran Limar “Tenunan warisan yang kian dilupakan” anjuran Muzium Seni Asia Universiti Malaya dimana sejumlah 78 koleksi tenunan limar dipamerkan bersempena pameran tersebut.
Lawrence Wong sah PM baharu, Lee Hsien Loong kini Menteri Kanan
Timbalan Setiausaha Agung Parti Tindakan Rakyat (PAP) Singapura, Lawrence Wong, 51, secara rasminya mengangkat sumpah sebagai Perdana Menteri republik itu yang baharu, pada Selasa.
Majlis mengangkat sumpah itu dilakukan di hadapan Ketua Hakim Singapura, Sundaresh Menon dan Presiden Singapura, Tharman Shanmugaratnam di Istana.
Majlis mengangkat sumpah itu dilakukan di hadapan Ketua Hakim Singapura, Sundaresh Menon dan Presiden Singapura, Tharman Shanmugaratnam di Istana.
Peristiwa Nakba disifatkan berulang, tapi lebih dahsyat
76 tahun berlalu, peristiwa Nakba yang berlaku pada 14 Mei 1948 terus diingati sebagai peristiwa hitam buat rakyat Palestin. Nakba yang membawa maksud malapetaka merujuk kepada penghapusan etnik Palestin, yang mana bagi penduduk Gaza, peristiwa itu tidak ubah seperti apa yang berlaku sekarang. Penderitaan dan kesengsaraannya malah disifatkan lebih teruk berbanding 1948.
Malaysia mahu terokai pelbagai bidang dengan Republik Kyrgyz
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim berkata, Malaysia berhasrat untuk menjalin kerjasama dengan Republik Kyrgyz dalam pelbagai bidang yang boleh dibangunkan bersama.
Dua pegawai penjara maut, seorang banduan lolos
Penyerang bersenjata membunuh dua pegawai penjara Perancis dan mencederakan tiga yang lain dalam serangan ke atas konvoi di Normandy pada Selasa.
Data PADU sudah sedia, tunggu masa sesuai elak spekulasi inflasi - Rafizi
Sebarang keputusan berhubung pelaksanaan mekanisme tersebut, hanya akan diputuskan oleh kerajaan pada tempoh yang sesuai bagi mengelakkan spekulasi inflasi.
Kyrgyz zahirkan hasrat Malaysia lantik penasihat kepada kerajaan republik itu - PM
Republik Kyrgyz hari ini menzahirkan hasrat supaya Malaysia melantik seorang penasihat kepada kerajaan negara itu, kata Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Kerajaan jamin sediakan rawatan kesan sampingan vaksin COVID-19 termasuk AstraZeneca - Dzulkefly
Kerajaan memberi jaminan akan menyediakan rawatan susulan bagi penerima vaksin COVID-19 termasuk AstraZeneca yang terbukti mengalami kesan sampingan.
KKM keluar kenyataan berkaitan vaksin AstraZeneca dalam masa terdekat
KKM akan mengeluarkan kenyataan berhubung isu penarikan balik vaksin COVID-19 keluaran AstraZeneca dalam masa terdekat.
Isu tunggakan cetakan MyKid bakal selesai Julai ini - JPN
Isu cetakan MyKid yang tertunggak akibat masalah perolehan bekalan mikrocip semasa pandemik COVID-19 lalu dijangka dapat diselesaikan pada Julai ini secara berperingkat di seluruh negara.
Program Jana Wibawa dilaksana selepas dapat persetujuan Jemaah Menteri - Saksi
Mahkamah Sesyen di sini hari ini diberitahu bahawa cadangan mengenai Jana Wibawa telah dibawa ke mesyuarat untuk pertimbangan sebelum Jemaah Menteri memutuskan supaya program itu diteruskan pada 2020.
Kelaparan akut jejaskan 281.6 juta orang tahun lepas - PBB
Tahap bahaya kelaparan akut menjejaskan 281.6 juta orang tahun lepas, tahun kelima berturut-turut bahawa ketakjaminan makanan semakin memburuk.
Hamilton optimis kedudukan lebih baik di GP China
Lewis Hamilton melihat potensi kedudukan yang lebih baik dalam saingan Grand Prix yang kembali ke China buat pertama kali dalam tempoh lima tahun, hujung minggu ini.
'Selfish!' - Fasha Sandha sedih raya di Perlis tak jadi gara-gara dijangkiti COVID-19
Fasha berkata dia mula melakukan pemeriksaan COVID-19 selepas berasa tidak sihat badan dan mengalami bersin tidak henti sejak Raya pertama.
Kes COVID-19 catat penurunan ketara pada ME 14/2024 - KKM
Jumlah kes COVID-19 menurun 97.1 peratus kepada 493 kes pada Minggu Epidemiologi ke-14 (ME 14/2024) iaitu bagi tempoh 31 Mac hingga 6 April lepas berbanding 17,256 kes pada ME 1/2024.
China jadikan pengalaman pencegahan COVID-19 untuk hadapi pandemik masa depan
China akan menjadikan pengalaman dalam pencegahan dan kawalan COVID-19 untuk membuat persediaan yang lebih proaktif untuk menghadapi pandemik masa depan seperti "Penyakit X".
Negara berdepan ketirisan subsidi diesel serius - Amir Hamzah
Negara kini sedang berdepan isu ketirisan subsidi diesel yang serius dan wujud kemungkinan terdapat pihak yang tidak layak masih menikmati subsidi itu, kata Menteri Kewangan II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah.