Last night, an explosion occurred in the centre of The Hague at the office of the D66 party, led by Rob Jetten, who heads the Dutch government. The police quickly apprehended the suspect.
The incident took place at around 9.00 pm local time on Lange Houtstraat. According to preliminary reports, an unknown individual threw fireworks into the party’s letterbox, which detonated as an explosive device. No one was injured in the explosion.
Within an hour, the police reported that the suspect had been arrested. His identity and motives have not yet been disclosed.
The leader of the D66 party, Prime Minister Rob Jetten, has described this as a “cowardly act of intimidation”. “To those who think they can instil fear, I have this message: in the democratic Netherlands, we will never allow violence to silence us,” he said.
The police cordoned off the area and reported that the damage was minor.
At the time of the attack, there were around thirty people inside the building. An evening of speeches by the ‘Young Democrats’ was taking place there, ‘ said Rachel Smuk, head of the party’s youth wing. ’We were in shock, and I feel relieved that everyone is safe. It was an incredibly loud explosion,” she said.
According to Smuk, the glass at the top of the door shattered, and shards were left on the floor. There was a lot of smoke in the building. “Since the demonstrations in September, an emergency exit had been installed. The board members were able to get everyone out,” she said.