Tag: netherlands

Syrian Migrant Gets Just 60 Hours Of Community Service For Touching Up FOUR Kids At Pool

In a remarkable story out of Holland, a Syrian asylum seeker has been handed a punishment of just 60 hours of community service despite being found guilty of sexually assaulting four 11-year-old girls in a swimming pool.

Remix News has the report, noting that the number of people who said the man assaulted them was even higher.

“A total of 10 young girls and women filed police reports concerning the behaviour of the 29-year-old migrant who targeted and groped visitors of the swimming complex in Zandvoort on Feb. 19, 2023,” the report notes.

Dutch outlet Hart van Nederland reported how the man groped the buttocks of some of the young girls, while others stated the migrant clamped his legs around their waists and gyrated his genitals against their bodies.

CCTV footage reviewed by police showed the man repeatedly making a beeline for young girls in the swimming pool at a Center Parcs resort.

While the victims and their families detailed how the attack has left them psychologically scarred and anxiety ridden, the migrant’s lawyer claimed that the incident was not sexually motivated because the man is gay, despite having a wife and daughter.

A Dutch court found the man guilty on four counts of sexual assault against a minor, but despite the prosecution pushing for a custodial prison sentence, the migrant was sentenced to just a two-year probation period and 60 hours of voluntary work.

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Dutch Are Lone Supporters Of Macron’s ‘EU Boots On The Ground In Ukraine’ Plan

French President Emmanuel Macron’s words at the start of the week which opened the door to European ‘boots on the ground in Ukraine’ elicited shock, dismay and caution even from within the Western allies. NATO itself scrambled to assure the world that it has no plans to deploy troops inside Ukraine, with Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg rejecting the idea in remarks, given it would certainly mean automatic WW3.

According to CNN, “Macron had told reporters at a news conference that while he and the other 21 European leaders present did not agree on deploying military personnel, the prospect was discussed openly.” Even typically hawkish countries Poland and the UK distanced themselves from such a possibility. 

However one tiny NATO country did step up to back Macron’s words. The Netherlands has said it won’t rule out sending Western troops to Ukraine. Dutch Chief of Defense, General Onno Eichelsheim, told an Amsterdam-based news outlet that while it’s a possibility it is “not yet opportune” to do so.”I think you should keep all options open to see how you can best support Ukraine,” Eichelsheim said.

According to more from the Dutch interview: 

Ukraine has not asked the Netherlands to send troops and there is no point in discussing it at the moment, Eichelsheim added. If Western militaries were to go to Ukraine, it would have to be in a coalition, the Dutch military chef said. “This could either happen via NATO or via an alliance of 10-15 countries.”

“It would be very odd if one or two countries did it,” he added.

Indeed, President Putin’s ominous response to Macron’s words seized precisely on the question of NATO Article 5…

“If Ukraine joins NATO, you won’t even have time to blink your eye when you execute Article 5,” Putin said, which suggests that possibly a nuclear response could be on the table.

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Former Dutch Prime Minister and Wife Die Together in Dual Euthanasia Procedure

Former Dutch Prime Minister Dries van Agt and his wife committed legally assisted suicide by simultaneous euthanasia this week, the non-profit organisation founded by the ex-Dutch leader has revealed.

Public broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) reported on Friday that former Dutch Prime Minister Dries van Agt (93), who led the Netherlands from 1977 to 1982, and his wife Eugenie van Agt (93) opted on Monday to take their lives in a joint act of euthanasia, which is legally permitted under medical supervision in the Western European nation.

Gerard Jonkman, the director of The Rights Forum non-profit founded by Van Agt in 2009, said that the former prime minister had discussed the option of assisted suicide after suffering a brain haemorrhage in 2019, saying that he said it was an “option if life and suffering became unbearable.”

Since then, Van Agt’s health, as well as his wife’s, steadily declined, according to Jonkman, who said: “His health became more and more fragile, and he wanted to focus his attention on his wife, children and grandchildren.” He said that their decision to commit assisted suicide hand in hand came from a feeling that they “couldn’t live without each other”.

The couple, who were married for seven decades, were buried together on Thursday. The Dutch public broadcaster noted that assisted suicide was a curious decision by Van Agt, given that he was a lifelong Roman Catholic — a faith which preaches against suicide — and a former member of the socially conservative Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA).

However, Jonkman noted that the former prime minister was always “idiosyncratic” and that Van Agt “never checked whether his own views are completely in line with those of a party or institution.”

Jonkman went on to note that Van Agt had also become more “progressive” in his later years, even going so far as to cancel his membership in the CDA over the party’s support for Israel in the conflict with Hamas, and in his view ignoring the “immense suffering inflicted on the Palestinian people”.

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Fears ‘woman with the flower tattoo’ Rita Roberts’ murder could be linked to serial killer known as The Scalp Hunter and The Canal Murderer


The family of “the woman with the flower tattoo” has been told her murder may be linked to a serial killer known as The Scalp Hunter and The Canal Murderer.

John Sweeney dismembered two former girlfriends before dumping their bodies in canals in Rotterdam and London.

He was known to be living in Belgium and Holland at the same time as the body of Rita Roberts was found washed up at a water treatment plant in Antwerp.

Police say she met with an extremely violent death – similar to Sweeney’s two victims who were about the same age as Cardiff-born Rita.

Interpol are already looking at Sweeney who is serving a whole life sentence for hacking to death Melissa Halstead, 33, and Paula Fields, 31.

The remains of Miss Halstead, whose head and hands were missing, were found in the Westersingel canal in Rotterdam after she vanished from her Amsterdam flat in 1990.

She was only identified in 2008 after Dutch detectives carried out a cold case review and matched familial DNA.

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Mystery over ‘the woman with the flower tattoo’ deepens as friend reveals she’d been told of her death 30 years ago – as Rita Roberts’ body was identified this week

The mystery around a British woman murdered in Amsterdam 31-years-ago deepens as an old school friend has come forward with new information. 

31-year-old Rita Roberts, know as the ‘woman with the flower tattoo’, was violently killed and her body was dumped in the Het Groot Schijn river in Antwerp, Belgium, on June 3, 1992.

However, she remained nameless for over three decades until an international appeal for information from Interpol lead to her identification this year because of her distinctive flower tattoo. 

Now an unnamed person has come forward saying they were told she drowned in a canal in Amsterdam thirty years ago. 

‘I was confused to see the stories about Rita because I was told she had drowned in a canal in Amsterdam 30 years ago,’ the school friend told the Mirror.

‘I got on with my life not thinking anything other than it was a tragedy. 

‘I don’t know why this has only come out now.’

This friend is now working with the police to see if it will help catch Ms Roberts killer.  

Ms Roberts had moved there from Cardiff and her last known correspondence was a postcard sent home in May 1992. 

When an appeal to uncover her identity began in May this year, detectives described her as being aged between 20 and 50 years old, around 170cm in height and of a stout build.

She had light-skin and had mid-length dark hair, and was wearing a t-shirt and dark blue Adidas training trousers.

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Netherlands euthanizing autistic and intellectually handicapped people, researcher finds

Netherlands programs have euthanized otherwise healthy individuals with autism and intellectual handicaps in recent years, researchers have found. 

Five individuals under the age of 30, who cited autism as a factor in their decision to seek legal euthanasia, are among the cases reviewed by specialists at the U.K.’s Kingston University. 

“Factors directly associated with intellectual disability and/or ASD were the sole cause of suffering described in 21% of cases and a major contributing factor in a further 42% of cases,” Kingston University’s report on the issue found. 

The study noted that in many cases, doctors determined there was “no prospect of improvement” for intellectually challenged individuals because there is no treatment for their handicap.

“Reasons for the EAS [euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide] request included social isolation and loneliness (77%), lack of resilience or coping strategies (56%), lack of flexibility (rigid thinking or difficulty adapting to change) (44%) and oversensitivity to stimuli (26%). In one-third of cases, physicians noted there was ‘no prospect of improvement’ as ASD and intellectual disability are not treatable,” the study reads.

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Dutch unveil 4,000-year-old ‘Stonehenge’-like discovery

Dutch archaeologists on Wednesday revealed an around 4,000-year-old religious site—dubbed the “Stonehenge of the Netherlands” in the country’s media—which included a burial mound serving as a solar calendar.

The burial mound, which contained the remains of some 60 men, women and children had several passages through which the sun directly shone on the longest and shortest days of the year.

“What a spectacular archaeological discovery! Archaeologists have found a 4,000-year-old religious sanctuary on an industrial site,” the town of Tiel said on its Facebook page.

“This is the first time a site like this has been discovered in the Netherlands,” it added in a statement.

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10,000 Dutch Farmers Protest Govt’s Crippling Nitrogen Emissions Target In The Hague

Thousands of Dutch farmers protested on Saturday against the government’s policies to reduce nitrogen emissions, warning they will put farms out of business and affect food production.

Hundreds of tractors from across the Netherlands could be seen driving to the event in The Hague ahead of regional elections this week, and more than 10,000 farmers were in attendance, according to the Reuters news agency.

Protesters accused the Dutch government of forcing farmers off of privately owned land in order to appease Brussels, and carried banners reading “No farmers, no food” and “There is no nitrogen ‘problem.’”

Tens of thousands of people turned up for the Dutch farmers protest.

Stand for freedom. pic.twitter.com/lAUW1QuqhV

— PeterSweden (@PeterSweden7) March 11, 2023

“We are fighting against a corrupt and unjust government,” Eva Vlaardingerbroek, a prominent campaigner in defense of the farmers, told attendees. She spoke of a government that “drives our farmers from their land” and which has “turned on its own population.”

“For centuries, our farmers have produced food for millions of people worldwide. And instead of what those liars in The Hague claim, they have done so in a responsible and sustainable way.”

🇳🇱Our farmers are fighting against the worst kind of injustice: a government that has turned on its own people.

The government created a lie to rob our farmers of their land. But we won’t let it happen. Our #DutchFarmers are an example to the world.

My speech with 🇬🇧 subtitles. pic.twitter.com/QYiFbkR2zM

— Eva Vlaardingerbroek (@EvaVlaar) March 11, 2023

“But our cabinet doesn’t care about nature. They have simply created a lie to steal our farmers’ land,” she added.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s administration has vowed to take radical action to meet its ambitious target of halving the country’s nitrogen emissions by 2030, and has identified the country’s large agriculture sector as being the main culprit due to its large livestock count and use of fertilizers.

Last year, the government announced plans to reduce livestock numbers by a third, while farmers have also been told their land could be subject to compulsory buyouts.

Agricultural workers have staged several demonstrations against the government policy, blocking motorways and supermarket distribution centers in mass protests last year.

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Netherlands to close up to 3,000 farms to comply with EU rules

The Dutch government plans to buy and close down up to 3,000 farms near environmentally sensitive areas to comply with EU nature preservation rules.

The Netherlands is attempting to cut down its nitrogen pollution and will push ahead with compulsory purchases if not enough farms take up the offer voluntarily. 

Farmers will be offered a deal “well over” the worth of the farm, according to the government plan that is targeting the closure of 2,000 to 3,000 farms or other major polluting businesses.

Earlier leaked versions of the plan put the figure at 120 per cent of the farm’s value but that figure has not yet been confirmed by ministers. 

“There is no better offer coming,” Christianne van der Wal, nitrogen minister, told MPs on Friday. She said compulsory purchases would be made with “pain in the heart”, if necessary. 

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Netherlands to ban laughing gas from January

The Dutch government is banning the use of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, amid concerns over the health risks for the growing number of young people using it.

The ban, which starts in January, makes it illegal to buy, sell or own the gas.

However, the authorities say it can still be used for medicinal purposes and in the food industry.

The government also hopes the ban will reduce the number of road traffic accidents involving the drug.

According to road safety monitor TeamAlert, laughing gas has played a role in 1,800 accidents across the Netherlands over the past three years.

“Almost two a day, figures that really shocked us,” Maartje Oosterink of TeamAlert told AD newspaper earlier this month.

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