Netherlands
Injuries and fires: Violence explodes at Eritrean event in The Hague
Criminals set fire to cars in The Hague, among other things, and a large police force was deployed
© Wil Looijestijn / ANP / DPA
The violence escalates, officials are injured, cars burn: supporters and opponents of the government of the East African country clash at a meeting of Eritreans in The Hague.
At least six police officers were injured in riots on the sidelines of an Eritrean event in the Netherlands. During the riots in In the Hague on Sunday night, police officers and firefighters were pelted with stones, fireworks and other objects, according to police reports, and special police units used tear gas. Rioters set fire to two police cars and a tour bus.
Eritrea conflict erupts in The Hague
According to police, opposing groups of supporters and critics of the East African country’s government clashed on the sidelines of the meeting. Several of those involved were carrying impact weapons.
“Out of nowhere, our colleagues were confronted with very intense and severe violence,” said police commander Marielle van Vulpen. The police arrested 13 people. She called on witnesses to come forward and provide video footage for the investigation.
“The violence against police officers and equipment is appalling and unacceptable,” said The Hague Mayor Jan van Zanen. The right-wing populist Geert Wilders, whose party PVV won the parliamentary election in November and has been trying to form a government coalition since then, published pictures of the riots with the comment “arrest and deportation”.
“Why is half the world allowed to come here to tear down our country, fight among ourselves and throw stones at police officers?” Wilders wrote on the online service X, formerly Twitter. He wants to become “the prime minister who will finally ensure order.”
There was also massive violence in Germany in September on the sidelines of an event organized by Eritrean clubs in Stuttgart. 39 police officers and several participants in the event were injured and 228 people were arrested.
East African Eritrea seceded from Ethiopia in 1993 after a three-decade war and became independent. The country located in the Horn of Africa has been ruled with a hard hand by President Isaias Afwerki since 1993 and is considered one of the most isolated states in the world. The country ranks among the lowest places in the world when it comes to freedom of the press, human rights and economic development.