Four Dutch railway stations evacuated over security threat

Four major train stations in the Netherlands were partly evacuated on September 29 after unattended bags were discovered, with four people arrested and authorities investigating whether the incidents were connected, NU.nl reports.

Rotterdam Centraal, Utrecht Centraal, Haarlem and Dordrecht stations were affected. Utrecht, Rotterdam and Dordrecht have since reopened after police found nothing suspicious in the bags, while Haarlem station remained closed, according to Dutch media.

Police arrested two people at Utrecht Centraal on suspicion of disturbing public order after they left a bag unattended. NOS also reported two arrests in Haarlem.

A ProRail spokesperson told NOS that authorities were investigating a possible connection between the incidents at the four stations, while a police spokesperson described the case as “highly remarkable”.

In Utrecht, an explosives specialist examined the bag after part of the station hall and several platforms were cordoned off for about an hour and 15 minutes. Nothing dangerous was found.

At Rotterdam Centraal, two unattended suitcases were found in a pedestrian tunnel, which was temporarily closed while police checked the bags for explosives. A woman later returned to collect the luggage, telling fellow travellers she had left it while going into the city.

In Haarlem, emergency services received a report of two unattended suitcases at about 10:15 a.m. Police explosives experts examined the luggage. Two people were also arrested, NOS reported.

The bag found in Dordrecht contained only clothes, rail operator ProRail said.

The incidents came two weeks after suspected acts of sabotage caused major disruption to the Dutch rail network on September 15. Materials, including metal pipes, iron beams and jumper cables, were found on about 35 tracks, disrupting rail services across large parts of the country.

Police, assisted by the AIVD intelligence service, continued to investigate the suspected sabotage. Fires were also set along highways and provincial roads that afternoon, although it was not established whether they were connected to the rail disruption.

Seven people aged between 25 and 70, all from Stichtse Vecht, were later arrested over a fire on the A2 motorway near Breukelen.

By Aghakazim Guliyev