Video: Anti-asylum protesters block traffic, throw fireworks at cops in Apeldoorn
The police broke up a demonstration against the opening of an asylum shelter in Apeldoorn on Tuesday evening after protesters pelted police officers with fireworks, blocked traffic, and occupied a roundabout. The police deployed multiple vans and dogs to clear the roundabout, Omroep Gelderland and De Stentor report.
About 150 protesters gathered at the roundabout on Laan van Maten to protest against the municipality’s plans to open a temporary emergency shelter in an empty school building on Waleweingaarde. They marched to the intended location, walking across the road, holding up traffic, and setting off fireworks. The police closed off Laan van Maten to prevent anyone from getting run over.
After protesting at the shelter location for a time, the demonstrators returned to the roundabout and occupied it. The situation initially seemed under control, but then protesters started throwing fireworks at police officers.
At around 9:00 p.m., the police left the roundabout. Half an hour later, they returned with 15 vans and police dogs and cleared the roundabout. It is unclear whether anyone was arrested.
Tuesday was the third demonstration since the municipality announced in mid-April that it would temporarily house 240 asylum seekers in a vacant school building.
Last week, around 200 protesters also gathered at the roundabout on Laan van Maten and marched to the school building, where they threw heavy fireworks at the building. The riot police broke up that protest.
Violent protests against sheltering asylum seekers have been flaring up in the Netherlands again in recent weeks. In Loosdrecht, multiple nights of violent protest, in which demonstrators also attacked police with fireworks, resulted in the municipality scaling down its plans to temporarily shelter people in a vacant town hall building. Despite the protests and vandalism of the building in question, that shelter will open today.
