NL Times

Last year the Public Prosecutor decided to drop 20 percent of all completed criminal cases, according to figures Statistics Netherlands released. Ten years ago, 10 percent of criminal cases were dropped, ANP reports.

A few hundred members of Groningen student association Vindicat vandalized, looted and harassed the staff of a sushi restaurant in the city last week, AD reports. 

The coastal provinces of the Netherlands can expect strong winds and heavy rain on Monday and Tuesday, according to meteorological institute KNMI. The institute issued a code yellow warning that is in place until 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

According to the KNMI, some areas may see over 50 millimeters of rain in 24 hours. This could result in flooding. The coastal areas in the west and northwest of the country can also expect winds of around 75 kilometers per hour this afternoon. 

Afternoon temperatures will climb to around 17 degrees Celsius. 

The Dutch government made money available to provide emergency relief to the Rohingya population fleeing from Myanmar, Minister Lilianne Ploumen of Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade announced at her meeting with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in Amsterdam on Thursday.

"The images on TV say enough. Anxious fathers and mothers fleeing with their children in overcrowded boats. With so much human suffering, we can not remain insensitive and ignore the call of aid organizations to do more", Ploumen said.

Four people were injured when a hot air balloon carrying eight people made a crash landing near Zeijerveld around 8:00 p.m. on Thursday. No one sustained serious injuries, according to Dagblad van het Noorden.

The hot air balloon got into trouble due to the bad weather, according to the broadcaster. The 53-year-old operator tried to do an emergency landing several times, but was blown into the air by the strong wind. At one point the balloon crashed into a tree.

The balloon was seized by the police and the aviation police are investigating the accident. 

Copper thieves damaged dozens of graves, tombs and memorials at the Emaus Cemetery in Vlaardingen this week by stealing copper tubes from them. The municipality informed the relatives of the affected graves and filed charges with the police, RTV Rijnmond reports.

The graves involved date from the middle of the previous century, the administrator of the cemetery said to the broadcaster. "Back then the trend was to shield graves with poles with copper tubes between them." The poles were torn down and the tubes pulled out. 

Hurricane Irma not only caused massive material destruction on Sint Maarten, but also enormously disrupted the population, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a press conference on Friday after the second crisis meeting about the situation on the island that forms part of the Kingdom of the Netherla