Dutch soldier

The association for Dutch veterans that fought in the Korean war VOKS wants Prime Minister Mark Rutte to try and get the remains released of five Dutch soldiers who went missing or were killed in North Korea. "Only then can their family finally say goodbye to their loved ones in a dignified way", VOKS wrote in a letter to the Dutch Prime Minister, the Telegraaf reports.

No Dutch soldiers will be prosecuted for bombings by the anti-ISIS coalition in Iraq and East Syria in which civilians were killed, the Public Prosecutor decided. The Dutch soldiers did not break the law of war, the the Ministers of Defense and Foreign Affairs wrote in a letter to parliament, RTL Nieuws reports.

The Public Prosecutor investigated four incidents. In none of these incidents did the Dutch soldiers break the law of war, the Ministers wrote. 

Decorated Dutch soldier Marco Kroon says that he had no choice but to kill a man while on a secret mission in Afghanistan in 2017. He was previously captured and tortured by the man he eventually killed, he said in an interview with newspaper AD. "It was him or me."

Kroon was previously captured by the man and was tortured for information, he said to the newspaper. According to him, he did not reveal anything. After he was released for unknown reasons, he went looking for the man because Kroon wanted to prevent the man endangering the mission.

Bored soldiers at the Oranje barracks in Schaarsbergen regularly entertained themselves with drugs, alcohol and even prostitutes, according to a confidential Defense report from 2015, which the Volkskrant has in its possession.

According to the report, soldiers also damaged or stole considerable amounts of Defense equipment, held 'informal hazing', and there was a high risk of bullying, exclusion and inappropriate sexual behavior.

Three Dutch soldiers left their unit in Schaarsbergen in 2014 because they were assaulted, bullied, extorted, abused and one was raped, the Volkskrant reports. Some of these incidents happened during hazing. Four soldiers from the same unit were punished. One of the victims filed a police declaration about the incidents two weeks ago, according to the newspaper.

Sint Eustatius politician Clyde van Putten apologized for threatening to kill Dutch soldiers in a speech he made last week. Van Putten said that his previous comments were reprehensible and that he does not want to call for violence. Though he added that his comments were taken out of context by people "with a political agenda" to damage his reputation, NOS reports.

Clyde van Putten, leader of political party PLP on the Dutch island of Sint Eustatius, threatened to kill and and burn Dutch soldiers in a speech he made on the island. The Dutch government is going to file a declaration with the police against him, Minister Ronald Plasterk of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations announced, the Telegraaf reports

Prime Minister Mark Rutte will be visiting the 270 Dutch soldiers stationed in Rukla, Lithuania on Thursday and Friday. Commander of the Armed Forces Tom Middendorp will accompany him on this visit, NOS reports.

The Dutch troops are part of the NATO force aimed at preventing Russia from taking root in the Baltic states. The soldiers also serve the purpose of reassuring the Eastern European allies.

Rutte's program includes a number of events, including a demonstration by NATO troops and a meeting with Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaite. 

NATO is joining the coalition fighting against terrorist organization ISIS in Syria and Iraq, the 28 NATO member states decided on Wednesday. The Netherlands will contribute two planes to the fight against Islamic State this year, Ministers Bert Koenders of Foreign Affairs and Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert announced.

The Air Force sergeant who is believed to have joined ISIS may have sensitive information on ongoing military missions, as well as personal information on his colleagues currently involved in the the fight against the terrorist organization.

A Peshmerga fighter was injured in Erbil in Iraq yesterday after being accidentally shot by a Dutch soldier on a training location, the Ministry of Defense announced on its website.