The partners of Dutch fighter pilots who were active in Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania in 2017, were harassed at home during this period. They received repeated, unpleasant phone calls from people with a Russian accent who asked whether their men should not rather leave the area, among other things, the Telegraaf reports.
Military intelligence service MIVD told the newspaper that it is familiar with this practice, but would not say anything further about it.
In the past five years, four soldiers left the Dutch armed forces due to right-wing extremist statements or behavior. Military intelligence service MIVD launched a total of 21 investigations into possible extremism in the armed forces, the vast majority of which involved suspicions of right-wing extremism, the Volkskrant reports based on a list the MIVD drew up after the newspaper appealed to the Intelligence and Security Services Act.
According to CTIVD, the regulator for the Dutch intelligence services AIVD and MIVD, there are major risks that the two services will act in violation of the new Intelligence and Security Law because guarantees that they will do so are lacking or not properly regulated. As a result the AIVD and MIVD themselves don't know themselves whether they're acting in line with the law, NOS reports.
Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, said on Monday that the four Russian spies caught in The Hague in April was in the Netherlands for a routine trip. Russia denies that the secret service agents wanted to hack into chemical weapon watchdog OPCW, NU.nl reports.
Four Russian spies wanted to hack into the network of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPWC) on April 13th. Instead of being arrested and entering the Dutch system, they were deported to Moscow that same day. That decision was made by Onno Eichelsheim, director of military intelligence service MIVD. He wanted them out of the Netherlands as soon as possible, RTL Nieuws reports.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and his British counterpart Theresa May released a joint statement in which they denounced cyber attacks by Russian secret service GRU as unacceptable. They called attacks on international organizations like the United Nations' Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) reckless and destructive.
Dutch military intelligence service MIVD prevented a hacking operation by Russian secret service G.U. aimed at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPWC), Minister Ank Bijleveld of Defense announced at a press conference in The Hague on Thursday. The G.U. tried to hack the OPWC on April 13th. Four involved Russian officers were deported from the Netherlands that same day, NOS reports.
Two Russian spies were arrested in the Netherlands, with the help of Dutch military intelligence service MIVD, this past spring. The two were on their way to Switzerland to hack into a laboratory currently doing investigations that may negatively affect Russia, NRC reports based on its own research.
The Public Prosecutor is dropping an investigation into decorated soldier Marco Kroon, who said that he killed a man who abducted him while on a mission in Afghanistan. The investigation has yet to provide a definitive answer, but there are insufficient leads to confirm whether or not what Kroon reported actually happened, the Public Prosecutor said on Thursday, NOS reports.
The government does not have to withdraw its new law on the Dutch intelligence and security services in its current form, the court ruled on Tuesday in summary proceedings filed by a group of privacy organizations and companies, NU.nl reports.
A coalition of journalists, lawyers, civil society organizations, and IT- and tech companies is preparing a lawsuit to postpone the implementation of the new law for the Dutch intelligence and security services, NU.nl reports.
Two former employees of Dutch military intelligence service MIVD fear for their lives after decorated soldier Marco Kroon revealed details about a secret operation in Afghanistan to the media, they said to Nieuwsuur.
The two former intelligence workers, who are of Afghan origin but have been living in the Netherlands for years, asked to remain anonymous, according to Nieuwsuur. They are preparing a lawsuit against the Ministry of Defense, with which they hope to force the Ministry to help them build a new life elsewhere in Europe.
A majority in the Tweede Kamer is satisfied with the changes the government wants to make to the new law for the intelligence and security services. In addition to coalition parties VVD, CDA, D66 and ChristenUnie, opposition parties GroenLinks, PvdA and SGP also agree with the changes, was revealed in a parliamentary debate on the law on Tuesday, NOS reports.
The government's plans on how to change the new law for the Dutch intelligence services after a majority voted against it in a referendum, leaked on Thursday night. The changes are "mostly cosmetic" and don't do justice the results of the advisory referendum, according to privacy organization Bits of Freedom, NOS reports.
The four parties in the Dutch government are willing to consider adapting the new law for the intelligence and security services. Responsible Minister Kasja Ollongren of Home Affairs will soon present a number of proposals for amendments, sources told BNR.
A majority of Dutch voted against the new law for the Dutch intelligence and security services, the Electoral Council officially announced on Thursday. In total 49.4 percent voted against the law, 46.5 percent voted for it, and 4 percent cast a blank vote, NU.nl reports.
52 percent of Dutch voters voted in the referendum, far above the 30 percent minimum turnout required for the referendum to be valid.
Human rights organization Amnesty International calls on the Dutch government to do justice to the millions of people who voted against a new law for the Dutch intelligence services in a referendum on Wednesday. The law should be changed on certain points to make certain it protects human rights, the Dutch branch of the organization said in a statement on Thursday.
With 80 percent of the votes in the referendum on whether or not to implement a new law for the Dutch intelligence and security services counted, opponents to the law are taking the lead. Of the counted votes, 49 percent were against the law, and 47 percent for. Around 4 percent of the votes were blank, the Volkskrant reports.
Around 53 percent of voters voted in the referendum, far above the 30 percent required for the referendum to be valid.
An exit poll published on Wednesday night showed that roughly 48 percent of the Netherlands population turned out to vote in a referendum on a law that would give intelligence services authority to collect and access a massive amount of data. With a five percent margin of error, the Ipsos/NOS poll said that 49 percent voted in favor of the law, and 48 percent against, with three percent registering no-votes.
Today around 13 million Dutch can vote in a referendum on whether or not to implement a new law for intelligence services AIVD and MIVD. Polling stations opened at 7:30 a.m. and most will remain open until 9:00 p.m.
More Dutch plan to vote for a law that will give the Dutch intelligence services more capabilities to eavesdrop on people than plan to vote against. In every one of four recent polls, there are more "for" voters than "against" voters, NOS reports.
The Dutch intelligence services placed 3,553 taps to eavesdrop on people and organizations last year, Ministers Kasja Ollongren of Home Affairs and Ank Bijleveld of Defense reported to parliament on Wednesday. This is the first time that the services' tap statistics are made public, NU.nl reports.
The two Dutch Ministers in charge of intelligence services AIVD and MIVD refused to respond to reports that the two services passed crucial information about Russian hackers influencing the United States presidential elections to the FBI. Other than saying that the government is proud of the Dutch security services, NOS reports.
Two Dutch intelligence services uncovered substantial evidence detailing how a Russian-backed hacking group infiltrated the Barack Obama White House, the U.S. Department of State, and the Democratic National Committee, according to a ground breaking report from broadcaster NOS and newspaper Volkskrant.
