Netherlands police prevent ‘major terrorist attack’

Seven arrests were made to foil a plot involving guns and explosives

Police in the Netherlands have prevented a 'major terrorist attack' after arrests were made on Thursday. Dutch police apprehended seven men, all aged between 21 and 34, who were planning on carrying out a terrorist attack involving guns and explosives. The men were attempting to obtain AK-47s, hand grenades and materials to make their own bomb. They were arrested in possession of five handguns. Anti-terrorism teams arrested the men in the city of Arnhem and southern municipality of Weert. Police were tipped off about the plot in April and had been aware of the group's leader, a 34-year-old man of Iraqi origin, who had previously been arrested in 2017. Intelligent services reported that he wanted to target "a large event in the Netherlands where there would be a lot of victims". Three others in the group had also been arrested before for attempting to travel abroad to fight for foreign militant organisations. In a statement, prosecutors said: "The suspects were in search of AK-47s, handguns, hand grenades, explosive vests and raw materials for several [car] bombs." They also revealed the group were seeking firearms trained. The threat level in the Netherlands remains at four out of five.