Major operation in NL

Hostage-taking in the Netherlands: 150 apartments evacuated

According to the police, around 150 homes were evacuated due to the threat.(Bild: APA/AFP/ANP/Remko de Waal)

A man held four hostages in a café in the Netherlands for hours and threatened them with knives. This was announced by the public prosecutor's office. The perpetrator surrendered on Saturday afternoon in the town of Ede, not far from Arnhem, and was arrested. Videos showed the masked man leaving the building with his hands up and being taken away. According to the public prosecutor's office, he is known to the police. All four hostages were released.

The background to the crime is still unclear. According to the public prosecutor's office, the hostage-taker had a rucksack with him. It did not contain any explosives, as a police spokesman confirmed after the search. The perpetrator reportedly had a criminal record.

The hostage-taking shortly before Easter lasted several hours. A large contingent of police cordoned off the area in the center of the city. Heavily armed forces were deployed. The fire department and emergency services were also on the scene. According to the police, around 150 homes were evacuated due to the threat.

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

(Bild: APA/AFP/ANP/PERSBUREAU HEITINK)

No indication of a terrorist motive
It was unclear for hours how many hostages were being held in the café. They were four employees of the party café. There was no direct relationship between them and the hostage-taker, explained the senior public prosecutor. Three of them were released shortly before midday.

There were no indications of a terrorist motive, the Gelderland police said on X. The emergency services assumed early on that a hostage-taker was involved. Whether she was in contact with the man was unclear shortly after the hostage-taking ended.

Mayor: "Terrible situation"
The police had called for people to avoid the center of the city, which is not far from Arnhem in the province of Gelderland. Train services in the area were suspended. Mayor René Verhulst spoke of a "terrible situation" for those affected. He called on people not to distribute any private photos or videos of the incident. Out of consideration for the hostages and their relatives, such images should not be shared on social networks, he wrote.

The region around Ede is best known for De Hoge Veluwe National Park with its forests, heathland, grasslands and inland dunes. The heather blossom is particularly popular.