Netherlands

F-35 fighter jets

Following a Dutch appeals court ruling to halt the export and transit of all F-35 parts to Israel within seven days, the Netherlands' government is taking the matter to the country’s Supreme Court, reports Binoy Kampmark.

poster with f-35 jets

A Dutch court has ordered the Netherlands' government to cease exporting F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel that are being used in the war in Gaza, reports Kerry Smith.

protest

For Geert Wilders, the leader of Dutch far-right Freedom Party (PVV), years of patience paid off while the incumbent right-wing party gambled and lost in the country's recent elections, writes Alex De Jong.

In a historic verdict, the District Court of the Hague has ruled that fossil-fuel giant Shell must reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 45% within 10 years, writes Kerry Smith.

The Dutch election in mid-March was a shift to the right. One of the great mistakes of the Dutch left in the period leading up to this election was that, while it was already at an all-time low in the polls, it did not prioritise its own narrative, writes Alex De Jong.

BDS is a legitimate means to help Palestinians in their fight for justice.

The containment of Islamophobe Geert Wilders’ Party of Freedom (PVV) in the March 15 Dutch general election was greeted with relief by the mainstream European media.

Nonetheless, the election result primarily reflected a conservative and safety-seeking consolidation of the right and centre parties. It will result in a more right-wing cabinet than the previous “red-blue” coalition of the VVD and Labour Party (PdvA), and throw up big challenges for progressive politics in the Netherlands.

With refugees at the centre of debate after the terror attacks in Paris, the plight of European Jews fleeing Nazi Germany during the 1930s and '40s springs to mind as a parallel to the current crisis. It has come to light in recent times that the family of Anne Frank — the Jewish teenager whose famous diary details her and her family's failed attempts to hide from the Nazis in Amsterdam — was among those denied the necessary papers that would have allowed them access to the United States.
The Dutch Safety Board released its long-awaited report on October 13 into the downing of flight MH17 at the Gilze-Rijen military airbase. It came 15 months after the disaster that killed 298 people, Morning Star said the next day. Board chairperson Tjibbe Joustra criticised the Kiev government for allowing civilian aircraft to fly through a dangerous war zone.
Police in The Hague arrested 42-year-old tourist Mitch Henriquez on June 27. Henriquez, who was born on the Dutch-Caribbean island of Aruba, was visiting the city’s Night at the Park festival. The statement released by the public prosecutor claimed that he told police he had a gun and then resisted arrest. This prompted five police officers to beat Henriquez until he was unconscious.
People's Climate March, Amsterdam, September 21, 2014. Photo: Urgenda.nl. Environmental groups have congratulated the Netherlands after 866 Dutch citizens collectively won a lawsuit filed against their own government for “knowingly contributing” to global warming while doing nothing to prevent it.
Speaking to party activists after the left-wing Socialist Party (SP) once again recorded a positive result in the March 18 provincial elections, party leader Emile Roemer said: “This is an historic evening. We have become the biggest left party in the Netherlands. “The SP is a powerful factor in the Senate. An ideal starting point for the SP to be elected to government at the next general election.”