Dutch news in brief, 1 March 2005

Dunes ‘too weak’ to withstand sea

Waves in the North Sea could be much more powerful and bigger than presently believed, a Delft Technological University academic has warned. As beach sand dunes might not be able to withstand such treatment, there is a higher chance of flooding in the Netherlands, coastal water expert Marcel Stive said. It was previously believed that the largest North Sea waves struck at 12 seconds intervals along the Dutch coastline. But Stive claims that this interval is much larger and the “wave energy” is likewise stronger. Moreover, the sea level will rise in coming years due to global warming, meaning that the North Sea will become deeper and the waves larger and more powerful.

Diamond heist prompts security shake-up

Schiphol Airport, KLM and the military police took additional security measures on Friday after the spectacular diamond robbery at the freight terminal last week, Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner said on Tuesday. Extra military police officers have been assigned to surveillance and money transports will be accompanied by armed military guards. KLM security staff had previously only guarded transports. The validity of staff entrance cards can be shortened and the use of biometric details will be studied this year. Screening of staff by the security service AIVD will be intensified.

‘Shoe bomb’ suspect confesses

British terror suspect Saajid Badat has admitted plotting to blow up a plane on its way to the US using a “shoe bomb”. Badat, 25, conspired with fellow Briton Richard Reid and a Belgian terrorist to make the bomb, but later backed out of the plot. The prosecution claims Badat had booked to fly from Manchester to Amsterdam in preparation for an onward flight to the US on which the bomb would be detonated. The planned attack was never carried out. Reid has been jailed in the US for trying to bring down a US-bound flight in December 2001.

SBS wins Dutch soccer rights

All home matches of the Dutch soccer team up until the 2010 World Cup will be televised on SBS 6. This means that the qualification matches for the European Championship in 2008 and the 2010 World Cup and all friendly matches will be televised on SBS. The commercial broadcaster and the Dutch football association KNVB reached an agreement on Monday. SBS has had the rights for Dutch soccer matches since 2002, but the agreement expires this year, newspaper De Telegraaf reported.

Subject: Dutch news