Suspects arrested over death of Dutch soldier

6 September 2004

AMSTERDAM — Eight people suspected of involvement in the death of a Dutch soldier in Iraq last month were arrested by Dutch troops on Sunday.

No one was injured in the operation, which took place at about 2pm local time in two locations in the Iraqi city Ar Rumaytah. The arrests were based on intelligence from the local population, the Royal Dutch Army said.

The operation was conducted with the permission of the Iraqi and British authorities and with support from Dutch Apache combat helicopters and a British Chinook transport helicopter. The suspects were later handed over to Iraqi police in Basra.

Dutch troops took the eight suspects by surprise and they had no chance to resist. The soldiers involved in the arrest operation did not need to use their weapons, a military statement said. Various weapons were seized in the raids.

The suspects are accused of involvement in an ambush on Dutch troops on 14 August near Ar Rumaytah, one of the Dutch bases in Iraq. Sergeant Jeroen Severs, 29, was killed and five other soldiers were seriously injured.

Servers was the second Dutch military fatality in Iraq. Defence Minister Henk Kemp decided to deploy reinforcement troops and equipment to Iraq

The Dutch peacekeeping mission involving almost 1,300 soldiers is scheduled to end in March 2005.

Subject: Dutch News