‘Terrorist motive’ in Saudi embassy shooting: Dutch police

A man suspected of firing a gun at the Saudi Arabian embassy in The Hague last week acted with “terrorist intent”, Dutch police said on Monday.

The 40-year-old suspect was held on Thursday last week hours after the incident, in which nobody was hurt.

The shots came a day after a bomb blast struck a World War I commemoration attended by foreign diplomats in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

The man is suspected of carrying out violence against the embassy building, trying to kill the caretaker of the building and making threats, all “with a terrorist aim”, the police said in a statement.

“Terrorist intent is apparent from the fact that the suspect appeared to want to impose his will on the embassy through his actions,” the statement added, without giving further details.

Judges extended the suspect’s detention for another two weeks at a hearing Monday.