Corona riots rock Rotterdam
Hundreds of people protested in Rotterdam against the government's plans for stricter Corona rules on Friday. The police moved in to put down the uprising in large numbers, firing live ammunition at vaccine critics. At least seven people suffered injuries as a result.
Published: November 20, 2021, 11:46 am
On November 19, 2021, the protest in Rotterdam was described by the mainstream media as a “civil war” as citizens rose up against plans by the government to tighten Corona regulations in the country.
The undeclared rally turned into massive riots with hundreds of people on the streets, fires being lit on sidewalks, police cars set on fire and others damaged. Protesters threw objects at police officers and firefighters. According to their own statements, the police tried to restore order with a large contingent.
Riot police and a water cannon were sent in, and police units from all over the country were brought together in the port city but eventually officers had to fire live rounds at protesters. Dozens of people were arrested. The police admitted on Friday evening: “There have been injuries in connection with the shots fired.”
A press photographer reported that dozens of shots were fired by the police: “There were shells everywhere on the ground.” He and a few others had fled to the nearest parking garage to take cover. He also said that protesters had smashed windows.
Bloed van de gast die neergeschoten is door de politie. pic.twitter.com/o3JFCCMjQS
— Bob van Keulen (@BobHGL) November 19, 2021
Vele tientallen keren geschoten door de politie toen ze steeds werden aangevallen. pic.twitter.com/JFrAWdlOmn
— Bob van Keulen (@BobHGL) November 19, 2021
According to the newspaper De Telegraaf, at least seven people were injured. It was later reported that officers in the ranks of the police had also been injured.
Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb issued an emergency ordinance to forbid people to stay at the site of the riots as well as in the main train station. The train traffic to and from Rotterdam was suspended because of the riots, said the Dutch Railways. Traffic only resumed early on Saturday morning but a trail of devastation remained.
The political climate has been tense
Pro-vaccine politicians claimed that they were “shocked” at the level of violence on Twitter, but pundits on BNR television had warned that the general political climate had deteriorated due to Corona dictates.
The rally, which several organizations had called, was directed against plans by the government to introduce a 2G rule designed to ostracise the unvaccinated. Access to events, cafés and restaurants will now only be possible for the vaccinated and those who have recovered from Covid-19.
After a curfew was imposed in the Netherlands in January, there were also violent protests in a number of cities with losses worth millions.
The police maintain that they had to use live ammunition in order to prevent more violence, but targeting Dutch citizens is not a very common thing, especially in immigrant-filled Rotterdam.
Minister of Justice and Security Ferdinand Grapperhaus expressed his alarm at the unrest: “Protesting is a great right in our society, but what we saw last night is simply criminal behaviour. It has nothing to do with demonstrating.”
The United We Stand demonstration, which was to take place in Amsterdam on Saturday afternoon, has now been cancelled. The organization has decided to do so after the riots in Rotterdam, according to their Facebook page. The municipality of Amsterdam confirmed that the demonstration would not take place.
Police justify live rounds
Meanwhile, various senior police officers tried to justify the shooting of civilians. Gerrit van de Kamp, chairman of the police union ACP told Dutch media: “What is going on here is indescribable.”
Jan Struijs, chairman of the Dutch Police Association, also expressed his dissatisfaction on Twitter. “It is a crisis in Rotterdam. Police officers do everything they can to protect their citizens, journalists and the press. They pay a high price. Violence has established itself in our democracy.”
The director of the Rotterdam Rotterdam-Rijnmond Security Region, Arjen Littooij, says he was horrified to view the images in the center of Rotterdam.
President Gerrit van de Kamp of the ACP police union did not rule out the possibility that officers had fired because “the situation was extremely threatening and the officers were therefore forced to shoot”. He was also very displeased with the situation. “These are no longer riots, this is extremist behaviour. This is no longer normal.” According to Van de Kamp, a lot of damage has been done, but his concern now was to give support to his colleagues in Rotterdam. “We hope the colleagues get home safely.”
Mayor Aboutaleb acknowledged that the police had no control over the situation on Friday. Eight riot squads from all over the country, with about four hundred officers, carried out several charges. In Twitter footage, mobs can be seen chasing law enforcement and police shooting at them to protect themselves.
#BREAKING : politie lost waarschuwingsschoten in #Rotterdam Coolsingel – ME wordt door menigte verdreven#2Gprotest pic.twitter.com/hKSvazAaOq
— Martin Mourik (@MartinMourik) November 19, 2021
Signs above the A20 ring road near Rotterdam and on local roads warned motorists to avoid the center of Rotterdam due to the situation while regional security authorities also advised people to stay away from the center.
All rights reserved. You have permission to quote freely from the articles provided that the source (www.freewestmedia.com) is given. Photos may not be used without our consent.
Consider donating to support our work
Help us to produce more articles like this. FreeWestMedia is depending on donations from our readers to keep going. With your help, we expose the mainstream fake news agenda.
Keep your language polite. Readers from many different countries visit and contribute to Free West Media and we must therefore obey the rules in, for example, Germany. Illegal content will be deleted.
If you have been approved to post comments without preview from FWM, you are responsible for violations of any law. This means that FWM may be forced to cooperate with authorities in a possible crime investigation.
If your comments are subject to preview by FWM, please be patient. We continually review comments but depending on the time of day it can take up to several hours before your comment is reviewed.
We reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, contain slander or foul language, or are irrelevant to the discussion.
NOAA Predicts Zero Sunspots for Almost the Whole 2030s
CLIMATEThe United States' government scientific organization, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), predicts zero sunspots from 2031 to 2040. This is an extreme situation that has not occurred in as long as humanity has been counting sunspots, and it leads us into uncharted territory in terms of our solar system. However, this prediction aligns with the warnings of the world-renowned solar researcher Valentina Zharkova for many years, who indicated in 2019 various signs of this catastrophic phenomenon, including the extreme hailstorms we have seen in Europe and the world this summer. The forecast and various observations this year give cause for very significant concern. In this unique analysis, Free West Media explains why.
European Nationalist Parties Forge Cooperation Ahead of EU Elections
EUROPEAN ELECTIONSOn Saturday, August 26, representatives of six European nationalist parties gathered in Budapest. The meeting was initiated by the Hungarian party Mi Hazánk and took place in the national parliament. Representatives of the parties signed a joint declaration that not only reaffirms the parties' friendship but also their unity on a range of complex political issues. A surprisingly clear and radical manifesto was established. The hope is that this cooperation will lead to success in the EU elections and eventually result in the formation of a group in the European Parliament. For Swedish nationalism, this meeting marks a success as Sweden, for the first time, has a party represented in a leading nationalist cooperation in Europe. Free West Media was present at this historic event.
Turkey Believes Sweden Hasn’t Done Enough
Sweden will have to wait a bit longer for NATO membership, according to Turkey's Justice Minister Jilmaz Tunc. First, Sweden must extradite the "terrorists" Turkey wants and stop the desecration of the Quran.
Swedish Weapon Takes Down Russia’s Best Attack Helicopter
The Russian attack helicopter Ka-52 is considered one of the world's best and has struck fear in Ukraine, where it has hunted down tanks and other armored vehicles, often beyond the range of many light anti-aircraft systems. However, it has met its match in the Swedish air defense missile system RBS 70, which has quickly led to significant losses for the Russian helicopter forces.
Strong Confidence in German AfD
Alternative for Germany (AfD) held a party conference on July 29-30 to select candidates for the upcoming EU election next year. EU Parliament member Maximilian Krah, belonging to the party's more radical, ethnonationalist faction, was appointed as the top candidate. The party's two spokespersons delivered powerful speeches criticizing the EU's failed migration policy and trade sanctions that isolate Europe and Germany from the rest of the world. They argued that it's time for the EU to return a significant portion of its power to national parliaments. However, they have dropped the demand for Germany to exit the EU.
The Establishment Wants to Ban Germany’s Second Largest Party – for the Sake of Democracy
The rising popularity of AfD has raised strong concerns within the establishment. Despite lies and demonization in the media and isolation from the overall political establishment, the party continues to grow. Certain representatives of the party are accused of becoming increasingly "extreme," and in an unusual move, the influential weekly newspaper Der Spiegel demanded that AfD be "banned."
Dutch FvD break through the media blockade
What is happening in the Netherlands? It is often difficult to follow events in other countries, especially when distorted by system media. We give Forum for Democracy (FvD) the opportunity to speak out on the political situation in the Netherlands and the staunch resistance they face in trying to save the country.
The Ursula von der Leyen Affair
After a criminal complaint in Belgium against the President of the European Commission, the so-called SMS-case, now takes a new turn. The judge responsible for the investigation will likely gain access to the secret messages exchanged between Ursula von der Leyen and Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, at least if they haven't been deleted.
Publisher of Unique Literature Worldwide Blocked by International Distributor
Arktos has distinguished itself by publishing groundbreaking philosophers and social critics. Now, the publisher's international distributor has abruptly terminated the cooperation, and more than 400 already printed titles cannot reach their audience. There is strong evidence that the distributor has been under pressure, something that has also happened in Sweden. We have spoken with Arktos founder Daniel Friberg about the ongoing struggle for freedom of speech in a shrinking cultural corridor.
Care prompts bishops to criticize transgender ideology
The Catholic bishops of the Scandinavian countries presented an open five-page letter criticizing transgender ideology on March 21, just before Easter. The document primarily expresses care and advice and was read aloud in Catholic churches in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, and Iceland. Cardinal Anders Arborelius, Bishop of Stockholm, is one of the signatories of the document.