A Jewish school in Amsterdam was damaged by an explosion early Saturday in what the city’s mayor described as a deliberate attack on the Jewish community.
Police said investigators concluded two suspects arrived on a motor scooter. One placed an object against an exterior wall, ran back to the scooter and they fled; the device detonated as they left. There were no reported injuries and physical damage was limited. Authorities have tightened security at synagogues and Jewish institutions across the Netherlands.
Mayor Femke Halsema condemned the incident as a cowardly act, saying Jewish residents are increasingly confronted with antisemitism and calling the situation unacceptable. She stressed that schools must be safe places for children and that Amsterdam should be a secure home for Jewish people.
The blast comes amid a series of recent attacks on Jewish sites in Europe and the United States. On Friday, a synagogue in Rotterdam was hit by an overnight arson attack. Earlier in the week a synagogue in Liège, Belgium, was struck by an explosion that sparked a fire. In the United States, a driver rammed a car into a synagogue in the Detroit area on Thursday.
Edited by: Alex Berry