Arrests in The Hague after second night of trouble

police carPolice in The Hague arrested 11 people on Tuesday in a second night of disturbances in the city’s Schilderswijk district.

The 11 were picked up for a range of offences, ranging from threatening behaviour to vandalism, police said. The city’s mayor, Jozias van Aartsen, had earlier appealed for calm.

Police were already prepared for trouble following Monday night’s riots in the area after a protest about the death of an Aruban holidaymaker in police custody got out of hand. Mitch Henriquez died after being thrown to the ground and bundled, apparently unconscious, into a police van after an open air concert by UB40.

The circumstances of the arrest are now the subject of a formal investigation.

Justice minister Ard van der Steur said on Tuesday videos of the arrest showing Henriquez on the ground are ‘disturbing’.

‘It would appear from the video that someone is in trouble and not sufficient attention is being paid to him,’ the minister told RTL news. ‘An investigation is needed to establish if this is the case.’

The public prosecution department initially claimed Henriquez became unwell in the back of the police vehicle but retracted that statement when the videos were placed online.

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