The controversial revelation by the Volkskrant last year that Dutch soldiers in Iraq had tortured locals did not meet journalistic standards but was not an attempt to influence the outcome of the Dutch general election.

This is the conclusion of an eternal investigation commissioned by the Volkskrant. The ‘scoop’ was based on only one source and the defence department had not been given enough time to respond to the allegations, the investigation report said.
The Liberals (VVD) claimed the story, published five days before the November election, was intended to discredit the VVD defence minister at the time, Henk Kamp.