Protests against asylum centres and refugee shelters took place in several Dutch towns on Thursday evening, with violence breaking out in the Gelderland town of Doetinchem.

Police there arrested seven people after officers were pelted with fireworks outside the town hall, where councillors were discussing plans for a new asylum centre.

Deputy police chief Wilbert Paulissen told current affairs programme Nieuwsuur that riot police had been placed on standby at six different locations nationwide. “Whether we had to intervene everywhere as in Doetinchem, I cannot say,” he said.

At the protest in Doetinchem, people waved Dutch flags and carried signs with slogans including “Azc weg ermee” (“Get rid of the asylum centre”). Some also shouted “Sieg Heil”.

In Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel, several hundred people demonstrated against plans to house 300 refugees with residency permits and asylum seekers on farmland outside the town.

The local council held a meeting with nearby residents, who were searched before being allowed in. Dozens of police and riot officers were present but did not need to intervene, RTL Nieuws reported.

In Heemskerk, regional broadcaster NH Nieuws reported that at least 300 people gathered to demonstrate outside the town hall during a council meeting, although asylum policy was not on the agenda.

In Noordwijk, where there were angry protests earlier in the week, one person was arrested on Thursday but the protest remained relatively calm. Demonstrations also took place in Haarlem.

The protests come as local councils face mounting pressure from the government to create more housing for asylum seekers, amid a continuing shortage of accommodation nationwide.

Dutch local authorities have urged the caretaker government to act swiftly to address problems around accommodation for asylum seekers, warning that local councils are being left to cope “on their own.”