Amsterdam ballot boxes attacked: Latest news update
Violence Erupts at Polling Stations in Amsterdam
In the closing hours of the polls at the Rai Convention Center in Amsterdam, an argument between observers turned violent after groups sympathetic to the terrorist organization PKK became involved. The PKK sympathizers, who had gathered in the area shortly before the ballot boxes were closed, physically attacked ballot box officials.
Security guards at the center had difficulty maintaining order, and many police officers were called to intervene. Amsterdam police declared a state of emergency after the attack. Police helicopters and ambulances were dispatched to the RAI Fair and Congress Center, where voting had taken place.
Following the attack, the aggressor group chanted slogans in support of the PKK and its leader.
Officials of the Turkish Consulate General in Amsterdam took the ballot boxes to a safe place, and the ballot papers used in the Netherlands will be sent to Turkey before 14 May. Approximately 260 thousand citizens of Turkey have the right to vote in the Netherlands.
This attack highlights the dangers of political violence and the need for security measures to protect the democratic process.
