Three Injured in Dutch Shopping Center Attack

November 29, 2019 Three people were injured on Friday in a stabbing attack in a busy shopping district in The Hague.

Dutch police confirmed the attack took place in Grote Marktstraat, or main market square located in the city’s main shopping district. The area was packed with shoppers searching for Black Friday bargains.

Police are asking witnesses with images or video of the knife attack to please come forward.

Friday’s stabbing attack occurred just hours after a terror-related knife attack near the London bridge that left two people dead and several others injured. London Police shot and killed the suspect.

The Associated Press reports the victims, all in their teens, were released from the hospital late Friday. It was unclear whether they might have been hurt when the crowds of holiday shoppers panicked. The knife attack happened about 7:45 p.m., when a man attacked several people on the street.

Dutch Police spokeswoman, Marije Kuiper said it is not clear if the stabbing was terrorism-related.

SHOPPING CENTERS ARE TARGETS

Worldwide, shopping malls have long been a favorite target of terrorists. In recent years, attacks on shopping centers in Europe, Asia, Africa and the United States have injured hundreds of innocent people.

In December, 2018, an attack on France’s  Strasbourg Christmas Market that killed five people and injured a dozen others demonstrated the challenges law enforcement face when tasked with protecting the public in places like shopping centers where large crowds gather.

Due to several recent large scale terrorist attacks, France was already on high alert at the time of the Strasbourg Market attack. Additional security measures, including bag checks and an unauthorized vehicle ban were in place at the Strasbourg market when the shooting attack took place.

The suspected gunman, identified as Strasbourg-born Cherif Chekatt, 29, was known to police and on a watch list as a potential security risk.

 

See also: CHRISTMAS MARKET SHOOTING IN FRANCE WAS ACT OF TERRORISM