A police officer of Iranian origin was seriously injured in a shooting in Schoonhoven early on Thursday and was taken to hospital with serious injuries, police chief Janny Knol has confirmed.
The 36-year-old man was shot shortly before 7 am. Several sources told the Telegraaf the victim works as an IT specialist at the police service centre. Knol confirmed he is a police employee but gave no further details about his job.
The circumstances surrounding the shooting are still unclear. “This is a huge blow, first of all for his family and loved ones, but also for his colleagues and for the police organisation as a whole,” Knol said. A major investigation team has been set up.
The man is reported to have fled Iran about six years ago with his family because of his opposition to the Islamic regime. The police have not confirmed that information.
Justice minister David van Weel said he had been informed about the shooting and that authorities are taking the victim’s background into account.
“The public prosecution service is considering all scenarios. Given the Iranian background of the victim, the counter-terrorism unit NCTV, police and local authorities are alert and taking the necessary security measures,” the minister said.
A year ago the Dutch security service AIVD warned that Iranian nationals in the Netherlands are particularly at risk of persecution by the authorities from their home country.
In 2024 there was a failed attack on Iranian activist Siamak Tadayon Tahmasbi in Haarlem and murders of Iranian activists in 2015 and 2017 are thought to have been ordered by the regime.
Earlier this week Van Weel suggested there could be an Iranian link to the minor explosions outside a synagogue in Rotterdam and a Jewish school in Amsterdam.
