"The war has started"
- Posted by Rob (#1) on November 15, 2005 03:25 CET
A case of French-style arons in my home town:
The Telegraaf newspaper reported that masked youths shouting slogans in Arabic were behind the firebombing of cars in the Vreewijk and Hillesluis areas of Rotterdam South.
Locals told the conservative daily that the youths had shouted in Arabic, 'The war has started.'
Police reported no arrests and would not speculate on whether Moslem youths were behind the incident.
Ten cars were destroyed and a further 11 damaged. The Telegraaf reported that firebombs were also thrown at houses. Broken beer bottles used to make the firebombs littered the street, the paper said.
An unnamed eyewitness told the paper that around 25 youths were involved.
I know very well that these were probably just a bunch of bored youths with copy-cat behaviour and that large scale rioting is not likely here, as has been proven by the absence of incidents the past two nights. So I don't really care about that.
What I do care about: why does a bunch of bored youths yell "the war has started". As if they like the tensions that became visible after the murders of Fortuyn and van Gogh. As if they like the violence between cultures that became so visible on 9/11 and many times since, although existing long before.
What I do care about: why is it that "National public radio ignored the incidents." when such behaviour, copy-cat or not, should be exposed and terminated?
- Tags: Rotterdam, radicalism, riots
