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Dutch parade attacker dies as nation in shock
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By Catherine Hornby
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A Dutchman who rammed his car into spectators at a royal parade killing five people died of his injuries on Friday, leaving a stunned country wondering what had made him try to attack the royal family.
People laid flowers at the monument in the city of Apeldoorn which the man's car hit after plowing through crowds watching the parade and missing a bus carrying Queen Beatrix and her family by four or five meters.
On a day people normally spend recovering from the Queen's Day national holiday, flags flew at half mast and people in the city signed a book of condolences and asked if the holiday could ever be a celebration again.
"Sunny orange is colored deep black," read one newspaper headline, referring to the Dutch national and royal color which people wear on the day, while another asked "is this the end of a tradition?" next to a photo of victims hurtled to the ground.
The nation's public prosecutor said the 38-year-old driver of the car died at about 0100 GMT on Friday. He had been charged with an attempted attack on the royal family and had told police his actions were deliberately directed toward them.
His motive was unclear. No weapons or explosives were found when police searched his house, and there were no signs that others were involved in planning the attack.
The prosecutor said he came from Huissen, a small town about 40 km (25 miles) south of Apeldoorn.
Newspapers cited his neighbors as saying he was a quiet, withdrawn man who lived alone. He had lost his job at a security firm and was due to move house, the AD paper reported. The Trouw daily described the incident as a possible act of despair.
Other media interpreted the action as an attack on unity in a nation traditionally made up of several pillars or groupings including Protestants, Catholics and Social-Democrats.
"Queen's day is the one outstanding day on which a deeply divided Netherlands celebrates the fact that it also knows unity," said Rijk Timmer in Dutch daily Het Financieele Dagblad. "An attack on this day hits the foundations of our society."
Queen Beatrix was accompanied by Princess Maxima, wife of heir Willem-Alexander, and her other children in the open-top bus which was heading to a palace in Apeldoorn, about 90 km (56 miles) east of Amsterdam, as part of the annual festivities.
The Dutch royal family usually visits a community on Queen's day, a major annual holiday when citizens dressed in orange and waving Dutch flags take to the city's streets and canals.
Queen's Day, the celebration of the monarch's birthday, is the birth date of Beatrix's mother. Beatrix was born in January.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Catherine Hornby
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A Dutchman who rammed his car into spectators at a royal parade killing five people died of his injuries on Friday, leaving a stunned country wondering what had made him try to attack the royal family.
People laid flowers at the monument in the city of Apeldoorn which the man's car hit after plowing through crowds watching the parade and missing a bus carrying Queen Beatrix and her family by four or five meters.
On a day people normally spend recovering from the Queen's Day national holiday, flags flew at half mast and people in the city signed a book of condolences and asked if the holiday could ever be a celebration again.
"Sunny orange is colored deep black," read one newspaper headline, referring to the Dutch national and royal color which people wear on the day, while another asked "is this the end of a tradition?" next to a photo of victims hurtled to the ground.
The nation's public prosecutor said the 38-year-old driver of the car died at about 0100 GMT on Friday. He had been charged with an attempted attack on the royal family and had told police his actions were deliberately directed toward them.
His motive was unclear. No weapons or explosives were found when police searched his house, and there were no signs that others were involved in planning the attack.
The prosecutor said he came from Huissen, a small town about 40 km (25 miles) south of Apeldoorn.
Newspapers cited his neighbors as saying he was a quiet, withdrawn man who lived alone. He had lost his job at a security firm and was due to move house, the AD paper reported. The Trouw daily described the incident as a possible act of despair.
Other media interpreted the action as an attack on unity in a nation traditionally made up of several pillars or groupings including Protestants, Catholics and Social-Democrats.
"Queen's day is the one outstanding day on which a deeply divided Netherlands celebrates the fact that it also knows unity," said Rijk Timmer in Dutch daily Het Financieele Dagblad. "An attack on this day hits the foundations of our society."
Queen Beatrix was accompanied by Princess Maxima, wife of heir Willem-Alexander, and her other children in the open-top bus which was heading to a palace in Apeldoorn, about 90 km (56 miles) east of Amsterdam, as part of the annual festivities.
The Dutch royal family usually visits a community on Queen's day, a major annual holiday when citizens dressed in orange and waving Dutch flags take to the city's streets and canals.
Queen's Day, the celebration of the monarch's birthday, is the birth date of Beatrix's mother. Beatrix was born in January.
