Dutch military to root out radical islamists from its ranks
The Netherlands is purging suspected Muslim radicals from the country's armed forces.
The move has created controversy. Pravda reported on May 2 that the retiring head of the country's military intelligence, Maj. Gen. Bert Dedden, said that there was enough evidence against at least one recruit to charge him with criminal acts while separating another from service.
In the ensuing media uproar Defense Ministry Roger van de Wetering said that the ministry denies Dedden's assertion.
Van de Wetering told journalists there had been sufficient evidence against "around 10" servicemen to launch investigations, but that the government took no action against them. Military investigators determined that the servicemen were believed to follow a radical fundamentalist Islamic ideology that authorities felt might bring their loyalty to the military into question. Further investigation concluded that none of the servicemen under scrutiny was found to have committed criminal or acts meriting termination from the service.
The Netherlands sent 1,400 soldiers to assist coalition peacekeeping forces in Iraq for 18 months. Their deployment ended in March 2005. The Netherlands is also contributing a new 1,400-man contingent to NATO-led International Security Assistance Forces in southern Afghanistan.
Van de Wetering assured reporters that the investigations were not linked to two incidents of weapons theft in the Dutch military in 2005, which he labeled "common criminality," or to several incidents involving the disappearance of classified military documents.
The move has created controversy. Pravda reported on May 2 that the retiring head of the country's military intelligence, Maj. Gen. Bert Dedden, said that there was enough evidence against at least one recruit to charge him with criminal acts while separating another from service.
In the ensuing media uproar Defense Ministry Roger van de Wetering said that the ministry denies Dedden's assertion.
Van de Wetering told journalists there had been sufficient evidence against "around 10" servicemen to launch investigations, but that the government took no action against them. Military investigators determined that the servicemen were believed to follow a radical fundamentalist Islamic ideology that authorities felt might bring their loyalty to the military into question. Further investigation concluded that none of the servicemen under scrutiny was found to have committed criminal or acts meriting termination from the service.
The Netherlands sent 1,400 soldiers to assist coalition peacekeeping forces in Iraq for 18 months. Their deployment ended in March 2005. The Netherlands is also contributing a new 1,400-man contingent to NATO-led International Security Assistance Forces in southern Afghanistan.
Van de Wetering assured reporters that the investigations were not linked to two incidents of weapons theft in the Dutch military in 2005, which he labeled "common criminality," or to several incidents involving the disappearance of classified military documents.
posted by Marko at 5/04/2006 08:04:00 AM
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