Five people stabbed in Amsterdam, one suspect arrested

 Sylvie Claire / May 23, 2021

Dutch police were investigating a series of knife attacks in Amsterdam on Saturday that left one person dead and four injured, but said the incidents were not linked to terrorism.

A 29-year-old man was arrested after the attacks, which occurred late Friday night in an area of bars and restaurants near the capital's museum district, police said. In a statement, police said they were conducting a thorough investigation into the various incidents and their circumstances.

Police said they were initially alerted to a knife attack, but at the scene, it turned out that four other knife attacks had occurred in the immediate vicinity, killing a total of five people.

Several terrorist attacks in recent years

One of the victims died on the spot, the other four were taken to hospital, police added.

Emergency services rushed to the scene and two medical helicopters landed in a park near the famous Van Gogh and Rijksmuseum. Restaurants in the area were closed at the time of the attacks due to coronavirus restrictions.

The Netherlands has seen several terrorist attacks in recent years, including a knife attack on two American tourists at the Amsterdam train station in 2018 by an Afghan who was later jailed.

The capital has also seen a recent spate of crime, including an attack on a cash-in-transit van in Amsterdam this week, in which a suspect was killed after a dramatic chase with police.