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A Small European Country Has a Big Explosions Problem
(www.nytimes.com)
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this post was submitted on 10 Aug 2025
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That part made me curious to know more. Any gang violence is scary, and bystanders get hurt here as well, but I guess I'm used to firearms instead of explosives
That last bit was weird too. Using the equivalent of a grenade for family disputes, relationship quarrels, business rivalries and petty conflicts?
I'm Dutch, but I don't live in a place that is particularly affected by these explosions, nor am I an expert on the matter.. but I'll drop my two cents, based on my reading of the situation
These explosions are happening in cities like Rotterdam and the Hague. They are places that traditionally have gang/mafia activity.
From my understanding a lot of the explosions are related to underworld dealings. It's possible that there is some petty conflicts as well, but the individuals are almost always connected to the underworld somehow.
It's also worth noting that in the NL (as I imagine it happens in other places?) crime tends to come in waves.
Criminals figure out a new effective method to commit crime. The police and institutions scramble at first in order to deal with it. Then eventually they figure out an effective method in order the combat the issue. After which criminals lose interest and either the problem moves to a different location, or they change tactics.
Edit: The article also mentions that "the use and possession of fireworks generally are also laxer in the Netherlands."
This is simply not true. The kinds of fireworks that are legal in the NL are much more restricted than they are in Belgium and Germany, and you can only legally purchase and use it leading up to New Year's Eve.
The dangerous stuff is illegally imported from Belgium and Germany.