URK, The Netherlands (AP) – Rebellious youths protesting on the first night of a Dutch curfew have set fire to a coronavirus test facility and set off fireworks in a Dutch fishing village.
Police said on Sunday that they had fined more than 3,600 people nationwide for violating the curfew that took place from 9pm to Sunday at 4:30 a.m. and arrested 25 people for violating the curfew or for violence.
The video of the town of Urk, 80 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam, shows young people breaking into the coronavirus test facility near the town’s harbor before it was set on fire on Saturday night.
Police and the municipality issued a statement on Sunday expressing their anger over riots, “from throwing fireworks and stones to the destruction of police cars and with the lighting of the test site as a deep point.”
“This is not only unacceptable but also a slap in the face, especially for the local health care staff who are doing everything in the testing center to help people from Urk,” the local authorities said, adding that the curfew rule will be strict. enforced for the rest of the week.
On Sunday, the portable building used for administering coronavirus tests had only a burnt-out shell.
Police in Amsterdam also went on strike on Sunday in protest of a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. The city’s municipality has designated the square a ‘risk area’, a move that gives police extra powers to refurbish people.
___
Associated Press author Mike Corder contributed from Otterlo, the Netherlands.
___
Follow all AP pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus- vaccination and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak