Police Cars Torched During Rioting Between Rival Groups of Eritreans in the Netherlands

3:39 PM EST, February 17, 2024

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Rioting broke out between two rival groups of Eritreans in the Netherlands on Saturday night, police said. Officers used tear gas in an attempt to quell the unrest in The Hague as rioters torched police cars and a bus.

Images from the scene showed vehicles in flames and dozens of men in the street, some throwing rocks.

“It got seriously out of hand,” The Hague Municipality spokesman Robin Middel said.

Middel said a group loyal to Eritrea’s government was holding a meeting when the venue was attacked by Eritreans who oppose the African nation’s government.

Police spokeswoman Kristianne van Blanken said she could not immediately say if anybody was injured or if any rioters were arrested.

The fighting is the latest outbreak of violence at Eritrean events in Europe.

Dozens of people, including at least 26 police officers, were injured during unrest surrounding an Eritrean cultural festival in the southwestern German city of Stuttgart in September 2023. A fight the same month between Eritrean government supporters and opponents in Tel Aviv led to violent street confrontations among African asylum-seekers and migrants.

Months earlier, a clash at an Eritrean festival in the western German city of Giessen left 22 police officers injured.

Tens of thousands of people have fled Eritrea for Europe, many alleging they were mistreated by the repressive government of President Isaias Afwerki. The conflicts underscore deep divisions among members of the Eritrean diaspora between those who remain close to the government and those who have fled to live in exile and strongly oppose Isaias.