UTRECHT - One person was
feared dead and several suffered gunshot wounds on Monday in a
tram in the central Dutch city of Utrecht and a hunt was
underway for the gunman in an incident authorities said appeared
to be a terrorist attack.
The head of Dutch counter-terrorism said shots had been
fired at several locations, without elaborating.
Counter-terrorism units surrounded a house in Utrecht, Dutch
television showed, but no one appeared to have been arrested.
Authorities raised the terrorism threat to its highest level
in Utrecht province, schools were told to shut their doors and
paramilitary police increased security at Dutch airports and
other vital infrastructure. Security was stepped up at mosques.
"In Utrecht there was a shooting at several locations,"
Counter-Terrorism Agency head Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg told a
news conference.
"A lot is still unclear at this point and local authorities
are working hard to establish all the facts. What we already
know is that a culprit is at large."
Aalbersberg, who said the shooting "appears to be a
terrorist attack", declined to comment on the number of injured
or on their condition and did not confirm any deaths.
Local broadcaster RTV Utrecht quoted a witness of the tram
incident as saying he had seen a woman lying on the ground amid
some kind of confrontation and several men running away from the
scene.
A reporter for Dutch broadcaster NOS said a white sheet had
been placed over a body near the tram where the shooting had
taken place.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte convened crisis talks, saying he
was deeply concerned about the incident, which came three days
after a lone gunman killed 50 people in mass shootings at two
mosques in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand.
Utrecht, the Netherlands' fourth largest city with a
population of around 340,000, is known for its picturesque
canals and large student population. Gun killings are rare in
Utrecht, as elsewhere in the Netherlands.
Police said the tram station stop in a square outside the
city centre had been cordoned off. Emergency services were at
the scene.