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WORLD NEWS Friday 24 February 2017

Dutch lawmaker suspends campaigning due to security scandal

RAF CASERT tion and in anonymous safe cians and diplomats. though he is likely to be continue campaigning.
Associated houses following death The Netherlands holds its kept out of any coalition “All politicians, Geert
BRUSSELS (AP) — Anti-Islam threats. parliamentary election on government. Wilders and others, can
Dutch lawmaker Geert safely get on the streets. We
Wilders on Thursday sus- guarantee that,” Dutch Se-
pended open campaign- curity and Justice Minister
ing for next month’s par- Stef Blok told NOS network.
liamentary election in the The minister had discussed
wake of a scandal cen- the issue with Wilders.
tering on a security official The extent of the breach
who is part of a the team and its impact on the tight
giving him round-the-clock security cordon that con-
protection. stantly surrounds Wilders
Wilders was reacting to a was not immediately clear.
newspaper story claiming Wilders was convicted last
the security official, already year for anti-Moroccan
detained on suspicion of comments and while cam-
leaking classified informa- paigning just last week-
tion, was also suspected of end referred to “Moroc-
infractions earlier in his ca- can scum” who commit
reer. crimes in the Netherlands.
Wilders said in a tweet that His manifesto includes clos-
“the news is incredibly wor- ing Dutch borders to all mi-
risome” and added that grants from Muslim nations,
until the situation has been banning the Quran and
cleared up his populist shutting all mosques in the
Party for Freedom was sus- Firebrand lawmaker Geert Wilders, right, is protected by police and security officers during an Netherlands.
pending “public activities.” election campaign stop in Spijkenisse, near Rotterdam, Netherlands. Wilders said Thursday Feb. The last time the Nether-
He had been expected to 23, 2017, that he will suspend his election campaigning in the wake of a scandal centering on a lands was the scene of a
Dutch security official responsible for protecting the anti-Islam lawmaker.
campaign again over the (AP Photo/Peter Dejong) political murder was in 2002,
weekend. when populist politician
Wilders has lived for more The detained officer is part March 15 and Wilders’ Par- Despite Wilders’ security Pim Fortuyn was gunned
than a decade under of a team responsible for ty of Freedom could well concern, the government down in a parking lot by an
around-the-clock protec- security around top politi- come out on top, even said it was safe for him to animal rights activist.q

Husband of Spain’s princess avoids jail while awaits appeal

ARITZ PARRA by the higher court. A panel of judges in Palma emerged in 2012. drove away, leaving be-
Associated Press The provincial court ab- de Mallorca maintained The judges ordered Torres hind dozens of reporters
MADRID (AP) — The broth- solved Cristina but ordered provisional freedom for to surrender his passport and some protesters shout-
er-in-law of Spain’s King Fe- her to pay a fine for ben- both after a two-hour de- and required for him to ing “thief.”
lipe will avoid imprisonment efiting from her husband’s bate following Thursday’s appear before a Spanish In the verdict that ended
but must show up in court deals. hearing. court on the first day of ev- a year-long case that cap-
in Switzerland, where he The decision is final in her For Urdangarin, the court ery month. His original sen- tivated Spain, the judges
lives, once per month while case because all the par- required that it must be in- tence of 8 1/2 years in jail on ruled that Torres and Ur-
he waits for the Supreme ties have rejected appeal- formed of residency moves various corruption charges dangarin broke the laws
Court to rule on an appeal ing the ruling. or any travel plans outside will also be reviewed by the when they used the latter’s
to a fraud and tax evasion The prosecutor had re- of the European Union and Supreme Court in the com- status to obtain public con-
guilty verdict, a court ruled quested precautionary imposed regular monthly ing months. tracts in the Balearic Islands
Thursday. imprisonment for both Ur- appearances before a Carrying only a back- related to sports events.
The provincial court of the dangarin and his former court in Geneva, where pack, Urdangarin walked The wide-ranging tax fraud
Balearic Islands sentenced business partner, Diego Tor- the former Duke and Duch- out of the court in Palma case brought a member
Inaki Urdangarin on Feb. res, avoidable with bails of ess of Palma moved with alone, without his lawyer. of the royal family before
17 to six years and three 200,000 and 100,000 euros their four children from The 49-year-old former the judges for the first time
months in prison, but the respectively ($211,000 and Barcelona when the first handball Olympic medal- since the monarchy was re-
decision must be reviewed $105,000). allegations of wrongdoing ist jumped into a car and stored in 1975.q