TELEPHONIC BOMB THREAT FOR AMERICAN EXPRESS IN

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 001759 SIPDIS TERREP DEPARTMENT FOR DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/ITA, DS/IP/EUR, DS/ICI/CI, DS/IP/FPO,DS/DSS/OSAC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC PTER NL SUBJECT: TELEPHONIC BOMB THREAT FOR AMERICAN EXPRESS IN ROTTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS ON 07/09/03 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. On July 9, 2003, at approximately 1539 hours an embassy employee of the U.S. Embassy The Hague received a telephonic bomb threat from a male individual stating he was a member of the activist group called RA-RA and stated the American Express in Rotterdam was going to explode within 30 minutes. ¶2. (SBU) The conversation went as follows: Caller: Stated something in Dutch USG Employee: "I'm sorry sir, I don't speak Dutch." Caller: "You don't speak Dutch?" USG Employee: "No I'm sorry I don't." Caller: "Yes, well I belong to an activist group called RA-RA and there is going to be a, um, how do you call it (slight pause) an explosion at the American Express in Rotterdam within 30 minutes". The caller immediately hung up. ¶3. (U) The Acting RSO notified The Hague and Rotterdam Police as well as the Security Chief at American Express in the Netherlands and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The American Express Rotterdam branch was immediately notified, evacuated their employees and telephoned the fire department, which arrived shortly afterwards. The fire department did not find any explosives. ¶4. (SBU) RA-RA, the Revolutionary Anti-Racism Alliance, is an ultra leftist group first organized to protest South African apartheid and racist sentiment in the Netherlands. This group was violently opposed to restrictions on granting refugee status. Although the organization has been inactive for approximately three years in the Netherlands, they have used arson and bombs in the past. END SUMMARY BAILY