THE HAGUE, Netherlands: Dutch prosecutors said Monday that the shooting last week targeting the Saudi Arabian embassy building in The Hague was carried out with a “terrorist" motive. A 40-year-old suspect arrested on the day the embassy was sprayed with gunfire appeared Monday before an investigating magistrate. He was ordered held for a further 14 days as investigations continue. Nobody was injured in the early morning shooting last Thursday that left the white façade and several windows of the embassy riddled with bullet holes. Prosecutors said in a statement that the man, whose identity was not released, is suspected of crimes “with a terrorist motive” including attempted murder or manslaughter of an embassy guard and “violence toward the building of an internationally protected person.” The terrorist motive “is evident from the fact that the suspect appears to want to impose his will on the embassy,” prosecutors said in a statement. It added that the suspect had previously been fined for defacing the building. The embassy last week condemned the attack and urged its citizens in the Netherlands to exercise caution. The Dutch foreign ministry said in a statement that it was taking the shooting “extremely seriously” and was in close contact with Saudi authorities. In a statement last week, Saudi Arabia thanked Dutch authorities for their quick response in attending the scene. The Kingdom also said it looked forward to seeing those responsible for the attack being brought to justice. The incident came a day after a bomb blast struck a World War I commemoration attended by French and other diplomats in the Saudi city of Jeddah, wounding at least two people. *(With AP)
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