Dutch authorities said the famous journalist Peter R. de Vries, known for his work in illuminating the underworld, is fighting for his life after being shot on a street in Amsterdam.
Three suspects were arrested, including the possible perpetrator, police said, but declined to give further details.
“He was seriously injured and is fighting for his life,” Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema told a news conference. “He is a national hero for all of us. “A rare, courageous journalist who tirelessly sought justice.”
Journalist De Vries won the International Emmy Award in 2008 for his work in investigating the disappearance of American teen Natalee Holloway in Aruba in 2005.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called the attack “shocking and incomprehensible.” It was an attack on a brave journalist and also an attack on the free press that is so essential to our democracy. “We are praying that he survives,” he said.
Dutch broadcaster RTL said Peter R. de Vries had just left his studios in central Amsterdam when he was shot in the head.
Journalist De Vries, 64, is famous in the Netherlands as a frequent television commentator and expert crime reporter, with sources in both the rule of law and the underworld.
He is known in the Netherlands for his investigative work on countless occasions, especially after the 1983 kidnapping of beer mogul Freddy Heineken.
De Vries had been threatened by the underworld in the past in connection with several cases.
In 2013, Willem Holleeder, Mr. Heineken’s kidnapper, was convicted of making threats against journalist De Vries. Holleeder is currently serving a life sentence for involvement in five murders.
Tuesday’s event sparked a large-scale reaction from journalists’ protection organizations. The Committee to Protect Journalists called on the Dutch authorities “to investigate promptly and thoroughly the attack on journalist Peter R. de Vries, to determine whether he was targeted for his work and to ensure that the attacker and the organizers of the attack are brought to justice.” ”.
Tom Gibson, a spokesman for the European Union, said: “Journalists in the EU must be able to investigate crime and corruption without fear for their safety.”
Reporters Without Borders, expressing solidarity with the Dutch family and journalists, also called for the immediate arrest of the perpetrators of the attack.
The European Federation of Journalists also called for justice to be done as soon as possible, while the representative for media freedom in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Teresa Ribeiro, said she was “terrified by the news”, calling it a “terrible blow”. on media freedom ”.
