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ralf103
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Honestly, I strongly suspect Max (and maybe one or two of her daughters) quite enjoying taking part in what is appears these days to be basically a fashion shoot. Crikey I remember even back in the early 2000s the media doing similar photoshoots on Charles and his son's skiing holidays and even they were allowed to ask questions. If the media can't ask questions what is the point IMO. Better to just release a chosen photo without all the hoopla.
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Principessa
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Honestly, I strongly suspect Max (and maybe one or two of her daughters) quite enjoying taking part in what is appears these days to be basically a fashion shoot. Crikey I remember even back in the early 2000s the media doing similar photoshoots on Charles and his son's skiing holidays and even they were allowed to ask questions. If the media can't ask questions what is the point IMO. Better to just release a chosen photo without all the hoopla.
As to my knowledge to some of the official shoots there were questions allowed. But there has been critism about the way the DRF and co control the shoots and media moments. In particular how some are treated when they (on purpose or by accident) go a stray from the set code. |
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Principessa
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Last week a severe explosion took place in Den Haag (The Hague). Several houses destroyed, dead and injured people (some, I believe, still missing), in other words horror. This morning WA and Max visited the location. https://nos.nl/liveblog/2...-binnen-voor-slachtoffersNOS Nieuws
zaterdag, 08:19
Aangepast vandaag, 09:22
Koning bezoekt plek van explosie Den Haag • 3,5 ton binnen voor slachtoffers
Op de Tarwekamp in Den Haag is zaterdagochtend rond 06.15 uur een grote explosie geweest. Hierdoor is een flat deels ingestort.
Dit weten we tot nu toe:
De politie is op zoek naar getuigen die een auto op hoge snelheid hebben weg zien rijden in de buurt van de Tarwekamp.
Zeker zes mensen zijn om het leven gekomen, enkele gewonden liggen in het ziekenhuis.
De zoektocht gaat nog steeds door, omdat de veiligheidsregio niet weet of er nog mensen onder het puin liggen.
Premier Schoof, burgemeester Van Zanen en minister van Justitie en Veiligheid Van Weel zijn op de rampplek geweest.
Er is al meer dan 300.000 euro opgehaald voor de slachtoffers door een lokale vrijwilligersorganisatie.= NOS News
Saturday, 08:19
Adjusted today, 09:22
King visits site of explosion in The Hague • 3.5 tons collected for victims
A large explosion occurred on the Tarwekamp in The Hague on Saturday morning around 06:15. This caused a flat to partially collapse.
This is what we know so far:
The police are looking for witnesses who saw a car driving away at high speed near the Tarwekamp.
At least six people have died, several injured are in hospital.
The search is still ongoing, because the safety region does not know whether there are still people under the rubble.
Prime Minister Schoof, Mayor Van Zanen and Minister of Justice and Security Van Weel have visited the disaster site.
More than 300,000 euros have already been raised for the victims by a local volunteer organization.Koning op bezoek
NOS/Jorn Kompeer
Koning Willem-Alexander brengt op dit moment met zijn vrouw Máxima een bezoek aan de plek van de explosie. Burgemeester Van Zanen van Den Haag begeleidt hen daarbij. Ze krijgen onder meer uitleg van de brandweer over het verloop van de bergingswerkzaamheden.
Het koningspaar kijkt eerst bij de ravage zelf en bezoekt daarna het buurtcentrum, waar ze spreken met slachtoffers, nabestaanden en hulpverleners.
Gisteren bracht premier Schoof al een bezoek aan de rampplek. Hij zei niet op de eerste dag langs te hebben willen komen om reddingswerkers niet voor de voeten te lopen.= King visits
NOS/Jorn Kompeer
King Willem-Alexander and his wife Máxima are currently visiting the site of the explosion. Mayor Van Zanen of The Hague is accompanying them. They will receive an explanation from the fire brigade about the progress of the recovery operations.
The royal couple will first look at the devastation itself and then visit the community centre, where they will speak with victims, relatives and emergency services.
Prime Minister Schoof already visited the disaster site yesterday. He said he did not want to come on the first day so as not to get in the way of rescue workers.
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https://www.nu.nl/binnenl...e-opsporing-aanwezig.htmlKing and Queen at the disaster location in The Hague, this morning. Royal couple visits site of explosion in The Hague
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima are visiting the Tarwekamp this morning. The couple arrived at the affected street in the Mariahoeve district of The Hague around 8:30. Together with mayor Jan van Zanen and the fire brigade, the royal couple inspected the damage.
The royal couple arrived early this morning at the Tarwekamp.
King and queen will also visit volunteer organization
After their visit to the site of the explosion, the king and queen will go to the community center of the Lichtpuntjes van Mariahoeve foundation. There they will speak with victims, relatives and local residents who witnessed the explosion. The directly affected people will be cared for and supported in the center.
The royal couple is accompanied by mayor Van Zanen.  |
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https://nos.nl/liveblog/2...en-haag-helemaal-in-shockArticle of a live blog including a video of WA's speech at the location. Koning: 'Helemaal in shock'
Koning Willem-Alexander zegt "helemaal in shock" te zijn na zijn bezoek aan de plek van de explosie en gesprekken met gedupeerden. Hij stond na het bezoek aan de wijk Mariahoeve zichtbaar aangedaan de pers te woord.
"Het gaat alle verbeelding te boven. Je volgt van minuut tot minuut wat er gebeurt, maar als je de plek ziet, de impact van de explosie op die gebouwen, al die mensen daar... Ik sta te trillen op mijn benen als ik eraan terugdenk."
De verhalen die hij had gehoord noemde Willem-Alexander hartverscheurend. Tegelijkertijd roemde hij de weerbaarheid van de wijkbewoners, zoals de medewerkers van het wijkcentrum, die "een paar minuten na de explosie klaar waren om de mensen op te vangen hier".= King: 'Completely in shock'
King Willem-Alexander says he is "completely in shock" after his visit to the site of the explosion and talks with victims. After his visit to the Mariahoeve district, he was visibly moved when he spoke to the press.
"It is beyond imagination. You follow what is happening minute by minute, but when you see the site, the impact of the explosion on those buildings, all those people there... I am shaking on my legs when I think back."
Willem-Alexander called the stories he had heard heartbreaking. At the same time, he praised the resilience of the residents, such as the employees of the community center, who "were ready to receive the people here a few minutes after the explosion". |
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https://www.nu.nl/binnenl...k-explosie-tarwekamp.htmlKing 'shaking on his legs' after visiting the site of the Tarwekamp explosion
By our news editors
Dec 9, 2024 at 09:54
Update: 2 min. ago
King Willem-Alexander is "in shock" due to the consequences of the explosion at the Tarwekamp in The Hague on Saturday morning. "I'm shaking on my legs," he said after his visit to the Mariahoeve district.
Follow the latest developments in our live blog.
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima visited the location of the explosion on Monday morning and later the Mariahoeve Lichtpuntjes family center in the nearby shopping center. There they spoke with, among others, emergency services and victims.
"The humanity after such a disaster gives an incredible amount of energy," the king said after the talks. He praised not only the efforts of emergency services, but also those of the local residents. According to the king, the consequences of the explosion were "beyond all imagination".
On Saturday around 6:15 a.m., a large explosion took place in a three-storey apartment building on Tarwekamp. Five homes were swept away. That is one of the reasons why the emergency services quickly feared many victims.
Four of the six fatalities have been identified
At least six people died in the explosion. Five others were injured. On Saturday evening, five fatalities were pulled from the rubble. And on the night of Sunday to Monday, the sixth body was found in the basement under the apartment building.
The identity of four of the six fatalities has now been established. They are two men aged 31 and 45, a 41-year-old woman and a girl aged seventeen.
According to the police, nothing is yet known about the cause of the explosion. However, there are indications that it was a crime. These indications are not yet being shared. "We will do that as soon as possible," said the Public Prosecution Service (OM) at a press conference on Sunday evening.
Earlier, the police announced that they were looking for the driver of a car that drove away "at very high speed" after the explosion. "We would very much like to speak to the driver of the car. Any information is more than welcome," said police chief Karin Krukkert on Sunday evening. |
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Florine
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It’s great that the king and queen turned up and showed some support to the emergency services and victims. This horrific explosion happened only five minutes away from Huis ten Bosch palace, so in that sense they are part of the local community.
By the way, it looks like they flew in from Spain very early this morning because they were in Malaga last weekend to celebrate Amalia’s 21st birthday.
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PeDe
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Amalia's is one of the most life-like depictions in Tussaud's collection I've seen. Great job! |
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periwinkle
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Agree that statue of Amalia looks like a portrait picture. Amazing.
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Principessa
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It’s great that the king and queen turned up and showed some support to the emergency services and victims. This horrific explosion happened only five minutes away from Huis ten Bosch palace, so in that sense they are part of the local community.
By the way, it looks like they flew in from Spain very early this morning because they were in Malaga last weekend to celebrate Amalia’s 21st birthday.
Thank you for the addition. I wasn't aware of that. |
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https://nos.nl/artikel/25...t-misbruikt-jullie-bezoekLoosely translated as: NOS News
yesterday, 16:13
Kenyans protest against the arrival of the Royal Family: 'President is abusing your visit'
Elles van Gelder
Africa correspondent
Saskia Houttuin
Africa correspondent
There has been unrest online among Kenyans about the state visit of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima, which was announced last week. The royal couple will visit the East African country between 18 and 20 March, at the invitation of President William Ruto. But the Kenyan president has been under fire for a long time because of human rights violations in the country.
With hashtags such as #CancelTheVisit and #HumanRightsFirst, Kenyans are asking the royal couple on social media to cancel the state visit. They are also calling on people to send protest emails to the Government Information Service and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These calls have already been shared and liked thousands of times.
When asked, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed, also on behalf of the Government Information Service (RVD), that they had received at least three hundred emails about the royal visit to Kenya, but that they do not yet have the full picture and are still investigating this. According to activists, who use an online form, among other things, there would be thousands of emails.
Protesters shot dead
In August 2022, Ruto won the presidential elections, thanks to promises to pull the faltering economy out of the doldrums. He received support from millions of Kenyans who work in the informal economy in the country. But hope turned to disappointment and eventually, last June, to mass protests against government plans to increase taxes on basic services, such as food and fuel.
These demonstrations got completely out of hand; the police shot the mostly young demonstrators with live ammunition. At least 60 Kenyans are said to have died. Recent research by the Reuters news agency also shows that the police have repeatedly tried to cover up the violent cause of death.
The street protests were brutally suppressed, but Kenyans continue to demand the president's resignation en masse through online actions and petitions. Human rights organizations say this activism is extremely dangerous: since June last year, at least 82 people have reportedly been taken away by armed men against their will. A number were found dead, and dozens are still missing.
Last month, there was another wave of kidnappings. The authorities deny any involvement, but the victims include Kenyans who have been critical of the government.
State visit inappropriate
It is in this context that many Kenyans find the state visit inappropriate. "It now seems as if the royal family approves of all this," says Nelson Amenya, an economist and prominent critic of the Ruto government, who speaks out against the visit on his X profile, with more than 180,000 followers, and receives much support.
"We take this very seriously," he says in a Zoom call from the United Kingdom. "This is about people's lives (...) it seems like they are supporting a murderous regime, a regime that is known to murder its own youth."
According to Amenya, the royal visit feels extra bitter because of the International Criminal Court, which is located in The Hague. In 2012, when he was still vice-president, Ruto was charged by the criminal court for his role in mass election violence in 2007-2008. Due to a lack of evidence, the case was dropped in 2016.
In a written response, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also on behalf of the Government Information Service, stated that it is aware of the human rights violations in Kenya, "against which the Netherlands speaks out both publicly and in contacts with Kenyan authorities" and that it sees the visit as an opportunity to "discuss difficult topics such as human rights violations".
More than flowers and tourism
"The royal couple is making a big mistake if they come here while there are still so many unanswered questions," says Francis Gaitho, a football commentator who was arrested several times for his criticism of Ruto and was briefly taken away by armed men in civilian clothes in October. He has been living in hiding since the beginning of this year; he is wanted by the police.
"We all understand that the Netherlands and Kenya have an important bond," says Gaitho. "Certainly when it comes to things like flowers and tourism. But the king and queen cannot pretend that they live in a bubble, that they do not get the news. Life may be easy for them, as royals, but for us life as long as Ruto is in power is a nightmare."
Kenyans in the Netherlands
Kenyans in the Netherlands also want the state visit to be cancelled. Like Jaya Khamala, who has been living in the Netherlands for seven years and works as an administrative employee in education. "I have already sent several e-mails to the Government Information Service in the hope that they will listen to me."
Khamala is upset that the announcement of the visit states that the royal couple is visiting Kenya because the country is 'playing an increasingly influential role on the world stage'. "The president of Kenya wants them to come to show that he has foreign friends and to polish his image", she says. "The Dutch royal family should not participate in that if they care about human rights."
Khamala is in a WhatsApp group with about a hundred other Kenyans who live in the Netherlands. "We will at least try to make ourselves heard as much as possible and also want to offer a petition."
The announcement on X of the state visit, by the Dutch embassy in Kenya, has also received hundreds of responses. For example, Kenyans posted photos of dead demonstrators on the street and wrote "we are not ready for a visit, wait until we have repaired Kenya and then you will receive an invitation". |
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