Dutch farmers ignite highway fires, sabotage railways ahead of state opening of parliament

ProRail said pipes had been found attached to railways in over 20 locations, mainly in rural areas in the middle and the east of the country.

Train services were disrupted by deliberate acts of sabotage across the Netherlands on Tuesday, hours before the ceremonial state opening of parliament, the rail infrastructure operator ProRail said.

ProRail said pipes had been found attached to railways in over 20 locations, mainly in rural areas in the middle and the east of the country.

"We discovered materials that had been deliberately placed there. We are therefore now classifying this as sabotage of the railway infrastructure," ProRail spokesperson Joke van der Cruysen said.

King Willem-Alexander was set to open a new session of parliament on Tuesday afternoon with a speech setting out the government's budget plans for 2027.

All trains in the vicinity of the track blockages were halted, while there were also serious disruptions elsewhere, including to international services to Germany.

"It is not yet known who is responsible or what the motive is," ProRail said.

The Dutch intelligence agency AIVD said it was investigating alongside police and prosecutors.

Budget plans led to recent protests

The budget plans have sparked widespread protests in recent months, including from labor unions angry about plans to cut social benefits and farmers arguing that they are being unfairly blamed for nitrogen pollution.

Farmers were due to protest in The Hague on Tuesday.  

The pipes not only disrupted rail travel but also road traffic, as several level crossings had to remain closed, ProRail said.