The Hague, March 13 (DPA) Seven terrorist suspects, identified as Dutch citizens of Moroccan origin, were arrested in the Netherlands on charges that they planned bombings around Amsterdam, Dutch radio reported.
The suspects, detained Thursday, were six men and a woman, aged 19 to 64. One was a relative of a suspect in the March 2004 Madrid train bombings, which killed 191 people.
Police chief Bernard Welten said investigators received a phone tip-off Wednesday from an informant in Brussels about the attack plans.
The informant named three men as being involved in the plot as well as the attack targets, which included a large furniture store and an electronics market, Welten said.
The goal was to carry out bombings in stores and kill as many people as possible, the report said.
Police searching for explosives went through businesses near Amsterdam's football stadium Thursday morning and indefinitely closed down several stores and a concert hall. It was not clear if explosives were found, the report said.
The all-out search included several homes in Amsterdam. Parallel actions were carried out in the Belgian capital, Brussels, the report said.
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