Bleach used in racist attack

2005-08-30 20:57

Amsterdam - A 25-year-old man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly throwing bleach on a black girl in an apparent racist attack in the north of the Netherlands, said police.

Peter Boomsma of police said the suspect, whose name was not released, was believed to have yelled "this will make you whiter" before throwing the bleach.

The girl, 16, was not seriously hurt.

Boomsma said the attack occurred on Monday in the city of Buitenpost, about 180km northwest of Amsterdam.

He said the man was arrested on suspicion of assault and hate speech, and the case had been turned over to public prosecutors.

Boomsma said the girl was born in Ethiopia and had been adopted by a Dutch couple. She was walking in front of a library with two friends when the attack happened.

The Dutch government this week announced that it would crackdown on white racists, Islamic radicals and extremist environmental activists.

- AP