Rotterdam synagogue bomb case turns on what the suspects knew

Judges in the Rotterdam synagogue bomb case went to the synagogue at the A.B.N. Davidsplein on Tuesday evening to see the entrance in the dark, as it was on the night of the attack. The lamp at the entrance was taped over, because it was broken when the explosive went off on 13 March 2026.

The Public Prosecution Service (Openbaar Ministerie) is treating the case as an attack with terrorist intent. According to the prosecution, the suspects knew that Jewish institutions were the target. Whether they knew that is the central question for the court, which is why the judges went to look at the site themselves. Four of the suspects, all from Tilburg, say they did not know where or why the bombs were to go off.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers joined the judges at the inspection (schouw), held late in the evening.

One lawyer said his client asked: "What is a synagogue?" He said that when the man was told it was a Jewish place of worship, he asked why, since a church does nothing wrong. "The client had no idea what he had got into," the lawyer said. Six men have been arrested in the case. The court's findings from the inspection will be announced later.