# The Hague shops board up for fear of Saturday looting

> Interior Minister Pieter Heerma warns of "worrying signals" that disorder may break out in several Dutch cities this weekend, after online calls for "Gen Z protests", and schools in Maastricht and Eindhoven have written to parents.

Society · published 2026-10-30 12:19 · updated 2026-10-30 14:01 · https://nlnow.nl/a/shops-in-the-hague-boarded-up-ahead-of-feared-saturday-riots/

Several shops in the centre of The Hague were boarded up on Friday for fear of looting on Saturday. They include Ici Paris XL and Kruidvat on the Grote Marktstraat, and the clothing shop Guess a little further along. Calls on social media for a "Gen Z protest" urge people to go to shopping areas and loot or wreck shops.

Heerma said there are "worrying signals" of disorder in several Dutch cities this weekend. "Municipalities are working on it. The local authorities in several big cities are right on top of it," he said. "Demonstrating is a right, but think, and don't let yourself be dragged into disorder. You may demonstrate, but behave."

The online messages also draw a link with France, where young people's protests have led to riots, looting and arson in several cities. Some talk about heading for designer shops.

Bas Winkler, chair of the Hofkwartier BID and board member of the BID Binnenstad in Bedrijf, said the shop owners acted on their own initiative. He said the municipality and police have told business owners they know about the signals. A police spokesperson said: "Of course we are preparing. We monitor the situation based on the information we receive, and on that basis we may take measures."

The national students' union LSVb advises students not to join. "There is no central organisation, no preparation has been done, and no one is there to keep people safe," it said. ROC Mondriaan, a vocational college in The Hague, told students that anyone who wants to demonstrate must do so "only peacefully and with respect for others".

A spokesperson for Amsterdam said the city has so far seen mostly AI-generated images on social media, and "no concrete signals yet" of large-scale spillover into public space.

Unrest is feared outside The Hague too. In Maastricht, the school group LVO sent parents at all its schools a message asking them to be alert to any plans their child has to join the protests. "We don't know whether the calls will actually lead to action or unrest," the schools said, but young people may go to look "out of curiosity or peer pressure" without realising what they could end up in.

Limburg police back the message and also ask parents to keep an eye on their children's social media use. A spokesperson said the situation is being monitored. In Eindhoven, the Huygens Lyceum has sent parents a letter about the messages going round.

## Background

- **LSVb (Landelijke Studentenvakbond)**: The Dutch National Students' Union is the national organisation that represents the interests of students in the Netherlands. It advocates on student issues such as education, student finance, and housing with national policymakers and institutions. Its statements are often cited in the Dutch press when student matters are in the news.

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