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During the weekend, the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands witnessed a series of riots, led by a group of teenagers. Launched through social media posts, the riots destroyed property and disturbed public order in several neighborhoods, including Kanaleneiland and Overvecht, where 40 young people were arrested.
Leidsche Rijn, a neighborhood in the west of Utrecht, was next on the list. Rioters, who were mostly of Moroccan origin, were planning to meet, Sunday, at the neighborhood, which houses the Islamic Cultural Center Leidsche Rijn (ICCLR). Thanks to the latter, the rioting plans were abandoned.
On Saturday, the members of the Islamic center received messages warning them against the plans of these young rioters. «After we received the messages we felt that we have to protect our neighborhood», Abdelkader El Yandouzi, the chairman of the center told Yabiladi.
Angry teenagers
The Moroccan, alongside other members of the center, decided to meet these young men and prevent them from committing similar riots in the neighborhood. «At around six in the afternoon, we walked to the area where the young men were planning to meet and we talked to them», El Yandouzi recalled.
«Unfortunately, most of these young men are of Moroccan origin and as a Moroccan I felt responsible for their deeds and problems», El Yandouzi regretted. After meeting with the group of young people, El Yandouzi and other people from the neighborhood managed to convince them to drop their initial plans.
«We explained to them the gravity of what they were about to do and convinced them that by doing so they would hurt themselves and destroy their future», the chairman explained.
Although the rioters refrained from bringing chaos to the Leidsche Rijn, its inhabitants are still uncertain about the reasons behind such anger. When speaking to the young men, El Yandouzi and his colleagues couldn’t figure out the main reasons behind the riots.
«When we were with them, we asked why they organized these riots and the answer was silence», he warned. «We first thought of racism or unemployment but when we insisted and tried to offer our help and assistance, these young men refused to talk and did not have a word to say», he added.
But from his point of view, the riots could be a result of the current situation, Covid-19, lockdown and the travel ban altogether. «I believe that part of this is feeling stuck and bored, during this period these Moroccan teenagers travel to Morocco and holiday there. They are not used to staying in the Netherlands at this time», he explained.
In addition to their brave initiative, members of the Islamic Cultural Center in Leidsche Rijn sent messages to 900 families in the city to inform them of the situation and tell them not to let their children participate in the riots.
