A former Israel Defense Forces officer has been in police custody in the Netherlands since November after being arrested with a loaded weapon at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Dutch media reported on Tuesday.
The suspect, identified only as Gabriel G. in keeping with local privacy laws, claims he was securing a delegation from Israel on behalf of an “international organization” when he was arrested with two illegal handguns, one of which was “half loaded,” according to the De Telegraaf daily.
His arrest was said to have taken place two days after the Nov. 6-7 pogrom in the capital city, in which hordes of Dutch Muslims assaulted visiting Israelis returning from a soccer match in an organized attack.
“I received alarming intelligence from Israel. There was a chance of a terror attack due to the high tensions,” the suspect claimed during an initial hearing at the District Court of Noord-Holland on Monday. “This is why I decided to take weapons. I regret it so much.”
According to the report, the weapons were discovered during a routine check after G. dropped the delegation off at Schiphol Airport.
His attorney on Monday requested that his pre-trial detention be suspended, noting that his client provides training for the Dutch government, including the local police’s Special Intervention Service.
Public records show that the suspect, who teaches Krav Maga, has also taught the U.S. Army, which in a blog post described him as “an officer in the Israeli Defense Forces, a physical therapist, a personal protection officer and a lifetime student of martial arts and self-defense tactics.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry had not responded by time of publication to a JNS query regarding whether G., who has reportedly lived in the Netherlands for “quite some time,” was receiving consular support from the embassy.
The IDF was unable to confirm whether G. was still active in the reserves. His attorney had not responded to JNS inquiries as of time of publication.
The November pogrom—the largest antisemitic attack in the European capital city since the Holocaust, in which some three dozen Israelis were hurt—has shaken Dutch Jews’ perception of safety, many have told JNS.