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Suspects released

September 1, 2010

Two Yemeni travelers have been released in Amsterdam after two days in police custody. US authorities alerted Dutch police that the two men - who turned out to be strangers - might be rehearsing a terrorist attack.

https://p.dw.com/p/P26i
Schiphol International Airport
The men were arrested after being rerouted through SchipholImage: AP

Two Yemeni men detained in Amsterdam on suspicion of terrorism have been released, the Dutch prosecuting authority announced Wednesday evening.

"From investigations in the United States and in the Netherlands there has been no indication of the men's possible involvement in any criminal act," the authority said in a statement.

The men, aged 37 and 48, were arrested Monday at Amsterdam's Schiphol International Airport after a flight from Chicago.

US officials had warned Dutch police that the men were suspected of rehearsing a terrorist attack. US investigators were alerted when they discovered knives, a box cutter and several mobile phones taped together in the men's luggage.

Neither man had a criminal record or was on terrorist watch lists. No explosive materials were found in the men's luggage, nor did house searches or interrogations of the men's relatives yield investigative results.

US media speculate that the suspect items discovered in the men's luggage were intended gifts for relatives.

Author: David Levitz (AFP/dpa/Reuters)

Editor: Martin Kuebler