The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Rock concert cancelled following terror tip-off
Driver of Spanish van held after gas canisters found
Police in Rotterdam stopped a van with Spanish licence plates containing a number of gas bottles close to the venue of a concert by an American rock band that was cancelled following a threat, the mayor of the Dutch port city said.
Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said at a hastily arranged press conference that the van’s driver had been detained and was being questioned.
Mr Aboutaleb said the concert by Los Angeles band Allah-Las was called off after Dutch police received a terror warning from their Spanish counterparts.
He declined to give further details on the nature of the warning or where in Spain it came from.
Police in Spain have been investigating the deadly vehicle attacks last week that killed 15 people.
The scheduled show had not yet started when the decision to cancel it was made.
A police statement said: “Police took this information seriously enough that after discussion with organisers it was decided to cancel the event.”
Concert organiser Rotown said earlier on Twitter that the concert venue, a former grain silo, was being evacuated because of the unspecified threat and concertgoers would get their money back.
Dutch television showed officers in body armour outside the Maassilo venue and what appeared to be members of the band leaving the venue in a white van with a police escort.
In an interview with The Guardian last year, band members said they chose the word Allah, Arabic for God, because they were seeking a “holy sounding” name.
They said they did not realise it might offend Muslims.
Lead singer Miles Michaud told the newspaper the group received emails from Muslims around the world who said they were offended.
Michaud said the band usually wrote back and explained its intentions were honourable “and mainly they understand”.