Sabotage suspected in Dutch train disruptions

Train services in various parts of the Netherlands have been severely disrupted, with ProRail, the company that maintains the nation's rail infrastructure, saying that sabotage was possibly at play.

National railway company NS said that train services around the central cities of Zwolle, Deventer and Amersfoort have been affected since the morning rush hour.

What do we know about the causes of the disruption?

In a statement, rail authority ProRail said that "[m]aterials deliberately placed on the tracks have been found at several locations. This is causing track-circuit failures. It appears to be a case of sabotage."

The objects caused failures across the network, affecting several level crossings, which disrupted road traffic, Pro Rail said.

ProRail workers were clearing the objects and working to restore safe conditions, it added.

Though the company itself did not say what the "materials" were, a ProRail spokesperson told the daily de Volkskrant that "pipes had been found attached to the line" in several places.

This caused the disruptions, as the railway security systems can register a train's presence on a line because of an object placed on it and thus block access for other trains.

The spokesperson told the paper that one train had even collided with one of the pipes laid on the tracks, but that no accident or injuries had occurred.

Important event in The Hague

It remains unknown whether the incident has to do with so-called Prinsjesdag, the day the Dutch government presents its annual budget to parliament, where the reigning monarch gives a speech.

On the day, thousands of people go to The Hague to watch the royal family ride through the city in horse-drawn carriages.