Turkey's Foreign Ministry has condemned a Utrecht tram shooting that killed at least three people, Monday, after Dutch authorities seized a Turkish-born suspect in the attack.
In a written statement Monday, the ministry said it "strongly" condemned the attack, "regardless of the identity of the perpetrator and the motivation behind it." The Turkish ministry said it stood with the Dutch people and the government.
A gunman killed three people and wounded five during a mid-morning tram ride in the Dutch city of Utrecht, Monday.
As night set in, three victims lay in critical condition, and the motive for the bloodshed remained under investigation. Prime Minister Mark Rutte said authorities were trying to determine whether the attack had "terror motives."
Justice Minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus said the suspect, identified as Gokmen Tanis, 37, was known to authorities and had a criminal record, but would not elaborate. Police said they also detained another man on suspicion of involvement but released no details.
The Utrecht attack took place at a busy intersection in a residential neighborhood. The gunman was alleged to have had an automatic weapon, Grapperhaus said.
In the aftermath of the shooting, Dutch authorities put the Netherlands' fourth-largest city on lockdown, raised the threat level in the area to the maximum of 5 and tightened security at airports and key buildings in the country. Upon Tanis' arrest, the threat level soon returned to 4.
"If it is a terror attack," the prime minister declared, "then we have only one answer: Our nation, democracy, must be stronger than fanaticism and violence."
Police said a red Renault compact car was carjacked shortly before the shooting and later found across town.
Local media said Tanis had been charged several times over the past years with offenses ranging from attempted manslaughter to petty crime in and around Utrecht. Two weeks ago he was in court on charges of raping a woman in 2017, news reports said.
The identities of the shooting victims were not immediately released, and Grapperhaus would not say if any were known to the gunman.
Diplomatic relations were shattered in 2017 after the Netherlands blocked Turkish government officials from holding campaign rallies for a referendum back home that expanded presidential powers. Turkey's president, in campaign speeches, compared Dutch and German politicians to Nazis and fascists.
The two countries re-appointed ambassadors in September 2018 to "normalize relations."
The ministry said earlier that Turkish and Dutch officials would meet Tuesday to discuss "bilateral relations" and cooperation.
Mehmet Tanis, the father of the suspect in the Utrecht tram shooting, who lives in Turkey, said his son should be punished if he's to blame. He told the Demiroren news agency that he hadn't spoken to his son in 11 years.
Separately, Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said the suspect's relatives believe he shot at someone close to the family due to "family issues."
