Letter bomb sent to Europol HQ

Dutch bomb squad officers defused an explosive sent by post to the headquarters of European police intelligence agency Europol today.

Astrid Rijsdorp, a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office in The Hague, said no-one was injured, and the bomb was defused by a team of experts from the Dutch military, which often works with police.

She could not give details of the type of explosive used, or whether it was linked to mail explosives sent to European Commission President Romano Prodi on Saturday and the European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet today.

“It seems likely, but we really can’t say anything for certain yet,” Rijsdorp said.

She said the explosive was defused several hours after it was discovered by Europol personnel.

Europol is a law enforcement agency that co-ordinates European police forces with each other and with other intelligence agencies outside Europe, such as the CIA in America.