Samir Azzouz (born 27 June 1986) is a Dutch national of Moroccan descent. He was incarcerated in Nieuw Vosseveld on suspicion of attempting to procure heavy firearms and planning

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

attacks. He was also suspected to be closely related to the terrorist group the

Hofstad Network The Hofstad Network was an Islamist terror group composed mostly of Dutch citizens. The terror group was composed mainly of young men between the ages of 18 and 32. The name "Hofstad" was originally the codename the Dutch secret service AIVD used ...

, but has never been prosecuted for membership of the group. Azzouz was born in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

and grew up in

Amsterdam Nieuw-West Amsterdam Nieuw-West () is a borough (Dutch: ''stadsdeel'') comprising the westernmost neighbourhoods of the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was created in 2010 after a merger of the former boroughs Osdorp, Geuzenveld-Slotermeer and Slotervaart ...

, a relatively poor immigrant neighbourhood. He was a successful student in high school and started on VWO (the highest level in the Dutch secondary school system, granting access to university), but he left school before graduating. It was during his time in high school that he began following a radical form of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. In January 2003, Azzouz was arrested in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. He and a friend were allegedly on their way to

Chechnya Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...

to fight for the

jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...

against

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. However, the 17-year-olds lacked proper passports and clothing and had to return to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. In October 2003, Azzouz and four others were arrested in the Netherlands. They were suspected of constituting a terrorist cell, but were released for lack of evidence. On 30 June 2004, Azzouz was arrested again for the armed robbery of a supermarket. During a search of Azzouz's house, police found what they believed to be evidence that Azzouz had been involved in planning several attacks on Dutch targets, such as

Schiphol Airport Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , known informally as Schiphol Airport ( nl, Luchthaven Schiphol, ), is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province ...

and the nuclear power plant in

Borssele Borssele is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Borsele, and lies about 12 km east of Vlissingen. Note that the municipality name is spelled with a single ''s'' while the name of the town is spelled ...

. Police found maps of these targets, some chemicals used in explosives, such as

fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

, and ammunition. However, at trial, the judge concluded there was insufficient evidence to convict Azzouz on the charge of planning terrorist attacks. He possessed a homemade bomb, but this proved faulty since he had used the wrong type of fertilizer. He was convicted on the charge of illegal possession of firearms and sentenced to three months in jail. After this sentence he was acquitted of the original terrorism charge. On 14 October 2005, Azzouz was arrested again on suspicion of attempting to procure heavy firearms and planning terrorist attacks against national politicians and the headquarters of the Dutch

General Intelligence and Security Service The General Intelligence and Security Service ( nl, Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst, AIVD; ) is the intelligence and security agency of the Netherlands, tasked with domestic, foreign and signals intelligence and protecting national ...

(AIVD) in

Leidschendam Leidschendam () is a town and former municipality in the province of South Holland of the Netherlands. Along with Voorburg and Stompwijk, it is part of the municipality Leidschendam-Voorburg. History The town's name has been in use for centurie ...

. On 14 September 2006, the Dutch television program ''Nova'' broadcast parts of a video-testament of Samir Azzouz. On 1 December 2006, he was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment, along with three other militant Islamists. He was held in Nieuw Vosseveld. On 2 October 2008, The Hague Court of Appeal sentenced Azzouz to nine years' imprisonment for participation in a criminal organization and punishable preparation of a terrorist crime. On 6 September 2013, Azzouz was released from jail on license, though he was not allowed to associate with certain people, go to certain towns or leave the country.

Sources

NOS news articles on Samir Azzouz (Dutch)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azzouz, Samir 21st-century Dutch criminals 1986 births Living people Criminals from Amsterdam Dutch people of Moroccan descent Dutch Islamists Hofstad Network Dutch prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of the Netherlands People imprisoned on charges of terrorism Muslims with branch missing