Unidentified drones have been spotted multiple times over the past week over the strategic port of Emshaven and several other locations in the Dutch province of Groningen. Local police have launched an official investigation into the cases, NL Times reports, Fokus reports.
According to information from port officials, the first drones were spotted on October 3. Since then, such flights have been systematically recorded at night and in the early hours of the day. Flights over or near critical facilities in the area require a special permit, which has not been issued for these cases.
According to the NL Times, reports of unidentified drones have come not only from the Emshaven area, but also from other settlements in the eastern part of the province of Groningen. These include Meden, Schemda and Zeedbroek.
Police officers are checking all reports to establish the circumstances surrounding the flights and the possible origin of the drones.
Meanwhile, Western intelligence services have expressed suspicions that Russia may be using drones to collect information about critical infrastructure in Europe. However, there is currently no concrete evidence to confirm such a connection with the cases registered in the Netherlands.
Incidents with unknown drones around strategic sites in the country are increasing. In July, drones were spotted near the Borsele nuclear power plant. In January, similar aircraft were spotted over the country's largest gas distribution facility, located near Oomen. In November last year, cases were recorded in the area of the port of Terneuzen.