The Day Taghi Found Lawyers

The day's dominant story was Ridouan Taghi finally finding two lawyers willing to defend him in the Marengo appeal, provided they have time to review the 90,000-page dossier. This development, covered by NRC, Het Parool, and RTL Nieuws from late morning onward, resolved a weeks-long crisis that had stalled the trial. Earlier, the Raad van State ruled against a proposed law to ban political parties without members, calling it too restrictive on voting rights. In the afternoon, the Belastingdienst uncovered a large-scale fraud possibly linked to a Bulgarian gang, with €6.7 million deposited into suspicious accounts. The MV Hondius arrived in Rotterdam for cleaning and quarantine, drawing international media attention. Long queues at Schiphol due to security changes persisted, with RTL Nieuws reporting passengers missing flights. In the evening, the cabinet announced a 'flying team' to assist municipalities with asylum reception, following unrest. A shooting at a mosque in San Diego left five dead, including two perpetrators.