The secret world of elite special forces burst violently into the open in the United States at the weekend when three Dutch special forces soldiers taking part in urban warfare exercises in Indiana with American troops were shot and seriously injured – and one later died.
The three men, attached to the Netherlands’ Commando Corps, which is responsible for counter-terrorism, special reconnaissance and crisis management, were shot in what appears to have been an ambush outside their hotel in Indianapolis while they were off duty.
The commandos had been training with their US counterparts at Muscatatuk Urban Training Centre, a vast complex of more than 400 hectares run by the US defence department about 65km southeast of Indianapolis.
According to Indianapolis metropolitan police department the shooting happened as the three men were returning to the Hampton Inn hotel on Maryland Street, near the city centre, between 3am and 4am on Saturday. All three were rushed to hospital, with one critical and the other two in a serious condition.
The Dutch department of defence confirmed on Monday morning that one commando had died and that the others were “conscious and stable”. It said the deceased soldier died “surrounded by family and colleagues”. He was named later as Simmie Poetsema (26).
While the governor’s office and the mayor’s office in Indianapolis said they were not aware of the Dutch soldiers’ presence in the city, a query to US secretary of state Antony Blinken prompted a brief statement from the state department. It said it was aware of the commandos and of the shooting. Its thoughts and condolences were with the Dutch soldiers’ families. And it was in regular contact with the Dutch government in The Hague about the matter.
Detectives said that although there were “no witnesses” to the shooting there were some indications that the attack was “not a random act”. They said early indications were that the three Dutchmen may have been involved in an altercation “somewhere else downtown” before they were shot, and they were following a number of leads as to who may have been involved.
Local TV channel 8News described the circumstances surrounding the incident, particularly the fact that only the three injured commandos were found at the scene of the shooting, as “very bizarre”.
One suggestion was that there may still be other Dutch commandos taking part in the urban training programme at Muscatatuk, and that the three who were shot took time off to visit the state capital for the weekend.
The Korps Commandotroepen (KCT) was originally formed during the second World War. It is currently based at the Engelbrecht van Nassaukazerne, a barracks near Roosendaal, about 120km south of Amsterdam.
