Polish IKEA bombers arrested in Portugal

Two Poles have been detained in Portugal, accused of planting bombs in IKEA stores in the Netherlands in December 2002. Dutch authorities have already filed for their extradition and news of their arrest was the hottest story on the front pages of Dutch papers yesterday. News of the Poles, whose identities remain unknown, came as a shock to the Polish embassies in Portugal and the Netherlands, which learned about them from the press. The bombs were planted in IKEA stores in Amsterdam and Rotterdam on December 4, 2002 not as terrorist attacks but apparently as an attempt at extortion. According to Portuguese police the two are also accused of crimes in other EU countries. Rumors are also spreading that they may be part of a much larger group. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A6) P.W.