More than a thousand police officers reported a form of assault. This includes attempted murder (139), attempted serious assault (167), and serious assault (46). In almost half of the registrations (5352), there was a case of insult.
‘Violence against police officers is not normal and should never be,’ emphasizes Van Dijk. ‘This has a huge impact on police officers. We prioritize such cases as a clear signal that such behavior is unacceptable. Every type of violence requires its own measures. We have already taken important steps in this regard. The criminalization of doxing and the introduction of a general fireworks ban are essential measures to combat aggression and violence against police officers.’

Threat and Intimidation

Threats and intimidation can have far-reaching consequences for police staff. A total of 1263 cases of threats were recorded last year. A form of intimidation that structurally requires extra attention is doxing; the online public disclosure and sharing of personal data, addresses, or phone numbers with the aim of instilling fear, causing serious nuisance or hindrance in the daily lives of police officers.

This was recorded for the first time nationwide by the police in 2024 with a total of 23 reports. ‘The absolute numbers may not seem high, but such a number says nothing about the enormous impact it has on someones environment. Threatening and intimidating police officers in their private lives crosses the line. When this happens, we as an employer also take action. Criminalizing doxing is an important step in tackling this issue,’ said Van Dijk.

Research published last year showed that nearly a quarter of all officers and detectives have been threatened by criminals.

Fireworks Ban

The New Years Eve is a recurring annual low point with many police officers being targets of violence with fireworks. The subject has recently received a lot of attention when the House of Representatives approved the introduction of a general fireworks ban. The police are pleased with the introduction of a ban that will not take effect until the coming New Years Eve. Van Dijk: ‘As every year, we must also prepare well for the New Years Eve together with other emergency services. Even after the introduction of the fireworks ban, we will continue to do so, assuming that in the long term the ban will have a positive effect on fireworks violence.’

Violence Against People with a Public Task

In addition to violence specifically against police officers, reports are also recorded from people with a public task at other agencies, such as employees of public transport companies, schools, or in healthcare. This falls under the Safe Public Task (VPT) program. These figures show a slight decrease. From 3561 reports in 2023 to 3458 reports in 2024. ‘This remains a cause for concern,’ said Van Dijk. ‘We strive to ensure that a report is always made when there is aggression or violence against people with a public task. This often does not happen, and that has our attention. We are working to make reporting easier. But employer organizations also play a decisive role in this. Together with those agencies, we are looking at how we can improve the willingness to report.’

Today, the Public Prosecution Service publishes the figures of the number of registered VPT suspects (both for aggression and violence against police officers and against emergency workers).