80 years after liberation from the Nazis, the Dutch commemorate the victims of war

AMSTERDAM (AP) — Trains came to a halt, cars pulled to the side of the road and no planes arrived or departed in the Netherlands for two minutes on Sunday, as the country went silent to remember victims of war.

Thousands of people gathered in Amsterdam to watch as Dutch King Willem-Alexander laid a wreath at a war memorial, 80 years and a day since the country was liberated from Nazi occupation in 1945.

The first speaker at the annual event was 14-year-old Marijn van der Wilk who read a poem he had written about resistance during the war. “They were brothers, sisters, neighbors. Just people, like you or me. In a time when doing good could be life-threatening. And yet they did it,” he said during the nationally televised event.

Prime Minister Dick Schoof discussed the grief his family felt over the death of his grandfather, who was executed by Nazi soldiers for his work in the resistance.

“On this day, in the two minutes of silence, that echo sounds extra loud. When we think of all the people who were murdered for who they were. Who died of hunger or exhaustion. Or who fought for peace and freedom. Our peace and freedom,” Schoof said.

The national day of commemoration, at which flags fly at half staff from buildings throughout the country, honors military personnel and civilians killed in conflicts around the world since the outbreak of World War II. It is followed Monday by celebrations to mark the country’s liberation from Nazi German occupation at the end of the war.

Not every place in the country observed the remembrance. Some predominantly Christian areas honored the dead on Saturday, as to not disrupt the Sunday sabbath.

In The Hague, a few hundred people gathered for an alternative commemoration. A group of civil servants organized May 4 inclusive, an event to remember all victims of conflict, frustrated with the Dutch government’s response to the conflict in Gaza. According to the association’s website, the official event is too restrictive. “We commemorate both the victims of the past and the victims of today, regardless of where, by whom or when the war, genocide, persecution or oppression took place. We do not want to exclude anyone, all victims are given a place.”

A few pro-Palestinian slogans could be seen in the crowd in Amsterdam.

Later Sunday evening, two veterans will light a Liberation Fire to kickstart a day of celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the end of German occupation of the Netherlands. Mervyn Kersh, a 100-year-old veteran from Britain, and Nick Janicki, 101, from Canada will light the flame in Wageningen, the central city where German officers signed the official surrender in 1945, organizers said.

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Mike Corder in The Hague contributed to this report.

A person holds a picture during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People attend a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A ray of light shines on Dutch King Willem-Alexander, as Queen Maxima stands left, after laying a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A person protests during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, left, leave after laying a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A person protests during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima leave after laying a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Netherlands' Prime Minister Dick Schoof lays a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A person protests during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Netherlands' Prime Minister Dick Schoof speaks prior to laying a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima lay a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Pigeons fly as Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima arrive to lay a wreath during a solemn annual national service to commemorate the war dead in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)