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Feyenoord-Ajax game called off due to police strike

Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb on Tuesday called off this weekend’s football match between arch-rivals Feyenoord and Ajax due to a police strike, saying public safety “cannot adequately be guaranteed”.

“The safety of players, as well as the public cannot be adequately guaranteed without the involvement of the police,” Aboutaleb said in a statement sent to AFP.

The call comes after police unions Monday said they will not be present at the highly-charged game, which was scheduled to be played at Feyenoord’s De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam on Sunday.

Dutch police unions have run industrial actions for several months to protest the dropping of a scheme for early pensions for law officers next year.

Traditional rivalry especially among the hardcore support of both clubs has led to clashes in the past, resulting in a ban on visiting supporters for such fixtures.

But even then security was not always guaranteed. Last year the match had to be stopped at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam after hooligans threw fireworks on the field.

Riots broke out after the match in which 15 people were arrested and two police officers were wounded.

A new date for the clash has not yet been set.

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