Ransom Bombs Close Dutch Ikea

The Swedish flatpack superstore Ikea closed its 10 Dutch branches yesterday as a number of explosive packages were found after an unidentified organisation demanded a ransom under threat of a pre-Christmas bombing campaign.

Ikea officials in the Netherlands would not confirm the exact contents of the threat.

But a company employee in Austria said: "It was blackmail.

"There was a direct demand for money."

The initial speculation was that someone with a grudge against the company was to blame.

It has been accused of exploiting child labour at factories which supply it in the Philippines and Vietnam.

Moreover its founder, Ingvar Kamprad, has a controversial past.

He admits that he was an enthusiastic Nazi sympathiser in occupied Sweden during the second world war, but says that was youthful folly and best forgotten.

Bombs were planted at a store in Amsterdam and another in the town of Sliedrecht, near Rotterdam.

A third, harmless, device was uncovered at an store in Utrecht, and a fourth package was being examined last night at a store in Duiven, near Arnhem.

A company spokeswoman, Johanna Soutendijk, said the scare had been caused by a single anonymous letter.

"We don't have a clue who sent it.

"When you receive something like that you just hand it over to the police which is what our head of security did."

She said said the tip-off was sent to Ikea's Netherlands' head office in Amsterdam and named the two stores where the police subsequently found the two bombs.

The Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, said it was most likely sent by a criminal gang of some kind.

"It's a big deal closing down 10 of these major shops," a police spokesman said.

"And in every district where there is an Ikea shop it means we have lots of police officers tied up."

The police said last night that it had thoroughly checked six of of the 10 Dutch stores, and declared them safe.

Those six stories will reopen today, but the other four will remain closed while the police sweep them for more devices.

In a statement Ikea said that there were "strong indications" that there might be more explosives.

Two police officers were slightly injured trying to defuse the device found at the Sliedrecht store.

One was treated for slight injuries at a nearby hospital.

The other was injured in the eye.

In Britain Ikea issued a statement saying that its staff had been asked to remain vigilant.

"Customers will be told the threat is specific to Holland and that at present there is no need to be concerned," it said.