Dutch government raises terror threat level

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - The terror threat level is going up in the Netherlands.

The Dutch government elevated it from "limited" to "substantial" because of the civil war in Syria.

That's the second-highest level on the four-step scale, just below "critical."

Dutch citizens are traveling to Syria to fight in the civil war and Dutch leaders fear they could return battle-hardened, traumatized and further radicalized.

The warning comes just two months before hundreds of thousands of people are expected to descend on Amsterdam for the abdication of Queen Beatrix and investiture of her son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, as king.

Dutch counter-terrorism experts cite the threat posed by jihad fighters returning from Syria and signs of increasing radicalization among Dutch youth at home.