Dutch reporters grill new Trump ambassador over past comments on Muslims

Dutch reporters grilled U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra during a press conference at the Hague Wednesday over comments he made in the past about Muslims in Europe. 

Reporters could be heard saying “This is not how it works” and “This is the Netherlands, you have to answer questions” during the contentious briefing. 

{mosads}The journalists were questioning Hoekstra on claims he made in a 2015 interview on the Dutch television program Nieuwsuur, in which he said an Islamic movement was generating chaos in Europe and that extremists in the Netherlands were burning cars and politicians. 

The ambassador told the reporters on Wednesday that he did not want to revisit the issue. 

Hoekstra expressed his regret from the comments in a statement released last year. 

“I made certain remarks in 2015 and regret the exchange during the Nieuwsuur interview. Please accept my apology,” the former Republican Michigan congressman said. 

CNN reported Tuesday that Hoekstra also claimed on several occasions that there were Islamic “no-go zones” in European cities. 

The network also reported that Hoekstra touted conspiracy theories linking Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin to the Muslim Brotherhood and had considered the possibility that former President Obama had permitted radical forms of Islamic to grow on purpose.