A Dutch court ruled on Wednesday that billionaire and vaccine advocate Bill Gates must face trial in the Netherlands over allegations of misleading the public about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines during the pandemic.
Seven plaintiffs have brought forward the case, claiming to have suffered injuries from the vaccines.
The lawsuit names Bill Gates, along with former Dutch Prime Minister and current NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, members of the Dutch government’s COVID-19 Outbreak Management Team, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, and the Dutch state itself.
According to De Telegraaf, a leading Dutch newspaper, the plaintiffs filed the lawsuit last year, accusing Gates of making false claims about the experimental vaccines.
The plaintiffs argue that Gates, through his Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and involvement with the World Economic Forum (WEF), promoted vaccines as part of a larger agenda referred to as “The Great Reset Project.
They claim this agenda sought to exploit the global crisis to enforce major societal changes under the guise of pandemic response, including pushing vaccines they allege were unsafe.
The lawsuit also contends that Gates made misleading statements about the vaccines’ ability to prevent transmission, illness, and the need for masks.
One of the original seven plaintiffs has since died, but the remaining six continue to pursue the case.
The identities of the plaintiffs have been kept anonymous in court documents.
Despite Gates’ efforts to dismiss the case on jurisdictional grounds as a U.S. citizen, the court rejected his appeal, ordering him to pay the plaintiffs’ legal fees of €1,406.00 ($1,518.44) within 14 days or face further penalties. A hearing is scheduled for November 27, 2024.
In an earlier statement from 2020, Gates acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the effectiveness of the various COVID-19 vaccines in development, urging nations to invest in manufacturing facilities even if some might never be used.
However, the plaintiffs assert that Gates’ role in promoting the vaccines resulted in misleading information that caused them harm.
