It led on Thursday night to riots that Dutch authorities consider anti-Semitic attacks. The clashes resulted in the arrest of 62 people in the Dutch city, of which 10 were still in the police station on Friday afternoon. Two of them are minors. Five injured people were also admitted to the hospital, but they were discharged this Friday. Before the match took place, there were rallies near the Johan Cruyff Arena stadium with banners in English reading “Free Palestine.” The atmosphere heated up just before the match, when Israeli fans broke the minute of silence for the victims of. The response from the Ajax fans was a loud whistle of reproach.
Violent acts were also recorded in the city center. The Israeli authorities speak of “ambushes” and organized attacks against Maccabi fans. The Israeli Foreign Ministry reported that it would send a plane from the public company El Al early in the afternoon to repatriate hundreds of its fans. Meanwhile, Maccabi has asked its fans to “avoid the streets as much as possible.”
The Dutch Prime Minister, Dick Schoof, has been “horrified” by what happened and has described the anti-Semitic attacks against Israelis as “absolutely unacceptable” from Budapest. Schoof has decided to accelerate his return this Friday from the Hungarian capital, where he was attending an informal meeting of the European Council. During the morning, he spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, and guaranteed him that those responsible for the riots would be located and prosecuted. Following what happened, Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema designated the entire city as a “security risk area” over the weekend. This implies that all demonstrations are generally prohibited and the police presence increases.
For his part, King William of the Netherlands expressed to Israeli President Isaac Herzog his “shock” and that of Queen Maxima “at the violence against Israeli fans.” The monarch wrote on the official account of the Royal Household: “We must not look the other way in the face of anti-Semitic behavior on our streets. (…) Our history has taught us how intimidation increases until it reaches terrible events.”
The tension grew as the night progressed. Pro-Palestinian protesters intended to protest near the stadium, but the Amsterdam City Council did not allow it and they were taken one kilometer from the sports complex. Those who were able to reach the stadium ended up detained by the police. Officers estimate there were about 2,600 Maccabi fans in the city. The mayor’s office had asked the National Coordinator for Antiterrorism and Security to evaluate the possible threats from the soccer match. The answer was that there were none regarding the Gaza war, and that fans of both teams got along well. In any case, exceptional security measures were taken, with more than 800 agents and riot police. The atmosphere inside the stadium heated up after Israeli fans broke the minute of silence for the floods in the Valencian Community.
At noon, when the images of the clashes were in the international news, the mayor reported in a press conference that the police and the prosecutor’s office were investigating whether there was a possible organized connection, “by Telegram”, to go “in search of the Jews.” He explained that there were boys “on motorcycles who went around the city looking for Israeli fans.” It was, Halsema stressed, “an act of hit and run.” “And that brings back memories of the pogroms,” said the mayor. He added: “Jewish culture is deeply threatened and this has been an outbreak of anti-Semitism that I hope to never see again.”
In the same meeting with the press, Peter Holla, chief of the Amsterdam police, confirmed that there were also reprehensible acts by Maccabi fans: “They removed a flag from a façade and destroyed a taxi. “They burned a Palestinian flag in Dam Square (in the urban center).” The councilor indicated that this behavior “is no excuse for the riots that took place.” On social media there are images of Maccabi fans chanting “let the Israeli army destroy the Arabs” while being escorted by the police. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry has condemned in a statement in
Condemnation of violence
Geert Wilders noted that what happened “looks like a hunt for Jews in the streets of Amsterdam; It is a shame and totally unacceptable.” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stressed from Budapest that “anyone who attacks the Jews attacks us all.” For his part, Emmanuel Macron, French president, condemned in X the incidents that reminded him of “the most unworthy hours in History.” The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, “strongly” condemned the “anti-Semitic” attacks.
In the Netherlands, the National Coordinator against Anti-Semitism, Eddo Verdoner, addressed a message to Dutch Jews on social media: “Hide who you are. Don’t say where you come from. “You are not safe here.” Verdoner called the willingness to commit violent acts “abhorrent,” adding: “If they know who you are, they will chase you, beat you, or throw you into a frozen ditch.” Verdoner’s office advises the Minister of Justice and Security on the fight against anti-Semitism.
From Israel, Netanyahu’s office assured in another statement issued early on Friday: “The harsh images of the assault on our citizens in Amsterdam will not go unnoticed.” Netanyahu considers what happened a “horrible incident” and demands that the Dutch government and security forces “take strong and rapid measures against the rioters and guarantee the safety of our citizens,” according to the note. Israeli fans were taken throughout the afternoon to Amsterdam-Schiphol airport in several buses escorted by motorized police and riot vans. Inside, the check-in desk for flights to Tel Aviv was cordoned off. This Friday, six flights left Amsterdam with that destination. There are three more than usual, according to Dutch media.
