Israel was sending commercial planes to the Netherlands on Friday to bring home Israeli soccer fans after overnight attacks in Amsterdam that officials described as antisemitic, although there was evidence of provocative chanting from Israeli fans.Videos on social media showed riot police intervening in clashes, with some attackers shouting anti-Israeli slurs. But some footage also showed Israeli supporters chanting anti-Arab slogans before Thursday evening’s match
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were “attacked, abused and pelted with fireworks” and that riot police intervened to protect them and escort them to hotels. At least five people were treated in hospital, she said.
Security measures were increased in the city, where hundreds gathered on Thursday to remember Kristallnacht, the Nazi pogrom against Jews across Germany on Nov. 9-10, 1938.
Antisemitic incidents have surged in the Netherlands since Israel launched its assault on Gaza after the attacks on Israel by the Palestinian Hamas group on Oct. 7, 2023, with many Jewish organisations and schools reporting threats and hate mail.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the order to send planes was taken after “a very violent incident” targeting Israeli citizens after the match between Maccabi and Ajax Amsterdam, traditionally identified as a Jewish club.
One video verified by Reuters showed a group of men running near Amsterdam central station, chasing and assaulting other men, as police sirens sounded.
However, another verified video showed Maccabi fans setting off flares and chanting “Ole, ole, let the IDF win, we will fuck the Arabs”, referring to the Israel Defense Forces.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said he was “horrified by the anti-Semitic attacks on Israeli citizens”, which he called “completely unacceptable”.
