Violence against Israeli supporters | The Netherlands denounces “unacceptable anti-Semitic attacks”

(Amsterdam) The Netherlands denounced on Friday “unacceptable anti-Semitic attacks against Israelis” in Amsterdam, during clashes whose circumstances remain unclear for the moment after a Europa League match Thursday evening between Ajax and Maccabi Tel -Aviv, Israel speaking of “appalling” violence.

“The night after the football match […] was very eventful with several violent incidents targeting Maccabi supporters” in several places in the city, local authorities said.

“The police had to intervene on several occasions, protect Israeli supporters and escort them to their hotels. Despite the massive police presence in the city, Israeli supporters were injured,” added the same source announcing the opening of an investigation.

Widely deployed, the Dutch police were on alert after a Palestinian flag was torn from a facade on a major avenue in the city center. She reported Friday morning that five people were hospitalized and 62 arrests after the night’s clashes.

The first plane intended to repatriate Israeli citizens from Amsterdam after clashes on the sidelines of a football match Thursday evening took off Friday from Ben Gurion Airport, a spokesperson for the Israeli airport authorities told AFP , Liza Dvir.

The aircraft is expected in Amsterdam early this afternoon.

According to the Israeli company El Al, three evacuation flights are planned in the coming hours, plus two regular flights.

“Hundreds of Israeli passengers” will be able to board planes carrying out evacuations for free, she said.

Israeli Transport Minister Miri Regev asked her Dutch counterpart, Barry Madlener, to ensure “safe transportation of passengers from hotels to the airport.”

She also demanded that Schipol Airport in Amsterdam remain open at night this weekend and that “all necessary permits” be granted to Israeli evacuation planes.

Strong emotion in Israel

The violence in Amsterdam, which occurred after the match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel-Aviv and won by the Dutch club (5-0), took place in a context marked by the rise in anti-Semitic acts in the world since the war between Israel and Hamas, with representatives of the EU and the United States deploring a “tsunami of anti-Semitism” in September.

Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof described the night’s “anti-Semitic attacks” as “unacceptable” in a message posted on X.

In Israel, the authorities reacted very strongly, with Mr. Netanyahu saying he considered “the appalling incident with the greatest seriousness” and “demanding [des autorités néerlandaises] to act vigorously and quickly against the rioters.”

The head of Israeli diplomacy Gideon Saar will urgently go to Amsterdam, his services indicated.

“We see with horror this morning the shocking images and videos that we had hoped never to see again since October 7: an anti-Semitic pogrom currently taking place against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans and Israeli citizens in the heart of Amsterdam” , affirmed for his part Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

“Finish the Arabs”

Founded under another name in 1906, Maccabi Tel Aviv is Israel’s oldest and most successful club.

His supporters are not particularly known to be violent, but images circulating Friday on social networks and presented as filmed in Amsterdam, the origin of which AFP has not yet been able to verify, show what appear to be dozens of fans of the club singing in Hebrew “Finish the Arabs!” We’re going to win! » or even “Let the IDF win to finish off the Arabs”.

In the afternoon, around a hundred Israeli supporters gathered on Dam Square, surrounded by a large police force, before going to the Johan Cruyff stadium, in the southwest of Amsterdam.

A pro-Palestinian rally condemning the arrival of the Israeli club was initially planned near the stadium, but was moved a little further into the neighborhood by Amsterdam town hall for security reasons.

France-Israel match

The head of Israeli diplomacy, Gideon Saar spoke with his Dutch counterpart, Caspar Veldkamp.

According to his services, “he underlined the seriousness with which Israel regards the large-scale violent attacks against its citizens in Amsterdam” and requested that the Dutch authorities ensure the security of supporters for their transfer to the airport.

Asked about the France-Israel match, scheduled for Thursday at the Stade de France, French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau declared that he did not accept its relocation.

“Some are calling for the France-Israel match to be relocated. I do not accept it: France is not backing down, because that would amount to abdicating in the face of threats of violence and in the face of anti-Semitism,” he wrote on his X account, adding: “At my request, the Police prefect Laurent Nunez is making the necessary security arrangements for this match to take place at the Stade de France, as usual.