Israelis attacked in Amsterdam ‘pogrom’

The mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, said that she was “ashamed” of what happened in the city, as she described hit-and-run attacks on the Israeli fans by suspects, some of whom escaped on motor scooters. She has used emergency powers to ban all demonstrations in the city this weekend with a ban on face-covering clothing and carrying objects, such as flags, that can disrupt public order.

“This is a very dark moment for the city, for which I am deeply ashamed,” Halsema said at a news conference. “Antisemitic criminals attacked and assaulted visitors to our city, in hit-and-run actions,” she added, noting that many perpetrators had managed to escape, despite a large police presence.

Chanan Hertzberger, the chairman of the Central Jewish Council in the Netherlands, compared the violence to the Kristallnacht persecutions in Nazi Germany. The riots flared as he and others were marking the 86th anniversary of the 1938 attacks last night.

“Our capital was the scene of a pogrom that would not have been out of place in Nazi Germany, albeit the contemporary version: the antisemitic gangs who, under the guise of anti-Zionism, have been trying to make life impossible for Jews in the Netherlands for some time now,” he said.

Dutch police said that 62 arrests have been made after Maccabi supporters were chased and assaulted by masked men, including attacks in a hotel.

“This seems like a planned and organised pogrom,” Naftali Bennett, a former Israeli prime minister, said this morning.

Hertzberger said that police were investigating the city’s taxi drivers, noting their “apparent role” meant that “harried football fans had no way to get to safety”.

“There even seems to be app traffic that shows that they meticulously prepared this pogrom, because that is what it was,” he said. “They moved in groups, cornering their targets.”

The Amsterdam authorities have contacted taxi platforms such as Uber and Bolt to discuss how drivers may have used the apps to screen Israeli phone numbers during the violence.

The Israeli government initially said that it would send military cargo planes to fly fans home from the Dutch capital, but later cancelled the plan, saying it was supporting civilian flights instead.

Security was being increased at Israel’s embassy and El Al, the Israeli airline, said that flights home would be offered to anyone with a return ticket to Israel, even if it was with another airline.

The Israeli military said on Friday that it had banned all its personnel from travelling to the Netherlands “until further notice.”

Many of the fans who were attacked said the incidents revived the trauma of the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas, particularly in light of the lack of protection by the authorities.

“They were waiting in groups at every corner and the moment they identified Jews they chased them,” one Israeli told the Kan News broadcaster.

“It was Kristallnacht 2,” a second told Israel’s Channel 12 news. “We’re not safe here, we’re shut inside our hotel.”

Yehuda Bens, 23, was with a group of fans attacked as they arrived at Amsterdam central train station. “We were in a group with children and elderly people, so it was scary,” he said. “After they attacked us, we pushed the strongest people in the group forward and they started to defend themselves.” Only then did the police intervene, he said.

Omri Yent, 25, was with three friends who ran a gauntlet of abuse before being attacked. “After the match we came out of the central station and they were waiting for us, at least thirty people,” he said. “They came out of an alley and attacked us. They wanted to surprise us. I was scared.”

Dick Schoof, the Dutch prime minister, denounced the “completely unacceptable antisemitic attacks on Israelis”.

“I followed with horror the coverage from Amsterdam,” Schoof wrote on X, adding that he had spoken with his Israeli counterpart Binyamin Netanyahu to assure him that “the perpetrators will be tracked down and prosecuted”.

Netanyahu’s office said he told Schoof that he “views the premeditated antisemitic attack against Israeli citizens with utmost seriousness and requested increased security for the Jewish community in the Netherlands”, his office said.

Gideon Saar, the new Israeli foreign minister, is travelling to the Netherlands.

“These terrible barbaric and antisemitic terror attacks are a blaring alarm call for Europe and the world,” he said.

“Freedom loving countries, democracies, cannot allow unbridled hatred to roam the streets with impunity. As history has shown — what begins with persecution and violence against Jews never ends with the Jews.”

Another Israeli football supporter told the NOS state broadcaster that the attackers were Muslims.

“There were many people, Muslims, who came after us and wanted to fight us. They shouted at us, attacked us and shouted ‘Free Palestine’,” one supporter said. “The police were there and told us to hurry to our hotel. We ended up having to run.”

Another added: “We don’t feel safe. You come to the game to have fun, but I can’t believe what happened here. I come here for a holiday, but it looked like a war zone.”

“Fans who went to a football match were met with antisemitism and were attacked with unimaginable brutality, just because of their Jewishness and because they are Israeli,” Itamar Ben-Gvir, thehard-right Israeli national security minister, said.

Israeli football fans have been advised to stay in their hotel rooms and to contact emergency numbers in Israel. Unverified images on social media show footage of a man lying on the ground being kicked.

In another video, a group of men get out of a van and chase an Israeli fan.

He is caught and the victim is violently forced to shout “Free Palestine”. He is also asked if he wants to kill children.

Other images show people being chased by assailants shouting “Free Palestine” and demanding that the Israelis shout the same.

Mobile phone films circulating on social show people being stopped and asked what their nationality is. One man is asked for his passport. If he can show that he is from Ukraine and not Israel, he is allowed to pass.

Herzog called on the Dutch government “to protect, locate, and rescue all Israelis and Jews under attack”.

“We see the horror this morning, the shocking images and videos that since October 7th, we had hoped never to see again: an antisemitic pogrom currently taking place against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans and Israeli citizens in the heart of Amsterdam, Netherlands,” Herzog said in a statement.

Schoof, who is in Budapest for a summit of European leaders, said the Dutch authorities would assist the rescue mission. “People are afraid and if they want to return, we have to help them,” he said.

The attacks followed clashes between Maccabi fans and pro-Palestinian protesters on the city’s Dam Square before the match, which Ajax won 5-0.

There were unconfirmed reports of Israeli supporters setting off fireworks and tearing down a Palestinian flag on a nearby street. Dutch politicians have reacted with anger to what followed.

Geert Wilders, the leader of the hard-right Freedom party which won elections last year, called on the mayor to resign. “It looks like a hunt for Jews in the streets of Amsterdam,” he said.

Dismissing calls for her to quit, Halsema said: “We take responsibility and will not shy away from it.”

The authorities have contacted taxi platforms such as Uber and Bolt to prevent drivers using apps, which can show Israeli phone numbers, from taking part in confrontations or attacks.

A statement has been issued by the “Amsterdam triangle” of city hall, police and the local prosecutor, condemning the episode. Not all Dutch politicians condemned the violence, however, and some sought to blame the Israeli fans.