Between 20 and 30 Maccabi fans were injured after being attacked by groups of individuals who, according to Dutch police, had responded to a call to target Jews launched on social media.
Israeli supporters attacked in Amsterdam: “It’s even worse than an ambush… people were lynched, others thrown into the canal”
These clashes occurred in a context of increasing anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli acts since the start of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas a little over a year ago in the Gaza Strip.
“It’s an explosion of anti-Semitism that I hope to never see again,” declared the mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, who said she was “ashamed” of this violence.
On Saturday, Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp assured that a “thorough investigation will be carried out in the Netherlands”.
The match took place on Thursday in a generally calm atmosphere, even if some Israeli supporters did not respect the minute of silence in memory of the victims of the floods in Spain, a country which recently recognized the State of Palestine.
In a video posted on social networks, the origin of which could not be verified, what appeared to be fans of the Maccabi club sang songs in Hebrew hostile to the Palestinians.
