Anti-Israel protesters vandalized the offices of a Christian organization in the Netherlands that supports Israel, defacing the site Monday with slogans accusing its members of supporting “genocide” and killing babies.
The protest at the Christians for Israel Center in the central Dutch town of Nijkerk came weeks after the country saw attacks on Israeli soccer fans by anti-Israel attackers, in what authorities described as an anti-Semitic pogrom.
The Nijkerk demonstrators defaced a building where the headquarters of the Christians for Israel association is located, by spray-painting slogans accusing the members of this association of “supporting the genocide”, of being “child murderers and being “complicit in the events in Gaza,” the statement said.
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“The protest took place precisely as most staff members were arriving for work, catching many of them off guard,” the association said in a statement.
Anti-Israel protesters vandalize the offices of the Christians for Israel organization in Nijkerk, the Netherlands, November 26, 2024. (Alexander Blom)
Climate justice group Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility for the action in a post on its social media account X, citing local branches of Christian Collective and Justice Now among the participants.
“The vandalism created a distressing and hostile environment for staff and disrupted the association’s daily operations,” Christians for Israel said.
Frank van Oordt, executive director of Christians for Israel Netherlands, said the association was “shocked that this was happening in our country” and even more so that the action was taken by other Christians.
The incident occurred days before Christians for Israel planned to hold a large rally in Amsterdam in support of the Jewish community, after Israeli soccer fans and tourists were chased into the streets in During violent clashes when Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv played against local football club Ajax earlier this month.
In the weeks that followed, anti-Israel protesters continued to commit acts of violence against Jews in Amsterdam.
The planned support rally “appears to have drawn the ire of organizations opposed to Israel’s policies, some of which have resorted to disruptive and destructive tactics,” Christians for Israel said.
Although staff immediately alerted police, the association said it took officers three hours to disperse the protesters.
A spokesperson for Christians for Israel reported that staff attempted to speak with protesters but “instead of engaging in facts and constructive dialogue, they resorted to shouting, vandalism and broadcasting erroneous information.”
An anti-Israel protester vandalizes the offices of the Christians for Israel organization in Nijkerk, the Netherlands, November 26, 2024. (Alexander Blom)
Christians for Israel was particularly dismayed because it also provides financial aid to Palestinian communities.
“For many years, we have donated hundreds of thousands of euros to organizations that help Palestinians and encourage cooperation between the Arab and Jewish communities in Israel,” the association said in its statement.
“To accuse us of complicity in genocide is to ignore these facts. »
This action did not cause any injuries. Christians for Israel said it was the latest in a series of “targeted actions” against the association, including similar vandalism of the building last summer.
The association said it was working with authorities to ensure the safety of its staff and premises.
“Christians for Israel is committed to continuing its work undeterred, standing firm in the face of hostility and misinformation,” the association said, adding that the incident served to demonstrate the importance of the upcoming rally. which aims to encourage solidarity and support for the Jewish people.”
On Tuesday, Justice Now protesters blocked the entrance to the building of Dutch broadcaster NOS in Hilversum, accusing it of presenting biased reporting in favor of Israel.
Israeli authorities said ten people were injured in the November 7 violence carried out by local Arab and Muslim gangs against Maccabi fans after the match. Hundreds of other Israelis huddled in their hotels for hours, fearing attack.
Many reported that Dutch security forces were nowhere to be found when the Israeli tourists were ambushed by gangs of masked assailants who shouted anti-Israel slogans while chasing, beating and harassing them.
According to Amsterdam police chief Peter Holla, before the match, Maccabi supporters burned a Palestinian flag in the central Dam Square and vandalized a taxi. Images of these incidents were widely shared on social media.
“But there is a big difference between destroying things and driving out Jews,” Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof emphasized.
The mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, initially spoke of a “pogrom”, before retracting.
Scenes of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic violence in the streets of Amsterdam, November 8, 2024. (Screenshot: X; used in accordance with Article 27a of the Copyright Act)
Violence against Jews continued after the November 7 attacks, with anti-Israel activists repeatedly demonstrating in violation of a temporary ban on demonstrations, leading to some scuffles with police. In one incident, dozens of rioters clashed with police and set fire to a tram while chanting anti-Semitic slogans.
Anti-Semitic acts have increased in the Netherlands, as everywhere in the world, since the pogrom perpetrated by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on October 7, 2023 in southern Israel, during which some 6,000 Gazans including 3,800 terrorists led by Hamas stormed southern Israel, killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, kidnapped 251 hostages of all ages – committing numerous atrocities and perpetrating sexual violence on a large scale. This massacre sparked the war in Gaza.
