Violent attacks on Israelis within Amsterdam, following a Maccabi Tel Aviv game against Ajax Amsterdam, resulted in several wounded, three people missing, and a warning for Jewish and Israeli people in Amsterdam to shelter in place.
The incident, which prompted multiple emergency evacuation flights back to Israel from the Netherlands and the deployment of an IDF Search and Rescue team to Amsterdam, has drawn criticism from leaders worldwide.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was informed of the incident and sent two rescue planes to assist Israeli citizens.
A pogrom in the streets of #Amsterdam. We have become the Gaza of Europe. Muslims with Palestinian flags hunting down Jews. I will NOT accept that. NEVER. The authorities will be held accountable for their failure to protect the Israeli citizens.Never again.
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) November 8, 2024
The Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu views the “horrifying incident with utmost gravity” and called on the Dutch government and security forces take “vigorous and swift action against the rioters.”
International reactions
Prime Minister Dick Schoof shared on X/Twitter that he had just received a call from Netanyahu regarding the violent incident.
“Completely unacceptable anti-Semitic attacks on Israelis. I am in close contact with all those involved” he said, concluding that the riots had quieted down.
Dutch Party for Freedom founder and leader Geert Wilders posted, “We have become the Gaza of Europe. Muslims with Palestinian flags hunting down Jews. I will NOT accept that. NEVER. The authorities will be held accountable for their failure to protect the Israeli citizens. Never again.
Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt reacted, “Horrified by the attacks tonight in Amsterdam, which are terribly reminiscent of a classic pogrom.
“In terrible historical irony, this is happening two days before the grim anniversary of Reichspogromnacht in 1938, when Nazi-sanctioned and led pogroms against Jews erupted across the German Reich.”
Melissa Lantsman, who is a Canadian Member of Parliament and a strong advocate for Israel, posted, “The scenes from the streets of Amsterdam tonight are absolutely horrific. This is what “globalize the intifada” looks like.
She warned, “Don’t look the other way. Watch the footage and stand up against this lawless mob there and everywhere.”
US Senator Katie Boyd Britt from Alabama wrote, “It is absolutely despicable to see the blatant attacks on Jews in Amsterdam, many forced to flee for their lives.
After the Holocaust, we said Never Again, yet here we are nearly 80 years later. I am praying for the Jewish people worldwide.”
Elica Le Bon, an Iranian-British lawyer and activist shared her disgust at this level of public antisemitism. “This is the direct result of normalizing antisemitism post-Oct. 7, where the most flagrant acts of Jew-hatred were cast aside as just “bleeding hearts who are against the war.”
“Remind me again how these are all just kind people who care about humanity?”
National Director of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, condemned “the mobs of people hate-filled people chasing down and attacking innocent Israeli soccer fans who they have dehumanized as ‘Zionists’.”
“We demand Dutch authorities do everything necessary to ensure the safety of the Israeli fans, work to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators, and apologize for this obscene, unprovoked violence.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz responded to the violent incident, “The reports of violence against Israeli fans in Amsterdam are unbearable. We cannot accept this,” Scholz wrote in a post on X. “Jews must be able to feel safe in Europe.”
A ‘new Kristallnacht’
The Combat Antisemitism Movement similarly referred to the Amsterdam attack as a modern-day Kristallnacht.
In a press release, the organization stated, “The difference today is that Jews have the State of Israel as their sanctuary. However, Europe should remember this: Jews won’t wait around like they did in ’39. As they said over eight decades ago, first, they came for the Jews, but it did not end there. It’s time for Europe to get its act together and deal with the new Nazis as it did the old ones.”
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) responded to the attack in a message shared on X, “UEFA strongly condemns the incidents and acts of violence that occurred last night in the city of Amsterdam before and after the Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv”.
“UEFA will examine all official reports, gather available evidence, assess them and evaluate any further appropriate course of action in accordance with its relevant regulatory framework.”
Adding to the list of condemnations, the Jewish Federation stated they were “horrified and outraged at the hate-filled antisemitic attacks in Amsterdam, in which anti-Israel mobs terrorized and beat Israelis and Jews trying to enjoy a soccer game.
“This modern-day pogrom, just two days before the anniversary of Kristallnacht, should make it clear that the entire world must act now to condemn and prosecute to the fullest all the perpetrators and take every necessary step to protect the Jewish community.
“We are in close contact with our partners in Israel and The Jewish Agency for Israel as we continue our commitment to the security of Jewish communities around the world.”
