Israel was sending commercial planes to the Netherlands on Friday to bring home Israeli soccer fans after overnight attacks in Amsterdam that officials described as antisemitic, although there was evidence of provocative chanting from Israeli fans.
Videos circulating on social media showed riot police intervening in street clashes, with some attackers shouting anti-Israeli slurs. But some footage also showed Israeli supporters chanting anti-Arab slogans before Thursday evening’s match.
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were “attacked, abused and pelted with fireworks” and that riot police had to intervene several times to protect them and escort them to hotels.
In a post on social media, Amsterdam police said “five people have been taken to the hospital and 62 individuals have been arrested,” without providing specifics on the extent of the injuries, or who had been arrested.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the order to send planes was taken after “a very violent incident” targeting Israeli citizens after the match between Maccabi and Ajax Amsterdam, traditionally identified as a Jewish club.
The Israeli airlines El Al and Arkia announced five flights to Amsterdam.
An eyewitness captured a video verified by Reuters showing a group of men running near Amsterdam central station, chasing and assaulting other men, as police sirens sounded.-
However, another verified video showed Maccabi fans setting off flares and chanting “Ole, ole, let the IDF win,” referring to the Israel Defence Forces, followed by derogatory language directed at “Arabs.”
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said he was “horrified by the antisemitic attacks on Israeli citizens,” which he called “completely unacceptable.”
Schoof assured Netanyahu by phone that “the perpetrators will be identified and prosecuted,” he said in a statement on the social media platform X.
Have been following the news from Amsterdam and am horrified by the antisemitic attacks on Israeli citizens. This is completely unacceptable. I am in close contact with all parties involved and have just spoken to @IsraeliPM Netanyahu by phone to stress that the perpetrators will…
No prior threat warning or stadium violence
Israeli President Isaac Herzog spoke with Dutch King Willem-Alexander, who he said had “expressed deep horror and shock over the criminal acts committed.”
Politician Geert Wilders, head of the largest party in the Dutch government, said he was “ashamed that this can happen in the Netherlands.”
In a vitriolic post on the social media platform X, he blamed “criminal Muslims” and said they should be deported.
Police said there had been incidents before the match at Johan Cruyff Arena, for which roughly 3,000 Maccabi supporters travelled to Amsterdam.
Halsema told reporters Friday that the Dutch counterterror watchdog said there was no concrete threat to Israeli soccer fans detected before the game.
They said fans had left the stadium without incident after the Europa League match, which Ajax won 5-0, but that clashes erupted overnight in the city centre.
Antisemitic incidents in the Netherlands have surged since Israel launched its assault on Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, with many Jewish organizations and schools reporting threats and hate mail.
The Gaza war has sparked protests in support of both sides across Europe and the United States, including in Amsterdam, where the opening of a new Holocaust museum by Herzog led to violent protests by pro-Palestinian activists.
Over 43,000 Palestinians have been killed and 102,000 others injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack, according to health officials in the enclave, after the Palestinian militant group killed some 1,200 Israelis and took more than 250 hostage, according to Israel.
