November 2024 Amsterdam attacks

November 2024 Amsterdam attacks
Part of antisemitism during the Israel–Hamas war and anti-Palestinianism during the Israel–Hamas war
Amsterdam's Dam Square, where the attacks first began
Date7 November 2024 (2024-11-07)
Location
Amsterdam, Netherlands
MethodsRiots, ambush
Resulted in"Emergency measures" in Amsterdam[1]
Parties
Pro-Palestinian groups
Amsterdam residents[2]
Casualties
Injuries5 hospitalized, 20–30 injured

On 7 November 2024, following a UEFA Europa League football match in Amsterdam between Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv and Dutch club AFC Ajax, tensions over the Israel–Hamas war escalated to violence. Targets of the violence included Israeli Maccabi Tel Aviv fans,[3] an Arab taxi driver,[4] and pro-Palestinian protestors.[2] 20–30 people sustained light injuries.[5][6][7] Five people were hospitalised. At least 71 people were arrested, including 49 Dutch nationals or residents and 10 Israelis.[8][9]

In the run-up to the match, some Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were filmed pulling Palestinian flags from houses, making anti-Arab chants such as "Death to Arabs", assaulting people, and vandalising local property.[10][1][2][11][12] Messages coordinating plans to target Israeli fans were subsequently shared through messaging apps.[13][14] At the stadium, some Maccabi fans also interrupted a minute of silence for the victims of the 2024 Spanish floods with chanting and whistles.[15][16][17] After the match, Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were ambushed and assaulted across the city.[18] The mayor's office said the perpetrators "actively sought out Israeli supporters to attack and assault them".[11] Individuals were shot with fireworks, physically assaulted, and spat on.[19][8][20] Eight rescue flights were organized for the safe return of Israeli fans.[21][22]

The attacks on Israeli fans were condemned as antisemitic by Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema,[23] Dutch prime minister Dick Schoof,[24] King Willem-Alexander,[25] and several international leaders.[26][27] Some commentators characterized the event as a pogrom, triggering a debate about whether the term was applicable. Mayor Halsema regretted her own use of the word, saying it had been "politicised to the point of propaganda" in Israel and the Netherlands, and had been used to justify racist comments about Muslims. She also said she wished she had been aware of the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans' actions beforehand.[28][29] The Palestinian Foreign Ministry, Palestinian Football Association,[30] and UN Secretary-General António Guterres[31][32] were among those condemning the attacks and other actions of the Israeli fans as anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian racism.[33][4][34] A statement released by the Amsterdam authorities four days after the riots attributed them to both the attackers' antisemitism and the provocation and violence of the Maccabi fans.[35]

  1. ^ a b "Emergency measures in Amsterdam over attacks on Israeli football fans after Palestinian flags torn down". Sky News. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "Israeli football fans clash with protesters in Amsterdam". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  3. ^ Pomeroy, Gabriela (8 November 2024). "'They shouted Jewish, IDF': Israeli football fans describe attack in Amsterdam". BBC News. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Israeli hooligans provoke clashes in Amsterdam after chanting anti-Palestinian slogans". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Buckingham was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Amsterdam mayor condemns 'hit and run' attacks on Israeli football supporters". BBC News. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference j363 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b Corder, Mike (8 November 2024). "Attackers assaulted Israeli fans after a soccer match in Amsterdam, leaving 5 people hospitalized". AP News. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference :18 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NBC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Willem, Feenstra; Haro, Kraak; Mark, Misérus; Loes, Reijmer; Marjolein van, de Water (8 November 2024). "Hoe de oorlog in het Midden-Oosten Amsterdam in geweld onderdompelde" [How the Middle East War Engulfed Amsterdam in Violence]. De Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  13. ^ Rayner, Gordon; Stringer, Connor (8 November 2024). "Revealed: How Pro-Palestinian mob organised via WhatsApp to 'Hunt Jews' across Amsterdam". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference RTL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference :02 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBC News was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Eugenia Yosef; Edward Szekeres; Lauren Kent (8 November 2024). "Israeli soccer fans attacked in Amsterdam, in what Dutch authorities call antisemitic incidents". CNN. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  19. ^ Perets, Shir; Heller, Mathilda; Greyman-Kennard, Danielle (8 November 2024). "'We were ambushed': Pogrom in Amsterdam wounds several". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  20. ^ ""Boys on scooters" targeted Israeli football fans in Amsterdam; No confirmed abductions". NL Times. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference el al was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ "Israeli soccer fans attacked in Amsterdam, with 5 hospitalized and dozens of suspects arrested". CBS News. 8 November 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2024. This is a very dark moment for the city, for which I am deeply ashamed," Halsema said at a news conference on Friday. "Anti-semitic criminals attacked and assaulted visitors to our city, in hit-and-run actions.
  24. ^ "Dutch PM condemns 'anti-Semitic violence' after Amsterdam football match". France 24. 11 November 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2024. I also know that there are images about the behaviour of the Maccabi supporters. This too is being investigated and it is important that all facts are revealed" Schoof said (...) "But there is a big difference between destroying things and hunting Jews." - "There is nothing, absolutely nothing to serve as an excuse for the deliberate search and hunting down of Jews," said the prime minister, adding: "We have failed our Jewish community.
  25. ^ Kirby, Paul (8 November 2024). "Amsterdam: We must not turn blind eye to antisemitism, says Dutch king after attacks on Israeli football fans". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 12 November 2024. The Dutch king says Jewish people must feel safe in the Netherlands, after violent attacks against Israeli football fans in the centre of Amsterdam. Willem-Alexander said "our history has taught us how intimidation goes from bad to worse," adding that the country could not ignore "antisemitic behaviour". (...) "Jews must feel safe in the Netherlands, everywhere and at all times. We put our arms around them and will not let them go."
  26. ^ Corder, Mike (8 November 2024). "Israeli soccer fans were attacked in Amsterdam. The violence was condemned as antisemitic". AP News. Associated Press. Retrieved 12 November 2024. Israeli fans were assaulted after a soccer game in Amsterdam by hordes of young people apparently riled up by calls on social media to target Jewish people, Dutch authorities said Friday. Five people were treated at hospitals and dozens were arrested after the attacks, which were condemned as antisemitic by authorities in Amsterdam, Israel and across Europe. Reports of antisemitic speech, vandalism and violence have been on the rise in Europe since the start of the war in Gaza
  27. ^ "Five new arrests in attacks against Israeli soccer supporters, Dutch police say". Reuters. 11 November 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024. Dutch police on Monday said they had arrested five more people for their suspected involvement in attacks on Israeli football supporters late last week which authorities have condemned as antisemitic.
  28. ^ Cite error: The named reference regret-haaretz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  29. ^ Lidor, Canaan (18 November 2024). "Amsterdam mayor walks back 'pogrom' label for assaults". Jewish news Syndicate. Retrieved 19 November 2024.
  30. ^ Cite error: The named reference :24 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  31. ^ "Amsterdam violence exposes anti-immigrant Islamophobia in the Netherlands". NBC News. 18 November 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  32. ^ "Israeli football fans return home after night of violence in Amsterdam". France 24. 8 November 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  33. ^ Cite error: The named reference :17 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  34. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  35. ^ Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).