Four people were being held on Saturday in connection with violent clashes in Amsterdam that broke out after a soccer match between Ajax, a local Dutch team, and Maccabi Tel Aviv on Thursday.
The violence, in which Maccabi fans were chased down and attacked, resulted in the arrest of 62 people by police and the declaration of a three-day ban on protests in the city.
“It was a hit-and-run,” said Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema. “Football fans were beaten and scared, after which the rioters quickly left again, fleeing the police force that was on the move en masse yesterday.”
Halsema denounced the violence and called it “an outburst of antisemitism.” Amsterdam police spokesperson Sara Tillart told The Associated Press that it was too early in the investigation to determine if anyone other than soccer fans were targeted.
Marijke Stor, a Dutch police spokesperson, said no one has been charged yet. “If people are released, it doesn’t mean they are no longer a suspect,” Stor said. “Other arrests can still be made, of course, because the investigation is still ongoing.”
Amsterdam’s acting police chief, Peter Holla, said in a Friday news conference that tensions had already been high before the soccer match, and hundreds of additional police officers were dispatched to Amsterdam. Holla said some Israeli fans fueled tensions by attacking a taxi on Wednesday and a Palestinian flag. There was also a confrontation before the game between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli fans, he added.
One video geolocated by NBC News showed fighting near Amsterdam’s central station. NBC News also geolocated another video before or after the match that showed Israeli fans tearing down a Palestinian flag and singing “Death to the Arabs” and “Let the IDF win. We will f— the Arabs.”
Violence among fans of competing soccer clubs is not uncommon, but the incident on Thursday appeared to be related more to the conflict in the Middle East than the sport, as NBC News pointed out.
The violence has led to condemnation by leaders in Europe, Israel and the United States. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu compared the incident to Kristallnacht, when Nazi mobs launched systematic attacks on Jewish communities across Germany in 1938.
The Israeli government helped citizens arrange evacuations from Amsterdam via commercial flights.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Friday that it “condemns anti-Arab chants by Israelis and attacks on the symbolism of the Palestinian flag in Amsterdam.”
A United Nations spokesperson said on Friday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was shocked by the violence and that he condemns all forms of antisemitism and anti-Muslim bigotry.
Amsterdam is home to a large Jewish community, and the city is where Anne Frank and her family hid from Nazi occupiers during World War II.
A report from the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) earlier this year found that Jewish people in Europe face “high levels of antisemitism.” Muslims also face “ever more racism and discrimination” in Europe, the agency found. Both surveys were conducted prior to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks and Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, but FRA Director Sirpa Rautio said the rise of antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate are fueled by conflicts in the Middle East.
