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Majik » 16 minutes ago » wrote: ↑

16 minutes ago

And now the real story .....

Israeli football fans clash with protesters in Amsterdam

Amsterdam city council member says ‘Maccabi hooligans’ instigated violence and attacked Palestinian supporters.

 Israeli football fans have clashed with apparent pro-Palestinian protesters before and after a Europa League football match between their team Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax in Amsterdam.The clashes took place outside the Johan Cruyff Arena on Thursday night, the city’s main arena and Ajax Amsterdam’s home stadium, as well as in other areas. Ajax won the match 5-0 after leading 3-0 at halftime.

 Reporting from Amsterdam, Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen said the clashes were the result of a buildup in tensions over a few days.“Hundreds of supporters of Maccabi Tel Aviv came to Amsterdam, held a very vocal rally in the main square before the incident, waving Israeli flags, and also took down a Palestinian flag,” she said.On Thursday, police had said on social media that they were being particularly vigilant in the wake of politically charged incidents, including the tearing down of a Palestinian flag from a building.

Social media videos captured the reported incident, showing Israeli fans shouting slogans while an individual was taking the flag down. Before the game, videos showed crowds of Maccabi supporters chanting anti-Arab slogans.

 The Israeli fans instigated the violence after arriving in the city and attacking Palestinian supporters before the match, an Amsterdam city council member said.“They began attacking houses of people in Amsterdam with Palestinian flags, so that’s actually where the violence started,” Councilman Jazie Veldhuyzen told Al Jazeera on Friday.“As a reaction, Amsterdammers mobilised themselves and countered the attacks that started on Wednesday by the Maccabi hooligans.”

 Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said 10 Israelis were injured. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not clarify what led to what it called a “very violent incident against Israeli citizens”.Netanyahu said, in a Friday statement issued by his office, that he “views the horrifying incident with utmost gravity and demands that the Dutch government and security forces take vigorous and swift action against the rioters, and ensure the safety of our citizens”.Amsterdam resident and activist Mo Kotesh said Israeli fans attacked innocent people on the streets, property and taxi drivers on Wednesday and took down a Palestinian flag.

 Kotesh, of the Palestinian community in the Netherlands, told Al Jazeera that they went to an area near the central Dam Square – as instructed by the municipality – to hold a peaceful demonstration on the day before the match.He said he saw locals trying to counter the violence started against them and their properties by Israeli fans.Israeli “hooligans” chanted songs swearing at Arabs, saying, “There are no schools in Gaza because there are no children left.’”Israeli political commentator Ori Goldberg said the incident showed that the Israeli narrative had taken over Europe.“The fact that Israeli fans riot in the middle of Amsterdam, sing racist songs and climb the walls of homes to tear down Palestinian flags … is part of the Israeli condition at the moment: A complete detachment between actions and consequences,” he told Al Jazeera.
 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/ ... -amsterdam