Will Amsterdam’s pogrom start a trend across Europe?
Although it seems unthinkable, to most of us, it really shouldn’t come as any surprise that within Amsterdam’s Muslim community, there are individuals who would have no qualms in perpetrating a coordinated attack against the Israeli tourists, who came to the Netherlands to watch the Europa League match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Dutch club Ajax last Thursday night.
Regrettably, while we weren’t paying attention, our world became unrecognizable, when over the course of the last 25 years or so, unsuspecting big-hearted Western nations, welcomed extremist Muslims, into their cities, without realizing that so many of them do not share civilized principles or values, because they, instead, were raised to believe in violence and force to achieve whatever they wanted.
Ironically, we were all encouraged to have sympathy for these migrants who simply were trying to escape their war-torn countries for a better and more prosperous life in Europe, the U.S., Canada, Australia and many other peaceful locations. What those governments failed to understand was the improbability of integrating those newcomers into societies which were built upon mutual respect for different cultures, tolerance for others, the desire to live without social conflict and the traditional mores and norms of those countries.
The huge miscalculation in thinking that they could live within the confines of the societal framework of their host countries, has never been more on display since the tragic events of October 7th, but here we are, just a little more than a year later as the world witnesses an actual pogrom on the eve of the Kristallnacht commemoration, which remembers the rampage of broken glass of Jewish-owned businesses throughout the streets of Germany which occurred on November 9-10, 1938.
That shocking display, of terrorized vandalism, became the “first widespread use of massive force against Jews by the Nazi regime, figuring as an essential turning point in Nazi Germany.”
Now, it’s fair to ask if the events of Thursday night’s vicious Amsterdam attack, led by local Muslims, who hunted down Israelis as they left the Johan Cruyff Arena, lying in wait for them, in dark alleys throughout the city, will become a trend in other European venues, frequented by Israelis. And what will that mean for Israeli teams who travel that continent to play their rivals? Will it be safe for them to continue to do so?
As more information comes out, it is clear that this attack had been well-planned, because locations which had been popular with Israelis were targeted, as were the hotels where they were lodging. How was that information accessed? And why are we hearing that warnings had been ignored – this time by the Dutch authorities?
In the wake of these shocking and troubling events, where ten Israelis were reported to be injured and hospitalized, while others cowered in their hotel rooms, for fear of being attacked in the lobbies of their own hotels, the State of Israel had to send out emergency rescue flights to extricate its citizens from what had become a hotbed of antisemitic displays of violence, where even making their way to the airport was fraught with peril.
So shameful was this attack that Dutch Member of the House of Representatives of Netherlands, Geert Wilders, referring to his country as having become “the Gaza of Europe, issued the following statement on X: “A pogrom in the streets of Amsterdam. Muslims with Palestinian flags hunting down Jews. I will NOT accept that. NEVER. The relevant authorities will be held accountable for their failure to protect the Israeli citizens. Never again.”
A pogrom in the streets of #Amsterdam.
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) November 8, 2024
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.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry described fans being “ambushed and brutally attacked by violent mobs. Footage of the incident appears to show people being chased and kicked to the ground, with one video showing passersby being hit by a car at high speed.”
Horrific scenes from Amsterdam last night, echoing Europe's darkest history:
— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) November 8, 2024
Hundreds of fans of Israel’s @MaccabiTLVFC were ambushed and brutally attacked in Amsterdam last night after the match against @AFCAjax.
Mobs chanted anti-Israel slogans and proudly shared videos of… pic.twitter.com/BuQLc9Ejqs
Blame for the incident was placed upon Israeli fans, who were allegedly reported as “chanting racist slogans against Arabs and Palestinians, but if that was true, how were scores of arrests made, which attests to a large Muslim presence, accompanied by Palestinian flags at various locations frequented by Israelis? Did they anticipate unruly behavior by Israeli fans attending the game – to the point where they decided to organize for just that moment?
In the end, 62 people were arrested at the same time that reports of a hostage situation may have been unfolding, none of which sounds like a spontaneous response to the chanting of racist slogans but more consistent with a pre-planned attack, knowing that Israeli fans would be present at the game.
While this attack has already been strongly condemned by the Dutch king, Willem-Alexander, the European Commission President Ursula von der Layen and the Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, all of whom have vowed to “track down and prosecute” those who took part in this assault, will other European countries be able to guarantee the safety of Israeli tourists in their respective cities, given that each one of them also has sizeable radicalized Muslim populations?
The pogrom against Jews that took place last night in Amsterdam was expected!
— Dr. Maalouf (@realMaalouf) November 8, 2024
7 years ago, the UAE Foreign Minister warned the West about the danger of Islamists invading Europe. pic.twitter.com/dTUkdckOMG
Even if a match is not taking place, what about other events or sites, which are likely to attract Israelis, as well as Westerners who are also reviled? Everyone must look at this disturbing event and wonder if these migrants are feeling emboldened, at a time when antisemitism has gained more traction, under the guise of blaming Israel for defending herself following the October 7th massacre.
If governments don’t make serious efforts to not only arrest these perpetrators, but also deport them from their countries, very few will want to take the risk of traveling to these locations, knowing that they, too, could find themselves in precarious circumstances without a police presence which, in this case, should have been beefed up to avoid such an incident, given that an Israeli team was playing in the match.
The acts of terror, committed by these extremist Muslims, is a cancer which cannot be allowed to metastasize throughout the whole of Europe, because it will be the demise of each local society who will find themselves overrun by a culture which has no business invading enlightened countries who left that primitive savagery behind centuries ago.
This is the time for European governments, along with all the others, who have made the foolish decision of allowing unrepentant barbarians to coexist with civilized human beings, to reassess their own security situation, because Thursday night was a reminder of what can happen. God help us if we continue to ignore the glaring signs and fail to extricate the deadly evil from our midst.
A former Jerusalem elementary and middle-school principal who made Aliyah in 1993 and became a member of Kibbutz Reim but now lives in the center of the country with her husband. She is the author of Mistake-Proof Parenting, based on the principles from the book of Proverbs - available on Amazon.
