The mayor of Amsterdam has announced tighter security measures in the city after a night of violence that officials described as anti-semitic, although there was evidence of provocative chanting from Israeli fans.
Israel sent commercial planes to the Netherlands to bring Israeli soccer fans back, with the first flight landing in Tel Aviv this afternoon.
Five people were hospitalised in Amsterdam and 62 arrested as a result of the clashes, police said.
Ten people remain in custody.
Videos on social media showed riot police intervening in clashes, with some attackers shouting anti-Israeli slurs.
However some footage also showed Israeli supporters chanting anti-Arab slogans before yesterday evening's match.
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were "attacked, abused and pelted with fireworks" and that riot police intervened to protect them and escort them to hotels.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered two rescue planes be sent to the Netherlands after the violence with videos circulating on social media showing street clashes overnight and riot police intervening.
Security measures were increased in the city, where hundreds gathered yesterday to remember Kristallnacht, the Nazi pogrom against Jews across Germany on 9-10 November 1938.
Demonstrations have been banned through the weekend and police have been given emergency stop-and-search powers in response to the unrest.
Anti-Semitic incidents have surged in the Netherlands since Israel launched its assault on Gaza after the attacks by the Palestinian Hamas group on 7 October 2023, with many Jewish organisations and schools reporting threats and hate mail.
Over 43,000 Palestinians have been killed and 102,000 others injured in Israel's military offensive, according to Gaza health officials, after the Palestinian militant group killed 1,200 Israelis and took more than 250 hostage, according to Israel.
Mr Netanyahu's office said the decision to order the 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.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has asked the Dutch government to help Israeli citizens arrive safely at the airport, he told his Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp in a phone call this morning.
One video verified by Reuters showed 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, we will f**k the Arabs", referring to the Israel Defence Forces.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said he was "horrified by the anti-semitic attacks on Israeli citizens", which he called "completely unacceptable".
Mr Schoof said he had assured Mr Netanyahu by phone that "the perpetrators will be identified and prosecuted".
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…
— Dick Schoof (@MinPres) November 8, 2024
Israeli President Isaac Herzog spoke with Dutch King Willem-Alexander, who he said had "expressed deep horror and shock over the criminal acts committed".
Mr Herzog quoted the king as saying the Netherlands had failed its Jewish community during World War II - under Nazi occupation and persecution - and again last night.
"We see with horror this morning, the shocking images and videos that since October 7th, we had hoped never to see again: an anti-Semitic pogrom currently taking place against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans and Israeli citizens in the heart of Amsterdam," he wrote on X.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned the attacks.
"Outraged by last night's vile attacks targeting Israeli citizens in Amsterdam," Ms von der Leyen said in a post on X, adding she had discussed the matter with Mr Schoof.
"I strongly condemn these unacceptable acts. Antisemitism has absolutely no place in Europe. And we are determined to fight all forms of hatred."
'Ashamed that this can happen in the Netherlands' - Wilders
Far-right MP Geert Wilders, the leader of the largest party in the Dutch government, condemned the reported Amsterdam attacks in a post on X.
"Ashamed that this can happen in the Netherlands. Totally unacceptable," he said.
Police said there had been incidents before the game, for which roughly 3,000 Maccabi supporters travelled to Amsterdam.
The Israeli embassy in The Hague said mobs had chanted anti-Israel slogans and shared videos of their violence on social media, "kicking, beating, even running over Israeli citizens".
"On the eve of Kristallnacht - when Jews in Nazi Germany faced brutal attacks - it is horrifying to witness anti-semitic violence on the streets of Europe once again," it said.
Police said 62 suspects had been detained after the game as pro-Palestinian demonstrators tried to reach the Johan Cruyff Arena, even though the city had forbidden a protest there.
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.
The largest-selling newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth quoted Israeli fans who said the attacks appeared to be planned.
Stade de France match to go ahead as planned
A Nations League football match between France and Israel will go ahead as planned next week at the Stade de France in Paris despite the clashes, the French interior minister said.
"Some are calling for the France-Israel match to be relocated. I do not accept this," Bruno Retailleau wrote on X.
"France is not backing down because that would amount to giving up in the face of threats of violence and anti-Semitism," he added, saying he had asked Paris police chief Laurent Nunez to take the necessary security measures for the 14 November match.
The Gaza war has sparked protests in support of both sides across Europe and the United States and Arabs and Jews have been attacked.
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