Israeli Maccabi Tel Aviv Fans Amsterdam Attack

Overview

The Israeli Maccabi Tel Aviv Fans Amsterdam Attack refers to a clash between Israeli football fans of the team Maccabi Tel Aviv and pro-Palestine supporters in Amsterdam, Netherlands on November 7th, 2024. According to Dutch authorities, there were calls on social media from younger residents in city to target Jewish fans and pro-Palestinian demonstrators were banned from gathering outside the stadium. Videos also showed some of the Israelis chanting anti-Arab remarks and vandalizing Palestinian flags. Pro-Palestine supporters then clashed with them, causing an outburst of violence in the city that was captured in various footage online, and many were hospitalized in the attacks. In the wake of the events, some major news outlets dubbed the attacks antisemitic, further calling it a pogrom (a riot aiming to massacre or expell an ethnic or religious group). Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly addressed the incident and claimed that two Israelis were missing after the clashes. Netanyahu's office also sent planes to Amsterdam to bring citizens home. The event caused viral reactions and discourse on social media platforms like Twitter / X and Reddit where viral videos of the attacks spread. The online buzz added to previous discussions and posts about the ongoing war in Gaza and Israel.

Background

On November 7th, 2024, professional football clubs AFC Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv squared off in a Europa League match in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Ajax bested M. Tel Aviv five goals to zero.^[1] Autorities in Amsterdam reportedly banned pro-Palestinian demonstrators from gathering outside the stadium prior to the match.^[16]

During the match, Israeli M. Tel Aviv fans were organized near Amsterdam's central station. Videos showed them singing, "There are no schools in Gaza because there are no children left," "Death to the Arabs" and "Let the IDF win. We will f--- the Arabs."^[2][3] For instance, videos were shared by X^[4] user @ShaykhSulaiman on November 7th, whose tweet received over 5,200 likes in a day (shown below).

'Let the IDF win to Fuck the Arabs!'

Maccabi Tel Aviv hooligans chanted this genocidal song whilst being protected by the police in Amsterdam.

The song has a verse saying,'There are no schools in Gaza because there are no children left.' pic.twitter.com/01GU1JCFe7

— Sulaiman Ahmed (@ShaykhSulaiman) November 7, 2024

Israeli M. Tel Aviv fans also tore down a Palestine flag off a building in Amsterdam.^[2] The video was shared X^[5] @CalmDownPlzzz, among others, on November 7th, who received over 25,000 likes in a day (shown below).

Tel Aviv Zionist fans though it was a good idea to take down a Palestine flag in Amsterdam, they got their bollix kicked in and fucked into the canal. 😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/BR9HxVZ9PW

— Jack (@CalmDownPlzzz) November 7, 2024

Outbursts of violence between Israeli M. Tel Aviv fans and pro-Palestine bystanders occurred on November 7th, 2024, before and after the game.^[3] Five people were hospitalized, 20-30 people suffered minor injuries and 64 people were reportedly arrested by Dutch authorities.^[2]

According to AP News,^[16] Dutch authorities said "hordes of young people" were "apparently riled up by calls on social media to target Jewish people." Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said the calls stemmed from Telegram and that there was "talk of people going on a Jew hunt" on the platform. Addressing the incident, Mayor Halsema said, "Anti-Semitic, hateful rioters and criminals yesterday and last night have attacked Jewish visitors visiting our city."^[6]

Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the incident a "pogrom" (a type of violent riot with the goal of massacring or expelling a particular ethnic or religious group, especially Jews) on X^[7] in a post that received over 5,100 likes in a day (shown below). Along with Israeli PM Netanyahu, the country sent "rescue planes" to Amsterdam to recover the Israeli citizens.^[6]

Online Reactions

Videos of the violence and posts about the incident in Amsterdam spread on social media platforms like X on November 7th, 2024. For instance, on the day, X^[8] user @GalacticoRM7 tweeted a video from Snapchat allegedly showing an Israeli man getting "jumped" by "Moroccan taxi drivers" causing him to jump in the canal to avoid the attack. The post received over 59,000 likes in a day before the account was suspended (screenshot shown below).

Others on X expressed concern over the event, like X^[9] user @bariweiss on November 7th, who quote tweeted a video of an Israeli man being attacked in Amsterdam, writing, "There is a pogrom unfolding right now on the streets of Amsterdam." The quote gained over 11,000 likes in a day (shown below).

There is a pogrom unfolding right now on the streets of Amsterdam. https://t.co/kV2LGpaGgd

— Bari Weiss (@bariweiss) November 8, 2024

X^[9] user @bariweiss then received pushback for calling the event a "pogrom" by X^[10] user @jennineak on November 7th, 2024, who said, "These Israelis were at the football match in Amsterdam chanting death to Arabs, tearing down Palestine flags in the streets and mocking dead children." Her quote tweet gained over 35,000 likes in a day (shown below).

Also on November 7th, Redditor^[14] epic_taco_time spread the story to the subreddit /r/worldnews, receiving over 9,700 upvotes and 2,300 comments in a day. A similar post was shared by Redditor^[15] Several-Zombies6547 to /r/europe, gaining over 3,100 upvotes and 2,200 comments in a day.

Alt-right X accounts also engaged in the discourse. For instance, a tweet including four videos of the event was shared by X^[11] user @SuppressedNws on November 7th, 2024. The tweet lead with the "high voltage" or lightning emoji (⚡), which is a known symbol of Nazism online because it resembles the SS Bolts.^[12] The tweet received over 12.1 million views and 115,000 likes in a day (shown below).

⚡️BREAKING: Maccabi Tel Aviv hooligans are getting attacked right now in the Netherlands after ignoring the minute of silence for Valencia victims and singing racist chants about extermination of Arabs.

Dutch Moroccans are making them aware that this isn’t Israel. pic.twitter.com/LKJEkgHgLu

— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws) November 8, 2024

Alt-right pundit Nick Fuentes also chimed in on the event in a post on X^[13] shared on November 8th in which he attacked the Israeli media and government, receiving over 10,000 likes in an hour.

Various Reactions

Search Interest

External References