Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) on Friday urged Israelis in Amsterdam to return home as soon as possible, advising them to shelter in place and avoid wearing Jewish or Israeli symbols when venturing outside.
The warning followed a series of violent attacks by masked men, some carrying Palestinian flags, targeting Israeli fans after a Europa League match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax.
Israelis attacked in Amsterdam
At least 10 Israelis were reported injured in the assaults, with two remaining out of contact, according to the Foreign Ministry. Eyewitnesses described a chaotic scene involving car-ramming, stabbings and beatings in several areas of Amsterdam, as attackers attempted to storm hotels where Israeli fans were staying.
"Running away to the hotel, bringing the wounded in with you, hearing about people who can't find them, hearing crazy explosions from all sides. Fuck football, just let everyone return safely from here," one fan wrote on social media.
In response, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered flights to evacuate stranded Israelis from Amsterdam. The NSC advised Israelis facing threats to contact the Israeli mission at +31646312161 or the Foreign Ministry’s situation room at 025303155.
Some Israelis described what they saw as a coordinated attack by groups "hunting down" Israelis, with Dutch police reportedly outnumbered and struggling to control the situation.
“I just completed a four-month reserve in Gaza, and what I experienced here is no less scary. There is a war out here. They ran over me and pulled a knife on me. I’m slightly injured but won’t seek treatment here—only in Israel,” said one fan, who described the streets as “complete chaos” and felt the police had “abandoned” them.
"They are everywhere. No police, complete chaos. Everything was pre-planned. The police here abandoned us. Every fourth person walking the street is a Muslim who has come to attack Jews. Me and several hundred other fans are surrounded inside the hotel, police don't allow us to leave. They just want to fly home."
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said the violence should serve as a warning sign to all of Europe about the dangers of radical Islam's violence. "Those who ignore Islamic terrorism in the Middle East will encounter it at home, in Europe and the West. Today the victims are Israelis, tomorrow it will be you, the Europeans," he said.
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