'Amsterdam riots were not pogrom,' mayor says, defending Muslim population

Amsterdam Mayor Femka Halsema said she regretted calling the riots in Amsterdam a “pogrom” because this was being used to discriminate against the Moroccan-Muslim population of the city, Dutch media reported on Monday.

The riots that erupted following an Ajax-Maccabi Tel Aviv game led to mass violence throughout the city. Large groups attacked people they suspected were Jewish or Israeli, often demanding to see their identification to confirm their ethnicity.

In an interview with Dutch state media NOS, Halsema said that she would not use the term “pogrom” to describe the events again and that it was wrong to do so initially.

At first, she said at the press conference immediately following the riots that “young men on scooters crisscrossed the city looking for Israeli football fans. It was a ‘hit-and-run.’ I fully understand that this brings back memories of pogroms.”

She backtracked on these comments, saying she did not want to make a direct comparison with pogroms and that she was merely trying to empathize with Jewish Amsterdammers.

However, Halsema said during a debate in the city council last Tuesday, before the most recent interview, that she still fully supported the use of the term “pogrom.” She admitted that the city’s municipality, police, and Public Prosecution Service had not succeeded in keeping the city safe.

During the same session, members of the conservative VVD called for a vote of no confidence in her despite the futility of such a vote, as Halsema’s governing coalition (consisting of Left, Green, and Liberal parties) held a clear majority (24-45).

'Pogrom' was Israeli propaganda

She accused the Israeli government and Dutch national politicians of using the term as propaganda to attack the Muslim community in Amsterdam.

“If I had known that it would be used politically in this way, and also as propaganda... I want nothing to do with that,” Halsema said.

“The Israeli government spoke of a ‘Palestinian pogrom on the streets of Amsterdam,’ and in The Hague, the words were used to discriminate against Moroccan Amsterdammers – Muslims. That is not what I meant or what I wanted.”

THE HAGUE, the home of the Dutch parliament, saw fierce debates over the riots, leading Geert Wilders, the head of the largest far Right party in the country, PVV, to call for all those involved to be deported and have their citizenship revoked.

Previously, Wilders’ views led to him being excluded from mainstream politics until his victory in the 2023 Dutch elections.

Halsema said she received no prior indications from security services that things would get so out of hand, according to NOS. However, De Telegraaf had reported on November 5 that Mossad agents were being sent along with Maccabi Tel Aviv.

De Telegraaf later reported that police initially believed that the rioters were looking for a group confrontation, and only after the event had begun did they realize the purpose was to assault individual Israelis.

Amsterdam police are currently looking at 45 people on suspicion of “serious violent crimes” committed on the night of the riots, according to NU.nl.

Police will be periodically releasing images of the suspects so that the public can help identify them.

Nine of the 45 have been identified and arrested and remain in custody as of November 17.

Summary of the events of the riot

NU.nl summarized the events of the riots. The day before the match, aggressive and threatening messages were sent to supporters traveling with the team.

That evening, Maccabi fans tore down a Palestinian flag and vandalized a taxi, apparently leading to a confrontation, which Amsterdam police defused.

In the lead-up to the match, more calls for action against Maccabi fans were sent. Following the match, Israelis in the city center were “attacked, abused, and pelted with fireworks.”

Police said these actions were “antisemitic by character.”

Group chats had called for a “Jew-hunt,” and people were attacked for their nationality as well as for enjoying the nightlife.

Maccabi fans were seen with belts, planks, and iron pipes attacking passers-by.

In the following days, riots persisted in Amsterdam despite the evacuation of Israelis from the city.