By Enas Alashray and Bart H. Meijer
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has directed that two rescue planes be sent immediately to Amsterdam following “a very violent incident” targeting Israelis citizens, his office said on Friday, after attacks linked to a football game were reported.
Israel’s national security ministry has also urged its citizens in the Dutch city to stay in their hotel rooms following the attacks, the prime minister’s office said in a second statement.
“Fans who went to see a football game, encountered anti-Semitism and were attacked with unimaginable cruelty just because of their Jewishness and Israeliness,” Israeli Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in a post on X.
Local police said 57 people had been held after the game as pro-Palestinian demonstrators tried to reach the Johan Cruyff stadium, even though the city had forbidden them to protest there.
Police said fans had left the stadium without incidents, but during the night various clashes in the city centre were reported.
The Israeli military said it is preparing to immediately deploy a rescue mission with the coordination of the Dutch government after the football game, in which Ajax Amsterdam, traditionally identified as a Jewish club, defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv 5-0.
“The mission will be deployed using cargo aircraft and include medical and rescue teams,” the IDF said.
Video on social media showed crowds running through the streets and a man being beaten.
The Dutch ministry of foreign affairs had no immediate comment on the statements by the Israeli government.
Passions have been running high in the Middle East and abroad since the Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7 2023, killing 1,200 Israelis and taking more than 250 hostage, according to Israel.
At least 43,469 Palestinians have been killed and 102,561 others injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza in response to the Hamas attack, according to health officials in the enclave.
The Gaza war has sparked protests in support of both sides across Europe and the United States and Arabs and Jews have been attacked.
Anti-Muslim politician 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.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has asked the Dutch government to help Israeli citizens arrive safely at the airport, Saar told his Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp in a phone call on Friday.
