A British-Jewish man was left with blood streaming down his face after he helped an Israeli football fan being attacked by an anti-Jewish gang in Amsterdam on Thursday evening.
Chillingly, the 33-year-old from Hendon, north London, known only as Aaron, recalled how the thugs were not looking for Israelis - they were looking for Jews in shocking anti-Semitic scenes that followed a Europa FC match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and AFC Ajax.
Dutch police said 62 arrests were made as a result of the clashes, as the first of six rescue planes carrying Israeli football fans landed at Israels Ben Gurion airport on Friday night.
Sickening videos flooded social media showing Israeli fans being chased and beaten on the streets, with some assailants heard shouting free Palestine.
Israelis were also reportedly injured in hit and run attacks by scooter gangs according to Mayor Femke Halsema, with the attackers largely able to evade around 200 officers during the night of chaos.
A British-Jewish man known only as Aaron was left with blood streaming down his face after he stepped in to help an Israeli football fan from being attacked by an anti-Jewish gang in Amsterdam on Thursday evening
Witnesses have told of the shocking anti-Semitic scenes that followed a Europa FC match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and AFC Ajax on Thursday
Shocking footage that has emerged of Thursday nights events appear to show a man being kicked by a group of thugs while lying on the ground
One video shows a man being dragged by his coat, with the person taking the video swearing at him and shouting statements in support of Gaza
Recounting the horror of his ordeal, Aaron told Jewish News: We left the game early to meet a friend.
As we walked towards the bar area, chaos broke out—mopeds appeared from alleyways and a crowd surrounded an Israeli man.
The father-of-two said he then witnessed the helpless fan on the ground, his head pinned between a kerb and a metal gate, being viciously kicked.
Aaron, who was with his friend Jacob, who is also from London, decided to intervene and pushed the attackers away.
We thought it was over, he said.
But moments later, the gang returned and confronted them, asking, Are you Yehudi? Are you Jewish?
Jacob, a father-of-three from Golders Green, north London, said the men asked to see their passports to check whether they were Jewish or not.
Despite denying they were Israeli, the men continued to harass the terrified pair and grabbed onto Jacobs coat.
I told him to leave him alone, and the next thing I know he punched me in the face. It was so unexpected.
My glasses were broken, my nose split. Blood everywhere.
After he punched me, about 20 more came out of their hiding places to effectively finish me off.
Demonstrators run with Palestinian flags ahead of the UEFA Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv
Pro-Palestinian supporters march with Palestinian flags near the Ajax stadium in Amsterdam
But I stood my ground. I said what youre doing is why youre not getting any support.
When the leader of the gang said: Hes British, leave him alone, another responded Yes, but he helped a Jew.
That, says Aaron, is why they were angry. Because I helped a Jew.
Aaron claims he did not see any police officers until after around 45 minutes and believes they may have been scared by the violent scenes as they unfolded.
He continued: I saw this poor dad with his kid running towards the hotel.
They probably got him. They werent looking for Israelis. They were looking for Jews. They knew what they were doing.
It wasnt a random Oh, lets get an Israeli. It was organised. It was We want Jews. We want Jewish blood.
Aaron later received stitches for his facial injuries at a local hospital.
In the moments following his attack, one of the gang came over to apologise to him, saying, Sorry we thought you were Zionist.
Jacob added that after the apology, one of the gang said: The streets are full of Zionists and we need to get the Zionists.
He said: Im not one to be afraid but it was a dangerous situation. It was gangs of people looking for blood.
He adds: They wanted to kill that guy I helped. They were just stamping on his head.
Ten people were injured in the violence, Israeli officials said, with the Times of Israel and other outlets in the country reporting the attacks were largely perpetrated by Amsterdam locals of Arabic origin.
The sickening disturbance came just hours before the 85th anniversary of Kristallnacht, a notorious night of Nazi violence in which Jews were murdered and synagogues and Jewish-owned stores were vandalised and set alight.
As the situation calmed into Friday morning, Dutch King Willem-Alexander shared his deep horror and shock over the events in a call with Isaac Herzog, telling the Israeli president: We failed the Jewish community of the Netherlands during World War Two, and last night we failed again.
Security forces were today given emergency powers, with police able to search people and face coverings and protests banned across the city as authorities try to reassure the Jewish community in the wake of the shocking violence.
What we know so far:
- Emergency measures are now in place - a ban on protests and face coverings
- Around 800 police personnel were deployed overnight as the situation spiralled
- Authorities said 10 of the 62 people arrested are still being held by police
- Police said five were hospitalised, but Israeli officials say 10 were injured in total
Police are still trying to establish exactly who was behind the horrific attacks and hunt all the perpetrators down.
Israels new foreign minister Gideon Saar was reported to be travelling to the Dutch capital following Thursday nights events.
The Israeli government urged its citizens to stay inside their hotels and not have Jewish symbols on show if they did go outside on Friday morning, and announced two military cargo planes to repatriate citizens before these were later stood down.
Amsterdam is looking back at a black night, today is a dark day, Mayor Halsema said at a press conference today addressing the attacks, which she labelled an explosion of anti-Semitism.
Boys on scooters were driving through the town looking for Maccabi supporters, it was hit and run. Football fans were attacked and then rioters fled, running away from the police forces.
I do understand that this reminds us of pogroms, and that this has happened in Amsterdam is reprehensible.
The history of our city has been deeply damaged, the Jewish culture has been threatened.
She added that city police had been taken by surprise after security services failed to flag the match against Ajax Amsterdam, traditionally identified as a Jewish club, as high-risk.
Some 800 police officers deployed to tackle the violence, but police today admitted that things got out of control.
People who were out in the city at the time were forced to seek shelter in shops, according to reports, while hundreds of Israelis shut themselves in their hotels as they waited for the violence to subside.
One victim suffered a broken leg after being set upon by gang members, according to Dutch media, with authorities saying the rioters were actively looking for Israeli fans.
This outbreak of violence against Israeli fans has crossed all boundaries and cannot be justified, police said in a news conference.
Graphic footage shows a man being set on by a masked gang who knock him to the ground and start punching him, as he appears to say I am not Jewish and pleads with them to stop.
Further video shows a man covering his head as he is hit by an attacker yelling this is for the children... free Palestine now!
Hours before the match, fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv staged a pro-Israel demonstration at the Dam Square in the city
In the lead-up to the Ajax vs Maccabi Tel Aviv match, several areas of Amsterdam were designated as security risk zones
Fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv stage a pro-Israel demonstration at the Dam Square
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof denounced the completely unacceptable anti-Semitic attacks on Israelis.
I followed with horror the coverage from Amsterdam, Schoof wrote on X, adding that he had spoken with Netanyahu to assure him that the perpetrators will be tracked down and prosecuted.
Netanyahus office said he told Schoof that he views the premeditated anti-Semitic attack against Israeli citizens with utmost seriousness and [has] requested increased security for the Jewish community in the Netherlands.
Britains Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said on X: Utterly devastating scenes from The Netherlands. Hateful mobs have chased down Jewish & Israeli football fans on the streets of Amsterdam after a match, violently beating them and proudly posting the footage on social media.
Many are injured and three people are currently missing. This should be a watershed moment for Europe and for the world, when it realises how severe the scourge of anti-Jewish hatred has become.
Sadly, I fear it will not be and that tragically, this will not be the last such attack, God forbid.
The head of the Holocaust Educational Trust, Karen Pollock CBE, said of the events: We are absolutely horrified at the shocking scenes from Amsterdam where Israeli and Jewish football fans have been hunted down, threatened and beaten up.
We are reminded yet again that anti-Semitism starts with words but ends in violence.
To see this on the eve of Kristallnacht where Jewish people were attacked, their homes, businesses and synagogues destroyed; and in the city of Anne Frank, must be a wake-up call for the authorities in European countries to deal with this rise of racism.
We will redouble our efforts to call out this Jew hatred and demand urgent action whenever and wherever anti-Semitism rears its head.
We must all - Jews and non-Jews alike - say enough is enough.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he was horrified by the anti-Semitic attacks on Israeli citizens.
Tory MP Robert Jenrick posted on X: These werent clashes. It was a modern-day pogrom. And another warning to the West about the consequences of mass migration and failed integration. Wake up before its too late.
Amsterdam police said on social media yesterday that they were being particularly vigilant in the wake of several incidents, including the tearing down of a Palestinian flag from a building.
A pro-Palestinian rally demonstrating against the Israeli football clubs visit was initially scheduled to take place near the stadium but was relocated by the Amsterdam city council for security reasons.