Amsterdam suddenly came into the spotlight after Ajax’s match against Maccabi Tel Aviv. It was not the stunning score- five goals for the Dutch team versus nothing for their Israeli counterpart – that caught the world’s attention. What caught the world’s attention were the violent clashes that took place in the quiet canal city.
The details of the events gradually became clear, and how the aggressive Maccabi Tel-Aviv fans ignited daily life in Amsterdam in an almost unprecedented manner in the history of the Europa League, and which subsequently provoked violent backlash. Rather than simply condemning acts of violence that should not have unfolded as they did, these developments should raise serious concerns in Europe, in a way that apparently went unnoticed.
Tensions began in Amsterdam when thousands of Israeli fans, some of them soldiers or reservists in the Israeli army, arrived for the Maccabi Tel Aviv vs. Ajax match on Thursday evening, 7 November. They are not your typical sports fan, as they are exclusively male and divided into fascist groups such as the Maccabi Fanatics, as evidenced by their chants, slogans and posters. Since the middle of the week, they have been harassing peaceful demonstrations showing solidarity with Palestine across Amsterdam and have begun threatening Dutch taxi drivers of Arab and Muslim backgrounds. The Israeli fans have been clearly aggressive, threatening passersby and those filming their violent behavior with iron bars, and there have been reports of provocations and attacks, particularly against taxi drivers. Palestinian flags hanging from some windows in the city were the target of their vandalism, and video clips showed some of them climbing walls in an unexpected manner in Amsterdam, tearing down the flags and ripping them.
The Maccabi Fanatics group organized provocative gatherings and fascist marches during their presence in Amsterdam, especially on Wednesday and Thursday (6 and 7 November), such as in the central Dam Square, during which signs were raised glorifying the Israeli occupation army and supporting the war it has been waging for a year on the Gaza Strip. Maccabi fans stuck a huge number of posters bearing fascist symbols in the name of their various groups on poles and walls in the heart of the Dutch city, and insulted those who objected to their expressions, as documented by video footage.
The city’s roads and means of transportation were crowded with Israeli fans who continued to chant slogans praising the Israeli army, supporting the ongoing brutal war, and openly celebrating the killing of children in the Gaza Strip, in addition to the disgusting racist chants against the Palestinian people and Arabs, in general. These themes were repeated relentlessly in the lyrics of the Maccabi Fanatics fan anthem, a fascist anthem filled with very aggressive and offensive words, the lyrics of which are published in Hebrew on the group’s websites. The fact that this anthem was sung on the streets, in the subway stations and even in the stadium, is shocking by all standards, and this was done before the eyes of UEFA officials and delegates and Dutch police officers, of course. Due to the lyrics of the fascist anthem being in Hebrew, the fans sometimes made sure to say parts of it in English as well, sometimes using it as offensive insults.
The aggressive and provocative behavior of the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans was clear during the minute of silence for the victims of the Spanish floods, which they broke with loud chants and smoke in their section of the stands. This is a major insult to the victims and their families, and clear contempt for the suffering of the Spanish people and a violation of the message of solidarity intended by the match organizers. As soon as the match ended with their team’s historic loss, by five goals to zero, the aggressive behavior began to escalate further outside the stadium, as Israeli crowds continued to chant fascist slogans on the roads and at public transportation stations. The night ended with groups of young men from Amsterdam’s neighborhoods going out to fight with Israeli fans, who quickly fled to their hotels as they were chased through the streets, with some being severely beaten, as documented in some videos.
The Israeli leadership did not ignore the events, and issued statements giving the impression that what happened in Amsterdam was similar to the events of 7 October, as Israeli President Isaac Herzog suggested. Israeli news channels continuously broadcasted disjointed reports on the events that omitted all the developments that led to them. Most of the first reports in European and Western media did not go beyond one narrative, namely, “the attack on Israeli fans in Amsterdam”, despite the circulation of videos that gave a complete picture of the events. After the hasty news reports, the real picture gradually began to emerge. Only then did some reports touch on the aggressive behavior that the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans engaged in, and the fascist and racist chants that they chanted in Amsterdam. More video clips were provided showing their violent practices, and the police spoke about the attacks they carried out.
While the Benjamin Netanyahu government continued to portray the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans as peaceful victims, they were seen upon their arrival at Ben Gurion Airport starting on Friday evening (8 November) continuing with the same fascist chants that are in their anthem in which they are glorifying the Israeli army, supporting the ongoing brutal war, celebrating the killing of children in the Gaza Strip and express explicit racism against the Palestinian people and Arabs, in general, as shown in video clips they posted on social media.
This aggressive and provocative behavior is not new to the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans, as they have previously done this, even in Europe. This includes their behavior in Athens when they attended their team’s match against Greece’s Olympiacos on 7 March this year. On that day, a group of them violently assaulted, severely beat, and kicked a young Arab man they saw carrying a Palestinian flag in a public square. They left him lying on the ground, struggling and in pain. This incident was recorded and reported by the Greek press at the time, including the country’s most prominent newspaper, Kathimerini. It was strange that, at the time, the incident went without punishment or disciplinary action, even by the Union of European Football Association (UEFA), and it seems that this encouraged the offenders to continue their actions in the following months.
The behavior of the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans who came to Europe, including Israeli soldiers and settlers, is just a sample of what is on the surface, and this should cause deep concern for the continent about the increasing deterioration and decline that Israeli society is experiencing. The fans of this club express the extent to which the Occupation and settlement society has drifted towards fascism, racism and aggression, especially with the observation of more extreme sports club fans in Israel, so they are actually closer to expressing the mainstream public. The events in Amsterdam, and before that, the events in Athens, are an indicator of the state of Israeli society under the racist fascist right-wing government that has been in power for two years, and in the context of a brutal war of genocide that has been ongoing for over a year. A society can no longer be seen as normal if it celebrates its army’s killing of tens of thousands of women, children, elderly and sick people from a society under Occupation in just one year, and then its fans chant racist slogans rejoicing in these acts before the eyes of the world in European capitals, in a manner that goes beyond the limits of sports cheering or even the violence of stadium hooligans. It is worth noting that the Maccabi Fanatics movement continued to show support for the Occupation army in its war and continues to provide aid and moral support to the soldiers, as shown in the circulated photos.
It also seems that the unlimited expressions of support for the ongoing brutal war on the Gaza Strip issued by Western leaders since the beginning of this season of horrors, including prominent politicians in the Netherlands itself, such as the most prominent racist politician, Geert Wilders, whose party won the last elections, made these masses feel that supporting the ongoing war crimes against the Palestinian people is welcome, even in the squares of the state that hosts the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. Moreover, Donald Trump’s victory in the US elections is an additional encouragement in this direction, so it is no wonder that the Maccabi Tel Aviv crowds were seen in Amsterdam holding a Trump banner as they walked through the streets chanting their fascist slogans celebrating the killing of Gaza’s children and calling for the elimination of Arabs.
The aggressive and racist manifestations expressed by these masses in Europe remain very mild compared to the behavior of some, who carry weapons or carry out campaigns of aggression and raids against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip or the West Bank. Perhaps some of them have also committed war crimes while being assured impunity and immunity from accountability and punishment.
-Hossam Shaker is a researcher and author, consultant in media, public relations, and mass communication for a number of organizations in Europe, and he resides in Vienna. He has an interest in analysis of European and international affairs, as well as social and media issues. His article appeared in MEMO.
