Thousands attend rally against antisemitism in Amsterdam

Thousands of supporters of Israel and the Jewish community gathered in Amsterdam to protest against antisemitism, in an event jointly organised by Christian Zionists and Jewish organisations on Thursday night.

The demonstration, titled “Together Against Jew-Hatred”, was originally planned for the city’s Dam Square but was relocated to the more remote Stopera complex, a move many saw as a response to public order concerns raised by the local government.

The protest came in the wake of the violence earlier this month in which Israeli soccer fans who had come to the city for a match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax were attacked.

Christian Zionists, including speakers from the group Christians for Israel, rallied to express their solidarity with Jews and Israel, waving both Israeli and Dutch flags.

Frank van Oordt, director of Christians for Israel, condemned the rising hostility against Jews, especially in the wake of the recent assaults.

Van Oordt, whose father founded the group in 1979, told the crowd: “We see attempts to blame the Jews for violence against them and we are sick of it. We are standing by our Jews now, and we will not stand by as hatred is incited against them.”

The gathering was marked by a show of unity, with several attendees blowing the shofar in a symbolic gesture of defiance against antisemitism.

Naomi Mestrum, director of the Centre for Information and Documentation Israel, thanked the Christian Zionist community for their unwavering support, urging others to join the fight against hatred: “Everyone should be standing by the Jewish people now,” she said. “We are done talking. The authorities need to show up.”

However, tensions remained over the event's location. Mayor Femke Halsema, a former leader of the far-left GroenLinks party, had initially granted permission for the demonstration to take place at Dam Square but later moved the venue to Stopera, citing concerns about public safety.

Many in the crowd viewed this as an attempt to distance the protest from the site of the violent November 7 assault, which occurred near Dam Square.

The decision sparked criticism from several quarters, with some speakers voicing dissatisfaction with the mayor’s actions.

Esther Voet, editor-in-chief of the Dutch-Jewish weekly NIW, noted that the protest organisers had warned participants not to display Israeli flags when leaving the event, fearing potential attacks.

The protests also highlighted ongoing political divisions within the Netherlands, as politicians on the Dutch left have increasingly suggested that the violence surrounding the soccer game may have been provoked by Israeli actions.

Many, including the victims of the assaults, strongly dispute these claims.

In a related development, Mayor Halsema faced backlash for retracting her initial use of the term “pogrom” to describe the attacks, a term many felt was appropriate given the violence and antisemitic nature of the incident.