Comments from Jewish organizations, San Diego Jewish leaders below
By Sacha Roytman-Dratwa
MOUNDRIDGE, Kansas — Today, we are confronted by another painful chapter of violent antisemitism in Europe, this time in Amsterdam. Following a soccer match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israeli fans were systematically targeted in a series of violent ambushes just because they were Jewish, and at least five suffered injuries requiring hospitalization.
Islamist mobs shouting “Free Palestine” marauded the streets, hunting for Jews to harass and brutally assault, and Dutch law enforcement entities appeared to lack both the power and will to stop them.
As the CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM), this hits too close to home for me. 20 years ago, I left my family home in Brussels, Belgium – a short two-hour train ride from Amsterdam – after personally experiencing an unchecked rise of antisemitism there. Hostile anti-Israel narratives were propagated by the media and social activists, and politicians, motivated by electoral interests, stayed silent. Today, we see the horrifying consequences of allowing these vitriolic seeds to take root and grow over the past two decades.
Exactly 86 years after Kristallnacht, this is a pivotal moment in history for both Europe and the wider world. The global surge in antisemitic rhetoric and violence triggered by Hamas’ October 7th massacre reminds us that antisemitism remains a potent threat to the fabric of democratic societies. The incident in Amsterdam should be viewed as Europe’s new Kristallnacht – a stark warning of the dangers of unfettered hate.
In my Euronews op-ed today, “A New Kristallnacht: Antisemitic Violence and Europe’s Responsibility,” I wrote that I worry less for the Jews of Europe than for Europe itself. European Jews will not wait to see where this hatred leads – they’ll leave, and Europe will be left to confront the extremism it has permitted to develop.
The fight against antisemitism is not a Jewish cause alone – it is a fight for the soul of Western civilization as a whole. We must act to ensure that history does not repeat itself, that the Amsterdam Pogrom becomes a rallying point for defending our common values rather than a symbol of failure.
Either European society admits defeat in its vow of “Never Again,” or it rises to the moment and rejects antisemitism and extremism firmly, once and for all.
CAM launched a European department three years ago to confront contemporary manifestations of antisemitism on the continent. Led by our Director of European Affairs Oriana Marie Krueger, our team engages in a broad array of initiatives to secure and nurture European Jewish life, including a growing network of mayors united by this common mission.
Several years ago, Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema participated in CAM’s annual Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism. Yet even as she condemned antisemitism generally, she chose to exclude anti-Zionist forms of antisemitism. Last night, we saw the results of such flawed leadership.
*
Sacha Roytman-Dratwa is the chief executive officer of the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement (CAM)
There were these additional reactions to the antisemitic violence in Amsterdam:
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
WASHINGTON, DC – The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum strongly condemns the vicious attacks on Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam and the outrageous celebrations of those attacks, which are warning signs for any society. We commend the Dutch authorities for their rapid denunciation of these antisemitic attacks. Governments and citizens must always hold perpetrators accountable and work to prevent hatred of Jews.
“This event is especially chilling, coming just as we mark the 86th anniversary of the November pogrom (Kristallnacht), when Jews throughout Nazi Germany were systematically attacked by Nazis as fellow citizens looked on,” said Museum Chairman Stuart E. Eizenstat. “Holocaust history is an urgent reminder about the dangers of silence and complicity and the need for all societies to aggressively confront antisemitism.”
*
World Jewish Congress
World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder issued the following statement in reaction to last night’s violent attacks targeting Jewish supporters of the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team in Amsterdam:
“The World Jewish Congress strongly condemns the vicious attacks on Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam. This unprovoked violence—resulting in serious injuries and reports of missing persons—has not only shaken the Israeli and Dutch Jewish communities but underscores the global resurgence of antisemitism that continues to metastasize across societies worldwide.
“We extend our deepest solidarity to the victims of this despicable act and to their families, who are enduring the pain and anguish of an unspeakable assault. We commend Dutch officials for recognizing the severity of this attack and for their swift commitment to pursuing justice. This response is essential to demonstrate that such acts of hatred have no place in the Netherlands—a nation with a solemn historical responsibility to protect its Jewish community and all who may be targeted by hate-fueled violence.
“The World Jewish Congress calls on Dutch authorities to not only pursue the perpetrators with the full force of the law but to strengthen security measures to prevent any escalation. In a time when antisemitism is rising worldwide, it is imperative that leaders in every country reaffirm their commitment to the safety and dignity of Jewish communities and all who visit their nations.
“It must also be acknowledged that this attack took place on the sidelines of a sporting event. Football has the profound power to unite communities around the world. Yet, in this case—and in other recent incidents—it has been misused to isolate and target Jewish and Israeli supporters. Governing bodies, leagues, and clubs must act decisively to address this issue before we witness another dark chapter of history repeating itself.”
*
American Jewish Committee
I’m writing to update you on the truly horrifying events from Amsterdam last night and to share with you American Jewish Committee’s urgent response. This modern-day pogrom reflects a broader rise in antisemitic violence across Europe – fueled not only by extremist hatred but also by the rhetoric and complacency of some European leaders. Let’s be clear: when people chant, “Globalize the Intifada,” the widespread violence unleashed on Jews last night is exactly what they mean.
Here’s what happened: Fans of Israel’s Tel Aviv Maccabi soccer club were brutally assaulted in a series of ambushes across Amsterdam following the conclusion of Maccabi’s match against AJAX, a local team whose fans have historically employed Jewish and Israeli symbols. The victims reported being attacked both outside the game by mobs for hours, repeatedly beaten, kicked, and chased. “[The attackers] were waiting in groups at every corner and the moment they identified Jews, they chased them,” one Israeli told Kan News.
Here’s where things stand: The Israeli government says that 10 Israelis were wounded. According to Amsterdam police, five people were hospitalized and have since been released, and 62 people have now been arrested. Eyewitness reports indicate Dutch police were slow to respond as the violence was unfolding, but the Dutch government has since deployed security forces to ensure that Israelis could safely exit the country today.
Here’s what AJC is doing: As soon as initial reports came in last night, AJC engaged with the highest levels of the Dutch government urging them to take urgent action to protect Jews in Amsterdam and bring the perpetrators to justice. Simultaneously, AJC’s eight European posts consulted with local Jewish communities and called on European leaders to act now to prevent similar such attacks throughout the continent. Those calls were reinforced by AJC’s 25 U.S. Regional Offices in separate communiques to European consulates in the U.S. AJC has also spurred Members of Congress and Congressional Caucuses to urge European decision makers to take action.
What AJC CEO Ted Deutch is saying: “Human beings were hunted down on the streets of a Western European capital tonight because they are Israelis. Because they’re Jews. This violent anti-Zionism is antisemitism. Normalizing calls for the destruction of Israel puts Jews in the Netherlands and the U.S. and around the world ALL at risk.”
The big picture: The growing challenges to our community, like last night’s attack, are global challenges that require a global response. AJC is the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people and is the organization that has spent decades building the global architecture, expertise, and relationships we need acutely at this moment.
What AJC is calling for: Actions, not words. While many European leaders have rightfully condemned this appalling attack, and some have even committed to a series of principles, nations across Europe must implement measures that protect Jews, enforce hate crime and anti-discrimination laws to show that there will be consequences for such offenses, and educate their populations and law enforcement about Jews and antisemitism.
The main point: Anti-Zionism is a form of antisemitism. When Jews are verbally or physically harassed in response to actions of the State of Israel, that is antisemitism. This cannot be dismissed as merely another soccer riot. It is flat out wrong to accept violence as the unavoidable consequences of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Last night’s events were a chilling reminder of Europe’s darkest chapters on the eve of the Anniversary of Kristallnacht on November 9.
As the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, AJC is committed to shaping a new future in which Jews around the world can live in safety and security.
StandWithUs
StandWithUs is horrified by the pogrom that took place in Amsterdam on November 8, 2024 following a soccer game in which Maccabi Tel Aviv were competing. Videos show Hamas-supporters on the streets praising the terrorist group and expressing hate for Jews. Following the game, Jews were hunted and attacked on the streets by mobs. Fans reported being attacked by Arabic-speaking gangs. They targeted men, women and children in the early hours of the morning. Eyewitnesses spoke of attempted stabbings, people thrown in a river, with extremists beating and spitting on Israelis.
These brutal attacks should alarm everyone. There must be zero tolerance for assaulting a group of people because of their identity. Israeli airlines have added flights to bring Israelis home from Holland.
Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs said: “These acts are a mark of shame on The Netherlands and Europe and are reminiscent of scenes we thought had been consigned to history. We wish a full recovery to those who suffered injuries during this attack and expect authorities to act strongly both against the perpetrators of this attack and to ensure that this can never be repeated in Amsterdam, or any city in Europe. We expect major sporting bodies and all those of good faith to condemn this extremist, antisemitic violence and take greater precaution and increase security at future events. That this was able to happen in 2024, on the day before the anniversary of Kristallnacht, is abominable.”
Yahly Bar Lev, Executive Director of StandWithUs Netherlands added: “StandWithUs Netherlands is on the ground and helping efforts to get Israelis to safety. We are updating locals and Israelis about the situation via our Instagram page: http://www.instagram.com/standwithusnl”
We remain anxious about the wellbeing of those who were hurt and await updates on the condition of the victims.
*
Rabbi Jason Nevarez, Congregation Beth Israel, San Diego
This morning, we woke up again to news of a brutal attack on members of our global Jewish family. In the very city where Anne Frank hid (and almost to the day of the annual commemoration of Kristallnacht), Israeli soccer fans found themselves hunted and attacked – a modern day pogrom – just for showing up in Jewish pride.
Israeli fans of the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team were assaulted in the streets of Amsterdam, singled out and targeted. The sorrow, anger, and vulnerability we feel are real and deep. These acts, fueled by hatred, strike at the heart of our Jewish community, and there must be accountability. History teaches us the cost of silence; we know this must never happen again.
Seeing Jews once again targeted in Amsterdam reawakens the painful memories of past pogroms against our people, and these acts are meant to silence us. We will not be silent. We will speak out and weep and pray and sing and unite as a community.
So let me offer a gentle reminder and request:
The Reminder: Our community is not defined by fear. Especially in these moments, we are grounded in our collective strength, the richness our tradition offers us, and the [Jewish and secular] practices that restore our spirits.
The Request: In a webinar this morning with JFNA (Jewish Federations of North America), the head of the Amsterdam Jewish community, as a response to this pogrom, requested that our synagogues be open and full tonight all over the world. It is essential to gather in community, especially in those moments of joy or sadness. I know many of you are already planning to join us to officially install our new Assistant Rabbi, Elana Ackerman Hirsch. If this was not your plan, please reconsider and join us tonight in song and solidarity. We will hold this painful moment as we continue to sing and rejoice.
*
Rabbi Hanan Leberman, Tifereth Israel Synagogue, San Diego
The events that took place last night in Amsterdam once again have left us speechless and deeply troubled. Just two days before the anniversary of Kristallnacht, we saw acts of hatred unfold in the very streets where Anne Frank once hid, simply for being Jewish. Through the screens in our homes, we witnessed the horrifying sight of anti-Semites targeting Jews to beat, humiliate, and terrorize. These scenes remind us of a painful history we thought would never return.
We cannot dismiss these chants of “From the river to the sea” and “Intifada revolution” as mere slogans—they are rallying cries for a vision that seeks the erasure of our people. As a community, we must take a stand against this hate. If this were happening to any other minority, we would be there to support them. It is now our turn to ask for the same solidarity.
My answer to this hatred is too lean even more deeply into my Jewish identity, to be proud of who I am, and to encourage us all to embrace our Jewishness publicly and boldly. Hate must not push us into hiding; rather, it should reaffirm our commitment to be exactly who we are, unashamed and unafraid.
Tonight as we welcome Shabbat, we will be blessed to welcome back Felix Ungur a member of our own community from his reserve duty in the IDF. While we prayed together during the High Holy Days, he was in Israel, standing watch over our people. Let his bravery inspire us. Let his dedication be a light that shines on our path, strengthening our resolve to carry forward our heritage with pride.
Let us be courageous, so we can offer strength and support to others who suffer from hate. And let us draw hope from the words of Anne Frank: “Where there’s hope, there’s life. It fills us with fresh courage and makes us strong again.”
May we hold fast to this hope, may it give us strength, and may we move forward, together.
*
Heidi Gantwerk, Jewish Federation of San Diego:
Spending the morning reading accounts of the organized, antisemitic, brutal attack on Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam, it feels like we have crossed a new threshold. While the increasing level of antisemitic vitriol over the past year (and before) has brought echoes of Germany during the 1930s, last night’s attack, in which more than 50 Israelis were injured, and many more terrorized, is nothing less than a modern-day pogrom. That it took place on the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht is chilling and should serve as a wake-up call to world leaders. And it should do the same for us. This morning, it is more important than ever that we stand together, in unity, as a Jewish people. We cannot risk anything less. But solidarity is not simple, and it is not always easy.
Just days after the 2024 election, it feels to many as if the divides in our society have deepened, and that sometimes we are speaking to one another across a chasm. In this moment, in which each side can at times find the other’s worldview almost impossible to understand, I believe our San Diego kehillah can create a space where we model what it means to see each other as whole human beings, to practice respect and compassion, and to build on common ground in our work serving our community and the Jewish people. The mitzvah of tikkun olam, the commandment to repair the world, does not change depending on who holds power. It is our obligation, and our privilege, regardless.
This past year, so many times since October 7, we have held one another up. Whether in grief, in celebration, in advocacy, or in service, thousands of Jews in San Diego have gathered, volunteered, donated, lobbied, reflected, created, and supported one another. Organizations representing every segment of our community have been working in partnership to support Israel, and to protect, strengthen and sustain the Jewish people. We have seen, more clearly than we have for many years, that as Jews, there is so much more that connects us than divides us.
Last Friday, a delegation of high school students from Sha’ar HaNegev arrived in San Diego – nearly 100 11th grade students who have been through hell since the morning of October 7th. Our Jewish community – orthodox, conservative, reform, reconstructionist, none of the above, left, right and center – is stepping up to embrace these young people and make them part of our San Diego family.
Politics don’t come into play in this deeply meaningful and rewarding act of tikkun olam. Caring about the Jewish people and the people of Israel is the only requirement.
*
The Museum of Jewish Heritage, New York City
The Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust’s Board Chairman Bruce Ratner and President and CEO Jack Kliger issue the following statement in response to the antisemitic attacks that took place at a soccer match in Amsterdam on November 7, 2024:
“Tomorrow marks the 86th anniversary of Germany’s Kristallnacht, one of history’s most notorious and pivotal pogroms, but the terror visited on Jews that night is resurgent today.
The antisemitic, violent attacks against Jewish soccer fans at yesterday’s Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer game in Amsterdam were abhorrent.
We cannot conflate the right to express civil and democratic dissent with the actions of a government—including Israel’s government— with the vicious beatings and harassment of Israeli citizens and other Jews belonging to the global diaspora; this is hateful antisemitism. It is criminal, immoral, and requires the strongest condemnation.
Jews deserve to exist, live, and thrive with safety—whether walking the streets in the communities where they live or when visiting another country as tourists.
Antisemitism, which has festered for thousands of years, is as old a hatred as it is current, and that should trouble us all. As leaders of New York’s Holocaust museum, we are deeply disturbed by the documented rise in antisemitic views and violence across the globe, including in the United States and here in New York.
We urge elected officials, religious and community leaders, educators and institutions everywhere to teach the lessons of history, demonstrate moral courage, and commit themselves to extinguishing this hatred once and for all.”
Harriet Schleifer, Chair, and William C. Daroff, CEO, of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, issued the following statement:
“The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations strongly condemns the deeply troubling and antisemitic attacks that occurred Thursday night against Israelis and Jewish supporters of Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam following a soccer match. These acts of hatred, where individuals were targeted in the streets, beaten to unconsciousness, attacked with knives, clubs, and vehicles, and told to shelter in their hotel rooms for safety, are a stark reminder of the dangers that Jews continue to face globally.
“As we approach the anniversary of Kristallnacht—the 1938 pogrom in Nazi Germany that marked the beginning of violent, state-sanctioned antisemitism and the eventual Holocaust—these recent assaults reinforce the pressing need for vigilance. Israel’s rapid response in dispatching emergency flights to assist its citizens and Jewish community members demonstrates the critical role that the State of Israel plays as a protector of Jews worldwide.
“The Conference calls on European leaders and the global community to take decisive action against rising antisemitism and ensure the safety and security of Jewish communities. Last night’s events and other targeted violence against Jews around the world are the predictable result of popular slogans like “globalize the intifada.” World leaders must recognize antisemitism in all its forms and halt the proliferation of this hatred however it manifests. We also emphasize that acts of hatred must be universally condemned and must not be exploited to foster any form of bigotry.
“Antisemitism in any form is an attack on the values of humanity and peace. The Jewish community will continue to stand united and resilient in the face of threats, such as those in Amsterdam, and we urge immediate, collective measures to prevent further violence and discrimination.”