It’s been nearly three weeks, and the media is still ablaze with politicians and journalists trying to make sense of the Amsterdam pogrom. Many of them are trying to minimize a calculated, violent attack against Israelis and Jews by providing context that, while important, does not absolve the rioters of Jew hatred.
Amsterdam's mayor Femkle Halsema recently said that she “regrets” describing the event as a pogrom and expressed concern that the attack was politicized “to discriminate against Moroccan, Muslim residents.” Maybe Halsem’s concern about Muslim hate is genuine, but it is a mistake to minimize Jew hatred and ignore religious radicalism. Doing so makes both Jews and Muslims less safe.
On November 7, after a soccer game between Tel Aviv Maccabi and Ajax, Israeli and Jewish fans were violently assaulted. As eyewitnesses reported to StandWithUs, “they had seen attempted stabbings, people thrown in a river, with extremists beating and spitting on Israelis.”
This was preceded by reports of Maccabi fans tearing down a Palestinian flag and chanting anti-Arab slurs.
The anti-Arab slurs are horrible, but they do not justify premeditated violent action, nor do they somehow provide “context” for the actions of the rioters. Peace advocates from both sides must condemn violence or hate speech whenever either occurs in their own camp.
The following Monday night, antisemitic violence flared up again in Amsterdam. Rioters were reported to have set a tram on fire and had signs that read “Cancer Jews” in Dutch. Jerusalem Post reported that this slur meant “f*** the Jews.
Anti-Israel protesters often claim that their issue is not with Jews, but with Zionism. Many who support Palestinians probably don’t hate Jews. It’s also true that sometimes accusations of antisemitism are carelessly thrown around when some make good-faith attempts to criticize the Israeli government.
However, recent events in Amsterdam show that, too often, the pro-Palestine movement moves away from a better future for Palestinians and into wanton hatred for Israelis and Jews. While many in the pro-Palestine movement would not engage in these violent actions, too few are willing to condemn them.
Some took to X to justify the actions of the rioters. In response to a Joe Biden post, Mehdi Hasan seemed to justify the attacks by calling Israeli soccer fans “hooligans” who were “attacking people, ripping down Palestinian flags, and chanting happily that there are no kids alive in Gaza.”
After facing heavy backlash, Hasan later walked back his earlier tweet by saying that he is against all violence. He also painted himself as a victim of “a proper hit job from multiple high-follower, pro-Israel accounts, who are cynically using/abusing antisemitism to protect Israel and smear their opponents.”
Israel-Palestine is a contentious issue. If a prominent public figure like Hasan, a former MSNBC host, makes a statement, whether it be pro-Israel or pro-Palestine, they are going to face heavy pushback. High-ranking media personalities trying to play the victim is why many in America distrust the media.
Many in America are tired of the relentless politicking of pundits like Hasan. To Hasan, there’s always context for how Israelis, even when they face genuine violence, are the ultimate villains in this conflict. When pro-Palestine advocates act badly, there’s always some sort of “context” that makes their actions a little more sympathetic.
It’s hard to imagine Hasan would respond similarly if the situation were reversed.
Numerous times, anti-Israel protesters have been seen burning Israeli flags and holding bigoted “go back to Poland” signs, insinuating that Israeli Jews return to a country where 1.8 million Jews were imprisoned in a ghetto. Suppose pro-Israel students were to turn violent against these activists. In that case, it’s unlikely that Hasan would contextualize the violence against pro-Palestine activists by noting that they started it by saying racist slogans and burning Israeli flags.
The failure of pro-Palestinian voices to call out bad behavior in their own camp deeply undermines their movement. Fortunately, there are some who are willing to do so. Palestinian peace advocate Hamza Howidy said on X, “Regarding the pogrom-like violent attacks in Amsterdam last night by a group of criminals who, once again, used the “palestinian cause” name to spread their terrorism, let us first agree that violence is never justifiable; regardless of what the fans shouted, there are law enforcement staff in place to deal with such acts.”
Howidy often criticizes Hamas, the Israeli government, and the settler movement in the West Bank. He also has frequently denounced antisemitism when it appears in the pro-Palestine camp.
To be fair, while many pro-Israel voices denounce the Amsterdam pogrom, they failed to do the same for Maccabi fans, who were also misbehaving. In the pro-Israel camp, we should follow Howidy’s example in denouncing bad behavior in our own movement.
If more activists on both sides behaved like Howidy, we would see a more robust peace movement where advocates from both sides could work toward a secure, prosperous future for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Aviv Nathanael Phipps is a Middle East Politics and History Fellow at Young Voices. He also works in political marketing and teaches Hebrew school in Arlington, Virginia.
