Netanyahu orders rescue planes for Israeli football fans in Amsterdam

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent two rescue planes to the Netherlands on Friday after reports that Israeli soccer fans were injured in violence in Amsterdam.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu views the terrible incident with the utmost seriousness and demands that the Dutch government and security forces take strong and rapid action against the rioters and ensure the safety of our citizens,” his office said in a statement.

The prime minister's office did not say what led to the “very violent incident against Israeli citizens,” but Dutch media AT5 reported that there were fights between fans at a Europa League game between Maccabi Tel-Aviv and Ajax on Thursday evening had come.

According to the report, there were numerous fights and acts of vandalism in the city center.

“A large number of mobile unit vehicles are on site and reinforcements have also been requested,” it said.

The Israeli embassy in the United States said “hundreds” of Maccabi fans were “ambushed and attacked in Amsterdam this evening as they were leaving the stadium after a game.”

In its post on social media platform X, the embassy blamed the incident on a “mob targeting innocent Israelis.”

A Dutch police spokesman told the ANP news agency that 57 people had been arrested.

Israel's new Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said in a statement that he had asked the Dutch government for help to ensure the safe exit of Israeli citizens from their hotels to the airport.

Images on AT5 showed Dutch police escorting fans back to their hotels.

On Thursday, Amsterdam police said on social media that they were being particularly vigilant after several incidents, including the tearing down of a Palestinian flag from a building.

A pro-Palestinian rally against the Israeli football club's visit was originally scheduled to take place near the stadium, but was moved by the Amsterdam city council for security reasons.

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