The European Union of Jewish Students (EUJS) unequivocally condemns the shocking and appalling violence inflicted on Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters in Amsterdam following the Ajax-Maccabi Tel Aviv match. In what can only be described as a brutal and inhumane pogrom, fans were hunted down, chased, beaten, kicked, thrown in a river and, horrifyingly, ran over by a car. At least ten Israeli fans have been injured, and many unaccounted for after hours, with some of their passports and identification documents stolen.
Sport should symbolise peace, unity, and coexistence, bringing people together beyond politics and prejudice. Instead, these principles were heinously violated, transforming a football event into a dangerous battleground. Such attacks against individuals based on their identity or nationality must have no place in Europe or anywhere in the world.
We call on European leaders, institutions, and all people of conscience to stand together in a united, unequivocal condemnation of this despicable act. We demand a swift, transparent, and thorough investigation, and we call upon Dutch authorities and the European community to ensure that those responsible face justice. Let this incident, not the first one of its kind, serve as a wake-up call, reminding us of the urgent need to root out antisemitism from our societies, recognizing that anti-Zionism often masks this hatred and fuels dangerous hostility against Jewish communities everywhere.
