Posted on: November 11, 2024, 08:06h.
Last updated on: November 11, 2024, 08:06h.
Amsterdam’s Holland Casino was a refuge for hundreds of Israeli soccer fans during last week’s bloody attacks, some of which took place near the gaming property, according to recent news reports.
Wednesday night, many hours before a soccer match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and a team from The Netherlands, scores of angry drivers parked their taxis outside of the casino.
Mob Was Mobilized
They had been encouraged on chat groups to “mobilize,” according to The New York Times. Inside the casino, several hundred Israeli fans sought refuge from violence taking place on the streets of Amsterdam.
Taxi drivers, boys on scooters, and people on foot were searching for Israelis to beat up.
One young Israeli man made his way into the casino after he suffered cuts on his face and hands. Assailants on scooters had attacked him outside, according to the Times.
All his face was blood,” another Israeli in the casino, identified as “Barak,” told the Times.
Near the casino were about 50 rioters, Ynet, an Israeli news outlet, further reported. Some of the mob were allegedly holding knives, sticks or clubs.
Casino security guards reportedly locked down the building and the Israelis were directed to seek shelter in a downstairs location.
“About half an hour later, around seven police vehicles arrived,” one victim told Israeli news media.
The police began escorting us out in small groups through an alternate route to avoid the attackers. They didn’t have a clear solution — just told us, ‘Go away and hope everything will be fine.’”
“We left in tiny groups. The whole situation was surreal. The city is filled with Palestinian flags, and nearly every taxi driver is Arab. If they realize you’re Israeli, there’s a lot of hostility,” a man identified as Or Shponder, was further quoted by Ynet.
Casino Guard Among Attack Planners
Also, an unnamed security guard at the Holland Casino posted on a chat group that he would reveal if the Israelis returned to the casino, the Times reported.
“The man who was employed by a subcontractor of the Holland Casino, was found to have been part of a social media group coordinating the violent assaults on Amsterdam streets after the match,” Ynet revealed.
Holland Casino will not allow the security guard to return to work.
We informed his employers that he is no longer welcome here,” Holland Casino said in a statement. “Staff working for the casino directly or through subcontractors of the casino, serve interests of the establishment, our employees and our guests, first and foremost, and that was not the case here.”
One poster on the Jerusalem Post, Israel’s foremost newspaper, said the casino guard who helped to plan attacks “should be arrested.”
Before the city-wide violence was brought under control, five victims were hospitalized. Dozens were injured. Some had broken legs.
Holland Casino has condemned the violence. The casino started its own investigation, Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), a Dutch TV station, reported.
Many in the mobs yelled out “Free Palestine” and shouted anti-Israeli slurs as they beat or threatened Israelis, according to Reuters and other news services. Taxi drivers were alleged to have tried to ram into Israelis on Amsterdam’s streets.
Special flights were sent to Amsterdam so thousands of Israelis could be rescued and return to Israel.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof pledged the “perpetrators will be tracked down and prosecuted.”
Before the orchestrated attacks against the Israelis, some Israeli soccer fans reportedly taunted those who showed support for Palestinians. A Palestinian flag was torn down and anti-Palestinian chants were heard in Amsterdam, according to media reports. There was also a confrontation with a taxi driver.
