Mick Hartley

Jonathan Sacerdoti in the Spectator – Amsterdam has failed its Jews:

Last night in Amsterdam, a scene unfolded that should send shockwaves across Europe: hundreds of Jews were hunted and beaten by mobs following a football match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax. Whether a spontaneous flare-up or organised assault, terrified fans were forced to jump into the city’s canals to escape violence. At least ten were injured, and three remain missing. As Israel dispatched emergency flights to evacuate its citizens, one must ask: how long until this happens in London or elsewhere in the UK?

The Netherlands must confront this issue immediately, not only for the safety of its Jewish residents and visitors but for the stability of its own society. The embassy of Israel in the US wrote that the attackers ‘proudly shared their violent acts on social media’. Who does that remind you of? The world has already witnessed this grotesque display from Hamas and Palestinian terrorists on 7 October. Now, in Amsterdam, we see echoes of the same perverse pride in brutality….

For those who say this is an isolated incident, look closer. The UK’s police forces have themselves admitted to inadequately handling the anti-Israel marches that swept through our streets. These protests, rife with anti-Semitic chants and rhetoric, were allowed to escalate unchecked under both Conservative and Labour governments. This failure isn’t just an oversight – it is a warning that we are dangerously close to allowing the same mob violence to happen here. Keir Starmer should take note: violence is not always carried out by ‘far-right’ perpetrators against pure and innocent immigrants. It is an affliction that can originate from any extremist ideology. While racist attacks against immigrants are rightly dealt with swiftly, a different standard appears to be applied when Jews are the targets.

Consider the infamous chants calling to ‘globalise the intifada’. What does that mean if not exporting violent, anti-Jewish sentiments into our own countries? The fact that such rhetoric is tolerated, even protected under the guise of free speech, speaks volumes about the selective indignation of our governments and law enforcement. This is not theoretical. When calls for ‘jihad’ were heard in London, the response from the police was not arrest but a feeble attempt at theological discourse, debating the meaning of jihad rather than addressing its real-world implications. What happened in Amsterdam is the logical conclusion of allowing such things to go unchecked.