Jewish Londoner hospitalised after saving Israeli in Amsterdam
EXCLUSIVE: Aaron from Hendon was surrounded by a violent gang of 10 after intervening after a football match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and AFC Ajax.
A 33-year-old Jewish man has revealed how he was violently attacked and hospitalised after stepping in to stop a gang assault on an Israeli man in Amsterdam on Thursday evening.
The incident followed a Europa FC match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and AFC Ajax, during which Maccabi fans were targeted by thugs shouting pro-Palestinian slogans.
The father of two from Hendon recounted the harrowing ordeal to Jewish News. “We left the game early to meet a friend. As we walked towards the bar area, chaos broke out—mopeds appeared from alleyways and a crowd surrounded an Israeli man.”
He described the horrifying scene: “The man was on the ground, his head pinned between a kerb and a metal gate, being viciously kicked.”
Aaron and his friend Jacob intervened, managing to push the attackers away and help the victim. “We thought it was over,” he said. But moments later, the gang returned and confronted them, asking, “Are you Yehudi? Are you Jewish?”
Jacob, a father of three from Golders Green, said the thugs asked to see their passports to check whether they were Jewish.
Despite denying they were Israeli and pleading to be left alone, the gang continued their intimidation, grabbing Aaron’s friend’s coat before the situation escalated further.
“I told him to leave him alone, and the next thing I know he punched me in the face. It was so unexpected. My glasses were broken, my nose split. Blood everywhere. After he punched me, about 20 more came out of their hiding places to effectively finish me off. But I stood my ground. I said what you’re doing is why you’re not getting any support.”
When the leader of the gang said: “He’s British, leave him alone”, another responded “Yes, but he helped a Jew.”
“That,” says Aaron, “is why they were angry. Because I helped a Jew.”
He said the the police turned up “after around 45 minutes. Before the game there was a massive police presence. They were taking it seriously. But after the game I think they were scared. I saw this poor dad with his kid running towards the hotel. They probably got him. They weren’t looking for Israelis. They were looking for Jews. They knew what they were doing. It wasn’t a random ‘Oh, let’s get an Israeli’. It was organised. It was ‘We want Jews. We want Jewish blood’.”
Aaron, who had emergency stitches at a local hospital, told Jewish News: “I am glad I stepped in to help that man. I was glad they didn’t get me any further. I felt very bad for the Israelis. One of the guys then came over to apologise, saying, ‘Sorry we thought you were Zionist.”
Jacob adds that after the apology, one of the gang said: “The streets are full of Zionists and we need to get the Zionists”. He adds: “I’m not one to be afraid but it was a dangerous situation. It was gangs of people looking for blood.”
He adds: “It’s completely ridiculous to say that the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were riling people up. This is a wake up call because it can happen here in the UK too. They wanted to kill that guy I helped. They were just stamping on his head. I think he went to the police. I just picked him up and shouted ‘leave him alone’ and they ran off.”
In a statement CST said it was “disgusted by the violence directed at Maccabi Tel Aviv fans in Amsterdam last night and we want to express our support and solidarity for the Dutch Jewish community.”
Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis issued a statement saying: “Utterly devastating scenes from The Netherlands. Hateful mobs have chased down Jewish & Israeli football fans on the streets of Amsterdam after a match, violently beating them and proudly posting the footage on social media. Many are injured and three people are currently missing. This should be a watershed moment for Europe and for the world, when it realises how severe the scourge of anti-Jewish hatred has become. Sadly, I fear it will not be and that tragically, this will not be the last such attack, God forbid.”
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