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Amsterdam police say it will arrest people defying demonstration ban
Amsterdam police have instructed protesters to leave Dam Square, located in the city centre and said they would arrest people who refuse to leave, the city of Amsterdam said on the social media platform X.
Earlier today, a court in Amsterdam upheld a ban on demonstrations in the city that was imposed after Israeli football fans clashed with pro-Palestinian protesters.
Amsterdam football clashes fallout is polarising, dangerous
Police have surrounded protesters who have come out to vent their anger about the framing of the riots last Thursday night as anti-Semitic.
There is a ban for protesting imposed but people decided to appear anyway. These are student groups, Palestine Solidarity groups, anti-racism groups. Some people have been arrested. Police are trying to remove them from the square. I’ve also seen tourists from India questioned by police.
The mayor and the authorities in the Netherlands and also in Israel have only focused on the violence committed against the Israeli Maccabi football fans. This violence has led to fear among Jewish people in Amsterdam.
But this is not the only side of the story. What happened is that the Maccabi fans – hooligans – came to Amsterdam. They had racist songs glorifying the genocide in Gaza. They attacked people here as well.
More and more pictures are emerging, with these fans with iron poles and sticks also attacking people. And that side of the story is just simply not being told. And that’s why people here are very angry.
This is a protest ban which we also don’t know any history of in Amsterdam. The mayor has always said that protesting in the Netherlands is a fundamental right. So now this ban is very serious and people are very much worrying about what this could lead to, looking at freedom of speech.
There’s a lot of Islamophobic rhetoric also going around. The situation is very much polarised and increasingly dangerous.
Dozens arrested after defying Amsterdam protest ban
Dutch police have arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters in Amsterdam after they defied a demonstration ban put in place in the wake of clashes between Israeli football fans and groups of youths.
Earlier in the day, the Amsterdam District Court upheld a decision by the mayor to ban protests in the city, three days after it was rocked by violence between Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans and men on scooters in several areas of the city.
But hundreds of protesters nevertheless gathered in the city’s Dam square, holding up placards that said “We want our streets back” and chanting “Free Palestine”, an AFP correspondent saw.
Police in riot gear moved in on the protesters in the afternoon, shortly after the court upheld the ban on protests.
Dutch activist Frank van der Linde applied for an urgent permit to demonstrate on the city’s famous Dam Square, despite a temporary ban on protests announced by mayor Femke Halsema on Friday.
Van der Linde wanted to protest on the Dam against the “genocide in Gaza, but also because our right to protest has been taken away,” Dutch national news agency ANP quoted him as saying.
I'm glad I moved to Canada. Dutch politics and racism have only been getting worse since I moved. (Not that Canada isn't racist but at least it's recognized here and is getting addressed https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/combatting-racism-discrimination/canada-anti-racism-strategy.html )
France bans Palestinian flags for match against Israel
The head of the police in the French capital announced a ban on Palestinian flags at the Stade de France during the upcoming match between the French national team and its Israeli counterpart as part of the UEFA Nations League.
In an interview with French media, Laurent Nunez said: “There cannot be any politically motivated messages in the stadiums, including Palestinian flags. Only French and Israeli flags will be present in the stadium.”
The Paris police chief said more than 4,000 security personnel will be deployed, including 2,500 to secure the perimeter of the Stade de France and ensure no security issues arise similar to those in Amsterdam.
Like the Israeli flags are not politically motivated... Banning the Palestinian flag is not going to solve any problems.
