Israeli FM slams Dutch mayor for retracting ‘pogrom’ statement
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar has slammed Amsterdam’s Mayor Femke Halsema after she told a panel that she regrets using the word “pogrom” when referring to recent violent clashes between Israeli football fans and pro-Palestinian protesters in the Dutch capital city.
On X, Saar said that Halsema’s statement was “outrageous and unacceptable”, adding that Israelis who were watching the football match in question were “chased and brutally attacked by a violent mob”.
“The most appropriate word for what happened is therefore: pogrom. Contrary to what the mayor said, the use of the word ‘pogrom’ regarding the events of that night does not amount to ‘Israeli propaganda’,” Sa’ar said.
“It was also used by senior Dutch politicians, who recognised the seriousness and anti-Semitic nature of the incident, including Geert Wilders, Caroline van der Plas and Chris Stopper. We will never again accept the persecution of Jews on European soil or anywhere else!”
"A pogrom is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews" That's not what happened. The riots were a reaction to football hooliganism driven by genocidal racists wreaking havoc in Amsterdam.
A brave Dutch photographer Annet De Graaf has single-handedly exposed BBC, Sky News and New York Times for running propaganda to help Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans. Her fight has resulted in a French TV outlet and New York Times issuing apologies/clarifications for running fake news. She has kow demanded similar actions from BBC and Sky News.
