Muslim Hate in the Netherlands
Secret Israeli gov’t report exposes Dutch anti-Israel sentiment spiraling out of control
Following reports of recent violent attacks on Israeli fans in
Amsterdam, The JPost reveals an exclusive and classified report from
Israel’s Ministry for Diaspora Affairs and Combatting Antisemitism.
The Jerusalem Post
By ZVIKA KLEIN
NOVEMBER 8, 2024
In the heart of Amsterdam’s Dam Square on May 15, 2022, an ominous
scene unfolded. It was Nakba Day (marking the displacement of
Palestinians during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence), and the square
was filled with Palestinian flags, anti-Israel banners, and chants.
At the center of this protest stood Thomas Hofland, head of the
pro-Hamas Samidoun organization in the Netherlands, alongside Amin
Abu-Rashid, a known Hamas operative. As speakers from the stage lauded
Hamas as a “legitimate resistance movement” and even justified violence
against Israelis, the Jewish community in the Netherlands took note.
This rally wasn’t a one-time incident but an alarming sign of how
deeply anti-Israel sentiment has infiltrated Dutch society, from fringe
activism into mainstream public spaces, social media, and even legal
channels.
Today, following fresh reports of violent attacks on Israeli fans in
Amsterdam, The Jerusalem Post reveals an exclusive and highly
classified report from Israel’s Diaspora Affairs and Combatting
Antisemitism Ministry, written in May 2024.
The document, obtained by the Post, paints a disturbing picture of
rising anti-Israel sentiment and antisemitism in the Netherlands. This
anti-Israel agenda, as detailed in the report, spans public rallies,
legal and financial networks, social media influence, and even
instances of incitement.
It captures an increasingly hostile environment where anti-Israel
sentiment isn’t just tolerated but, at times, is celebrated and
encouraged.
The May 2022 Nakba Day protest in Dam Square was emblematic of this
shift. What was once considered radical rhetoric has become normalized,
not just in isolated protests but through widespread activism that
permeates Dutch society.
Since the start of the Israel-Hamas War on October 7, 2023, anti-Israel
demonstrations in the country have escalated in intensity and
hostility. Pro-Palestinian protests are no longer simply expressions of
solidarity but often calls for Israel’s complete isolation and, at
times, violent measures against Israelis and Jews.
The report outlines the scale of this shift, describing a coordinated
campaign led by key figures who have embedded anti-Israel rhetoric into
Dutch social and public discourse.
Key figures
At the center of this movement is Abu-Rashid, a well-known Hamas
operative whose influence stretches into prominent Dutch circles. In
May 2022, Dutch authorities raided his home, uncovering €150,000 in
cash and Hamas-related materials, a stark reminder of his financial
role in pro-Hamas activities.
Abu-Rashid is closely connected to high-profile figures, including
Gretta Duisenberg, widow of former European Central Bank president
Willem Duisenberg, who has long advocated for the Palestinian cause.
Together, they’ve constructed an influential network that allows
anti-Israel sentiment to take root and spread across Dutch society.
Another key figure in this landscape is Thomas van Gool, an activist
with the PAX peace organization. His presence in mainstream human
rights and peace groups lends a deceptive legitimacy to his calls for a
complete embargo on Israel.
In July 2023, he attended the Gaza Freedom Flotilla reception in
Rotterdam, where Palestinian flags were flown in solidarity with Hamas
causes. Events like these show his connection to pro-Hamas activism,
positioning him as a prominent figure in the Dutch anti-Israel sphere.
Also prominent is Hofland, who leads Samidoun, an organization linked
to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Hofland’s
defense of Hamas, which he frames as a legitimate force for Palestinian
“resistance,” has helped him gain influence, particularly among younger
Dutch activists.
On May 15, 2022, he led the Nakba Day protest in Dam Square, standing
with Abu-Rashid to reinforce the message that Hamas is a “legitimate
resistance movement.” Hofland’s framing of extremism as activism has
struck a chord with Dutch youth, further embedding anti-Israel
sentiment into mainstream spaces and discussions.
Abu-Rashid, van Gool, and Hofland are more than advocates; they are
architects of a network designed to isolate Israel. According to the
report, they organize fundraising efforts across Dutch cities, amassing
significant sums purportedly for humanitarian aid, but often directed
toward anti-Israel and pro-Hamas causes.
In May 2023, social activist Carolien Nieuweboer launched a campaign to
raise €100,000 to fill public spaces with pro-Palestinian billboards
across the Netherlands. These billboards display symbols reminiscent of
the Palestinian flag, normalizing anti-Israel sentiment in daily public
life.
By the report’s release, she had raised €83,000, demonstrating strong support for these anti-Israel initiatives.
Equally influential in fueling this sentiment is Rachid El Ghazaoui,
known as "Rapper Appa." His social media posts are known for their
inflammatory nature. In March 2023, he called for “military
intervention” and compared Israel to Nazi Germany, suggesting that
dismantling the state was the only solution.
Appa’s rhetoric reflects a broader trend where social media is
weaponized to amplify anti-Israel sentiment, often masked under the
guise of activism or freedom of speech.
Anti-Israel agenda
Beyond public advocacy and social media, this anti-Israel agenda has
taken hold in legal channels. Haroon Raza, a lawyer with the March 30
Movement, has leveraged the Dutch legal system to target Israeli
officials with lawsuits alleging war crimes and human rights abuses.
In March 2023, Raza’s organization filed a request for the arrest of
Israeli President Isaac Herzog during his visit to Amsterdam, accusing
him of “genocide” and “crimes against humanity.” These legal actions,
though often symbolic, reveal a broader strategy of weaponizing
international law to isolate Israeli leaders and delegitimize the
nation on a global stage.
Social media has proven a particularly powerful tool for these
activists. Platforms like Instagram and X/Twitter have enabled figures
like Nieuweboer and Hofland to amplify anti-Israel messages widely,
often bypassing censorship with covert symbols like the watermelon,
which resembles the Palestinian flag.
This tactic has embedded anti-Israel narratives into Dutch digital
spaces, reaching audiences far beyond traditional activism circles and
making these views mainstream. The ministry’s report warns that without
accountability, social media platforms risk becoming breeding grounds
for extremism, where such narratives are normalized and allowed to
spread unchecked.
Perhaps most troubling is the Dutch government’s muted response to
these activities. By framing anti-Israel sentiment as “human rights
advocacy,” the authorities have allowed this movement to flourish
unchecked. The ministry’s report, obtained exclusively by the Post,
highlights how this lack of accountability has led to an atmosphere
where antisemitic and anti-Israel rhetoric are tolerated and even
normalized.
The report closes with a stark warning: “The accumulation of activities
leads to one goal—harming the State of Israel on the international
level.” Despite this clear trajectory, Dutch authorities appear
reluctant to intervene, allowing activists to exploit public spaces,
legal systems, and social media to intensify their campaigns.
Friday's incident in Amsterdam is a tragic consequence of allowing such
hatred to go unchecked. When pro-Hamas voices dominate public
discourse, legal systems are used to target Israel, and extremists are
permitted to spread their narratives under the guise of free
expression, hostility inevitably turns to violence.
The violence against Israeli fans was not a spontaneous outburst; it
was the culmination of a society where anti-Israel sentiments have been
cultivated and tolerated for years.
The Netherlands now stands at a critical juncture. Will its leaders
choose to defend the values of tolerance and justice that the nation
upholds, or will they allow anti-Israel extremism to continue eroding
these principles? The writing has been on the wall, and the time for
decisive action is now.
A Pakistani religious leader is tried in his absence for allegedly threatening Geert Wilders
MIKE CORDER
Mon, September 2, 2024
SCHIPHOL, Netherlands (AP) — Prosecutors demanded a 14-year sentence
Monday for a Pakistani Muslim leader accused of inciting the murder of
anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders, the leader of the party that won
last year's general election in the Netherlands.
Muhammad Ashraf Asif Jalali did not appear for trial at a closely
guarded courtroom near Amsterdam as prosecutors accused him of abusing
his position as a religious leader to call on followers to hang or
behead Wilders.
In a second case, prosecutors sought a six-year sentence against a
second Pakistani man, Saad Rizvi, who leads the radical Islamist
Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan, or TLP, for incitement or threatening a
terrorist crime against Wilders. Rizvi also did not show up for his
trial.
Neither of the men is believed to be in the country, and Pakistan has
no extradition agreement with the Netherlands. Prosecutors said in a
statement that requests they sent to Pakistani authorities seeking
legal assistance to serve subpoenas on the two men were not executed.
They are the latest Dutch trials for Muslims who have threatened
Wilders' life, forcing him to live under around-the-clock police
protection for nearly 20 years because of his outspoken criticism of
Islam.
Last year, a former Pakistani cricketer, Khalid Latif, was sentenced to
12 years in prison over allegations that he had offered a reward for
the death of Wilders. Latif also did not appear for trial. In 2019, a
Pakistani man was arrested in the Netherlands, convicted and sentenced
to 10 years for preparing a terrorist attack on Wilders, who is
sometimes called the Dutch Donald Trump.
In a statement to the court, Wilders told judges of the impact of the
threats on his life, that has been lived under intense security since
2004. Two armed military police sat in court throughout the brief trial.
“Every day you get up and leave for work in armored cars, often with
sirens on, and you are always aware somewhere in the back of your mind
that this could be your last day,” Wilders told the court.
“I'm 60 now, I haven't been free since I was 40,” he added.
While Jalali and Rizvi are not likely to ever serve a sentence if
convicted, Wilders said he hoped the case would send a message to him
and the world that issuing death threats would not be accepted.
A prosecutor, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, told
judges in the Dutch court that threats began to be aired on social
media after Wilders' announcement that he was organizing a competition
for cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in 2018. The planned contest
sparked angry protests in Pakistan and elsewhere in the Muslim world in
2018.
Physical depictions of the prophet are forbidden in Islam and deeply offensive to Muslims.
In Pakistan, Rizvi’s TLP denounced the Dutch case, saying that instead
of trying the two clerics the court should have sentenced Wilders.
“Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan puts this question to the Dutch court:
Whether it was not Geert Wilders who should have been punished for
insulting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad,” TLP said in a statement.
“It is not freedom of expression. This is called Islamophobia, which is being done with a plan,” the party said.
TLP gained prominence after campaigning on the single issue of
defending the country’s blasphemy law, which calls for the death
penalty for anyone who insults Islam.
Wilders, who canceled the cartoon competition after angry reactions in
Muslim nations, told the three-judge panel he has paid a high price for
his actions, which he cast as defending freedom of expression.
Wilders' comments in the past have also fallen foul of Dutch law. An
appeals court in 2020 upheld his conviction for insulting Moroccans in
an election speech in 2014. He was not given a punishment, with a judge
saying that Wilders had already “paid a high price for expressing his
opinion,” a reference to the tight security the lawmaker lives under.
Massive increase of groomed Dutch girls by mostly Muslim men
By VOICE OF EUROPE
4 November 2018
The number of Dutch victims of grooming gangs has massively increased,
Gideon van Aartsen of International Children’s Rights Organisation
Terre des Hommes tells Dutch newspaper AD.
Van Aartsen, who leads a group of researchers of the grooming
phenomenon, says several different tactics are used to groom and
prostitute the Dutch girls.
“Minors are set to work in another country [Belgium] as a method to
keep them from running away,” the leader of the research group says.
According to van Aartsen there’s a massive increase in the number of
Dutch ‘loverboy’ victims.
The girls are being groomed, asked to send pictures and blackmailed
with these pictures. The men increase the pressure and make the girls
prostitute themselves. Some young girls have 20 customers in one day.
The ‘online trade’ of girls is one of the main reasons why Dutch, but
also Belgian girls are increasingly prostituted. Girls are being
groomed via Telegram, Tinder and school websites.
“It’s big business,” Van Aartsen says. “Sometimes 160 men reply to one advertisement within 48 hours.”
Research shows that 89 per cent of the pimps have migrant origins and
60 per cent are Muslims. They groom young and vulnerable girls via the
internet and put them to work as prostitutes.
This year an investigation of newspaper AD showed how 1,400 very young girls are being groomed and abused by mostly migrant men.
To battle the grooming gangs, the Dutch Terre des Hommes department will cooperate with Belgian justice.
Islamist plot to attack Amsterdam Synagogue uncovered
Dutch authorities uncover Islamist plot to attack Amsterdam Synagogue.
Likud Netherlands official says Jews not safe in Netherlands.
Gary Willig, 25/11/16
Israel National News
A plot by a Islamic terrorist cell to attack a synagogue in Amsterdam
was foiled by Dutch intelligence authorities, according to a report by
the Dutch daily, De Telegraaf.
De Telegraaf obtained a dossier from the Dutch Criminal Intelligence
Agency (TFI), which described a "James Bond-like plan" to attack a
synagogue and a bank.
An individual of Moroccan descent was identified as a member of the
cell planning to carry out the terrorist attacks. He and other
individuals associated with the Arrayan Mosque in northern Amsterdam
are suspected by the TFI of involvement in Islamist radicalization and
jihad-related activities.
Awi Cohen, a board member of Likud Netherlands, told the Algemeiner
that the plot is the latest evidence of the “very unsafe environment
for Jews” in the Netherlands.
“Because of the large influence of the Left and extreme Left in the
Netherlands, the problem [of Islamist terror] is not taken seriously
enough,” Cohen said. “They don’t want to acknowledge the problems that
come from immigration and ‘multiculturalism,’ and call issues raised
about safety ‘Islamophobia.'" Cohen told the Algemeiner.
The Chief Rabbi of the Netherlands Rabbi Binyamin Jacobs told Arutz
Sheva several years ago that Jews should simply leave the country as
they have no future there.
Jew-hatred ‘recurrent problem’ in Dutch schools
2-10-2016
The Jerusalem Post
The report, which is based on visits to schools and conversations with
dozens of teachers since January 2015, say that teachers sometimes feel
powerless to change the deep-seated biases.
AMSTERDAM — Anti-Semitism is a persistent problem in some Dutch schools
and especially among Muslim pupils, according to a new
government-commissioned report on discrimination in education.
The findings appeared in a 55-page report titled “Two Worlds, Two
Realities – How Do You Deal with It as a Teacher,” which was published
last week by Margalith Kleijwegt, a Dutch-Jewish journalist, at the
request of the Dutch ministry of education.
The report, which is based on visits to schools and conversations with
dozens of teachers since January 2015, say that teachers sometimes feel
powerless to change the deep-seated biases and violent attitudes of
some pupils, including on Jews.
One female teacher from Amsterdam of high school pupils following a
vocational education program told Kleijwegt of a lesson about
democratic values and against discrimination, in which a female pupil
of Moroccan descent stood up and said: “If I had a Kalashnikov [assault
rifle], I’d gun down all the Jews.” She then made shooting gestures and
sounds.
Shocked, the teacher tried to make the pupil empathize with a Jew but felt she was not getting through to the pupil.
“I wasn’t getting there,” the report quotes that teacher as saying. “I
asked her to imagine a 5-year-old Jewish girl who lives here. What
would she have to do with Israel’s policies? Unfortunately, there was
no place for empathy. The pupil didn’t care about that girl. She had
only one message: The Jews should die.”
In parallel, the report also found racist behavior directed at Muslim
children by some classmates, particularly following the arrival to
Europe of hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East last
year.
“Anti-Semitic behavior is a recurrent problem in some schools,”
Kleijwegt wrote. “Some see it as a provocation [by pupils], others fear
it goes deeper: That pupils receive anti-Jewish attitudes at home. The
same applies to the growing group of Dutch pupils who say foreigners
should rot and die. Is this provocation? Do they receive it at home?”
In the report, Dutch Education Minister Jet Bussemaker wrote that the
document “shows a reality that is inconvenient and sometimes painful”
but must be confronted and dealt with “in accordance to democratic
values.”
BUDDHISM INDEX