Protesters vandalize Netherlands office of pro-Israel Christian group
Activists at demonstration led by Extinction Rebellion and other groups daub slogans on premises of Christians for Israel, intimidate staff arriving for work with ‘genocide’ claims
Anti-Israel demonstrators vandalized the offices of a Christian organization in the Netherlands that supports Israel, daubing the site Monday with slogans that accused its members of supporting genocide and killing babies.
The protest at the Christians for Israel Center in the central Dutch city of Nijkerk came weeks after the country was the site of attacks on Jewish Israeli soccer fans by pro-Palestinian activists in what officials described as an antisemitic pogrom.
Protesters in Nijkerk defaced a building where Christians for Israel is based, spray-painting slogans that accused Christians for Israel members of “supporting genocide” and being “child murderers” and “complicit in the events in Gaza,” it said.
“The protest occurred precisely as most staff members were arriving at work, catching many off guard,” the group said in a statement.
Climate justice organization Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility for the protest in a post to its X social media account, listing the local branches of Christian Collective and Justice Now as fellow participants.
“The vandalism created a distressing and hostile environment for staff and disrupted the organization’s daily activities,” Christians for Israel said.
Frank van Oordt, executive director of Christians for Israel Netherlands, said the group was “shocked that this is happening in our country” and more so that the action was taken by other Christians.
The incident came days before Christians for Israel planned to hold a major rally in Amsterdam in support of the Jewish community, after Israeli soccer fans and tourists were hounded through the streets amid violent clashes when Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv played the local Ajax soccer club earlier this month.
There has been continuing violence against Jewish people in Amsterdam by anti-Israel protesters in the weeks that followed.
The planned support rally “seems to have drawn the ire of organizations opposing Israel’s policies, some of whom have resorted to disruptive and destructive tactics,” Christians for Israel said.
Though staff immediately alerted police, the group said officers took three hours to disperse the demonstrators.
A Christians for Israel spokesperson said that staff tried to speak with the protesters but “instead of engaging with facts and constructive dialogue, they resort to yelling, vandalizing, and spreading misinformation.”
Christians for Israel was particularly dismayed since it also provides financial aid to Palestinian communities, the group said.
“For many years, we have contributed hundreds of thousands of Euros to organizations that aid Palestinians and foster cooperation between Arab and Jewish communities in Israel,” it said in the statement. “Accusing us of complicity in genocide ignores these facts.”
There were no injuries in the incident. Christians for Israel said it was the latest in a series of “targeted actions” against the group including similar vandalism of the building last summer.
The organization said it was working with authorities to ensure the safety of staff and the premises.
“Christians for Israel vows to continue its work undeterred, standing firm in the face of hostility and misinformation,” it said, adding that the incident serves to show the importance of the upcoming rally “which aims to foster solidarity and support for the Jewish people.”
On Tuesday, Justice Now protesters blocked the entrance of Dutch broadcaster NOS’s building in Hilversum accusing it of biased reporting in favor of Israel.
Since 8:00 this morning, we have been blocking the NOS building at the Mediapark. We demand journalistic responsibility and critical self-reflection.
“NOS: stop the legitimization of genocide”. [1/3] pic.twitter.com/HuS7bWLl1a— XR: Justice Now! (@XRJusticeNow) November 26, 2024
Israeli officials said 10 people were injured in the November 7 violence, perpetrated by local Arab and Muslim gangs against Maccabi fans after the match. Hundreds more Israelis huddled in their hotels for hours, fearing they could be attacked.
Many said that Dutch security forces were nowhere to be found as the Israeli tourists were ambushed by gangs of masked assailants who shouted pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel slogans while they hunted, beat, and harassed them.
Before the match, Maccabi fans burned a Palestinian flag, attacked a taxi, and chanted anti-Arab slogans, according to Amsterdam police chief Peter Holla. Footage of the incidents was widely circulated on social media.
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema initially called it a “pogrom” but later retracted the remark.
Violence against Jews continued following the November 7 attack, as anti-Israel protesters have repeatedly demonstrated in violation of a temporary ban on protests, prompting some skirmishes with police. In one incident, dozens of rioters clashed with officers and set a tram car on fire while chanting antisemitic slogans.
Antisemitic incidents in the Netherlands have surged, as they have around the world, since the Hamas terror group’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, in which terrorists from the Gaza Strip invaded and killed some 1,200 people, took 251 hostages and triggered the ongoing war there.
