Israelis living in Europe have been warned to “strictly avoid” overtly Jewish people at cultural and sporting events in the wake of last week's “pogrom” in Amsterdam. Finding soccer matches is becoming increasingly difficult.
A strange phenomenon has befallen Israeli sports since the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel. Home games are not played at home – the sport's governing body UEFA says it is too dangerous for players to visit – and away games are increasingly not being played in the host country.
The possibility of Israeli football players and fans visiting foreign countries is currently subject to considerations such as “unreasonable risk,” “security concerns,” “politically sensitive,” “high risk,” and “fear of unrest.” It has been discussed since. European soccer used to have a serious hooliganism problem, but with advanced enforcement and social engineering through the game itself developed over many years, this problem has largely been eliminated. But today's security concerns are not a matter of thuggish fans, but rather the violent refusal to allow visiting nationals from the Jewish state to grace European cities.
This came to the fore last week with a major city-wide attack on Israeli soccer fans by pro-Palestinian thugs in Amsterdam after Maccabi Tel Aviv's match against the local team. It was reportedly organized through a messaging app and with the support of local taxi drivers to transport scores of soccer fans from the airport to their hotels, so they knew where to later carry out the violence, Holland said. media reports.
The attack has been compared to past “pogroms” against Jews by Dutch politicians on the right and left alike.
Less obvious, but equally insidious, are the cities that refuse to allow Israeli soccer to visit their cities in the first place. Israel's home games are currently played in Hungary to keep players and tourists out of the conflict zone, but away games are also increasingly being played there, where they would not be welcome in other countries. The Israeli sports world is on the verge of exile to Budapest.
Belgium is home to the institutions of the European Union and has long been notorious for being one of the most multicultural cities on the European continent. stubborn population Representatives of Islamic extremists flatly refused to allow Israeli football players to play there in this year's UEFA Championship. Belgian authorities said at the time that tensions surrounding the Israel-Hamas war made it “impossible to stage this extremely high-risk match.”
brussels signal Publication reported In July, several other Belgian cities also announced they had refused to host the tournament, as the city of Brussels sought to avoid exposing the city's new multicultural population to visiting Israelis. Climate and Sport Minister Benoît Herlings said there was a “disproportionate risk” in playing matches at home, “given the potential for violence in the stadium itself, in its immediate vicinity and in the city centre. We can't deal with a situation like this.” There is a risk of endangering the safety of our fellow citizens. ”
The publication quoted French populist right-wing politician Damien Rieux as saying about the decision: “This is the first time, as far as I know, that a European country has officially acknowledged that it is no longer the master of its territory, except in war situations'' due to the overly pressing Arab-Muslim presence. . ” Le Monde reported It added: “This decision was taken for security reasons, as all Belgian cities had refused to host such matches for fear of unrest,” adding that the country is a de facto no-go zone for Israelis. He emphasized the view that it is becoming more and more. Their safety is not guaranteed.
So why, among European countries, is Hungary the only one responsible for welcoming Israeli football players and fans to their home and many away games?
There are several reasons why Hungary was chosen for the Israeli soccer match, all of which boil down to the fact that Hungarians have repeatedly voted for Viktor Orbán, a former anti-communist activist, as prime minister. be done.
Firstly, given that Hungarian immigration has one of the lowest levels among Western countries, Hungary has a very small resident population that is likely to be actively pro-Palestinian, and this suggests that This is President Orbán's important policy of maintaining a 'Hungarian state'.
And Hungary is very friendly with Israel, with Prime Minister Orbán having strong personal ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and frequently referring to Hungary as the last remaining safe haven for Jews who want to live in peace in Europe. is being advertised.
Finally, for a country of its size, Hungary has excellent infrastructure for football itself. Given that Orbán was a lifelong soccer fan, oversaw the construction of modern stadiums, and played well into his middle age, Hungary has an infrastructure of its own. Orbán loves soccer that left wing media criticized him In the past, in recognition of his dedication to the game.
Even after the “pogrom” against soccer fans in Amsterdam shocked the world, opinions remain divided over how Israel should approach the sport. Israel has more away games scheduled, including a “high-risk” match against France this Thursday, but security has been significantly stepped up.
it was reported On Tuesday morning, French media reported that the French government would use the match to show solidarity with Israel. French President Emmanuel Macron and new Prime Minister Michel Barnier are also expected to attend the match.
“Paris welcomes Israeli football players and fans…Sport should be a moment of friendship, celebration and gathering between people,” French Minister Benjamin Addad said today. He said the presence of top politicians at the match was a “strong message of friendship and fraternity” and criticized hard-line leftists in the country who called for the match to be canceled.
At the other end of the scale is Turkey, which is not a European nation but still participates in European football and is also a member of the Western NATO defense alliance. They announced that the match against Israel scheduled for November 28 will no longer be held in Istanbul and will be moved elsewhere, to Hungary.
Regardless of whether it increases the police presence or not, the Israeli government appears to be taking no risks to the safety of its citizens ahead of this week's match against France. France is a country that has serious problems with multiculturalism and Islamism itself. israel national security council Published warning “We warn people abroad to be aware of the intentions of supporters of pro-Palestinian terrorism who carry out violent attacks against Israelis in the name of demonstrations and protests,” he said Monday.
The group said it was concerned that “terrorism/lone wolf actors” would take advantage of anti-Israel riots in European cities to carry out attacks. Its advice is to “categorically avoid attending Israeli sporting/cultural events abroad” and “to avoid being identified as Israeli/Jewish, including when booking a taxi/car through an app.” “Be especially careful about hiding things that are sexual.”
The soccer match between France and Israel was specifically cited as a threat. Still, the National Security Council also said that “preparations to harm Israelis have been identified in several European cities,” including “major British cities” Brussels and Amsterdam.
Although Israelis have been clearly warned, harsh experience shows that Israeli matches are not the only pretext for Islamists to murder visiting soccer fans in recent years. In a terrorist attack in Brussels in October 2023, two Swedish supporters were killed by an Islamic State-inspired gunman who opened fire on people wearing Swedish colors after a soccer match.
The attacker, Abdesalem Rasoud, shouted “Allahu Akbar” and was said to be angry that the Swedish state had not shown enough respect to Muslims by refusing to enact blasphemy laws. are. He was then found by police in Brussels's Skaalbeek district, where terrorism frequently occurs, and was fatally shot during the arrest process.
