Four sentenced to prison for attacks in Amsterdam against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans

Four rioters have been sentenced to short prison terms for violence against football fans visiting Amsterdam for a Europa League match between Ajax and Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Sefa Ö, 32, received the longest sentence of six months in prison from the Amsterdam district court, while another man was given 10 weeks in prison and two others were given one month in detention each. A fifth defendant was given a community service order under Dutch youth law.

The judge considered a prison sentence for the four appropriate given the seriousness of the events and the context in which they took place.

Riots broke out in several areas of the Dutch capital in early November and sparked international condemnation.

The five defendants convicted Tuesday were the first to stand trial for hit-and-run attacks that broke out in the early hours of Nov. 8, after incidents that took place over two days.

The court said there was plenty of video evidence showing Maccabi fans facing extreme violence, and also pointed to footage of supporters tearing down Palestinian flags and chanting anti-Arab slogans. Taxis were also vandalized by fans.

The president of the court added that there were already unrest in the Netherlands due to the war in Gaza.

While the court took into account “the context” of the events, it said there was “no justification for calling for and using physical violence against Israeli supporters.”

Sefa Ö He was found to have karate-kicked a victim, causing him to fall against a moving tram, as well as taking part in several other attacks.

The trial saw video footage that appeared to show him kicking and punching victims in Dam Square, Damrak and Zoutsteeg, and prosecutors said he had played a leading role in violence that had nothing to do with football.

Rachid O.26-year-old, sentenced to 10 weeks in prison, participated in a WhatsApp chat group called Buurthuis2, in which he referred to the victims as “cowardly” Jews whom he would never have the opportunity to attack again.

More than 900 people were in the group and the court said the chat had been used to transmit information to “commit violence against people of Jewish descent and/or supporters of Maccabi Tel Aviv”.

Umutcan AThe 24-year-old was also found to have kicked one of the victims several times while taking part in an attack with other men and then kicked another fan to the ground. CCTV footage showed him attacking several Maccabi fans, as well as grabbing one fan by the neck and removing his football scarf.

He had written on messaging groups about a “Jew hunt,” but said at the trial that he harbored no hatred toward Jews.

Karanveer S26 years old, had already been convicted of assault in 2022 and the court noted that this did not prevent him from participating in last month’s attacks.

The youngest of the five, lucas dThe 19-year-old was found to have used violence against a police officer and had participated in a separate Snapchat group calling for violence against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans.

All five have two weeks to appeal.

The court said he was in possession of an illegal, highly explosive “cobra” firework at the time of his arrest. Prosecutors had asked that Lucas D be sentenced to prison.

Chief prosecutor René de Beukelaer had previously rejected suggestions that the attacks amounted to terrorism, saying the group’s goal was not to instill fear in the people they targeted.

However, he did say that there were instances of anti-Semitism exchanged in a messaging group.

“I can well understand that the Jewish community in Amsterdam has been scared because of this violence, but that is different from saying that was the suspects’ goal,” he told Amsterdam television channel AT5 earlier this month.