Pro-Palestine Crowds In Netherlands Occupy Amsterdam, Utrecht University Sites
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
AMSTERDAM (Worthy News) – Pro-Palestine protesters, many covering their faces and shouting antisemitic slogans, returned to the streets of Amsterdam, where they occupied a site of a major university and further threatened Jewish students and others.
An angry crowd entered the Binnengasthuis area, which once hosted one of Amsterdam’s leading hospitals and is now part of the University of Amsterdam (UvA), but police did not yet intervene.
The protest came hours after police broke up a pro-Palestine camp in the area and detained some 125 people.
Witnesses said entrances to the site were blocked from several sides. The barricades includes pallets and bicycle racks as well chairs, tables, and construction fences.
Bricks were being removed in anticipation of a police crackdown.
With tensions running high, angry protesters entered The Amsterdam Academic Club, painting graffiti texts such as “Free Palestine” and “UvA your hands are bloody.”
Their protest seemed well organized: Demonstrators stood in rows next to each other to pass the bricks to each other. Furniture in the building has been used for the barricades.
SITTING ON FLOOR
Some protesters, estimated to be in their 20s, sat on the floor in one corner there amid a mountain of food, including cookies, fruit, and water. There were also packs of sanitary towels.
There were similar scenes early Wednesday in the city of Utrecht, some 45 kilometers (28 miles) outside Amsterdam, where Utrecht University, backed by police, ordered the “pro-Palestine demonstrators” to leave the courtyard of the University library. “Partly because the house rules were not followed, serious concerns arose about safety,” said a university spokeswoman. Some protesters were detained.
As in Amsterdam, protesters demand that their university break off all ties with Israel, including active collaborations with Israeli institutions and organizations.
Several Jewish people have expressed concerns about what they view as mounting antisemitism with protesters shouting: “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free.”
Jewish students and pro-Israel protesters have been attacked including those carrying the Israeli flags, Worthy News learned.
Yet unlike on Tuesday, Amsterdam police did not yet intervene early Wednesday. The crowd was cheering when police announced they would not take action against the demonstrators “for the time being.”
“The ‘triangle’ body [of mayor, police and prosecutors] is currently not taking any action against the occupation of the Binnengasthuis site. The UvA has not reported any violations and has not asked the activists to leave,” the police statement said.
‘MORE TIME NEEDED’
The university suggested that it “needs more time to consult with the students and to de-escalate. Therefore, the police are not entitled to enter.”
The decision came hours after police broke up a pro-Palestine camp inside the campus.
However this time “the risk of escalation and disorder is high in the absence of sufficient preparation time and agents,” the UvA said.
Critics say the unwillingness to intervene could lead to more chaos in the Netherlands, long a liberal nation.
However voters have already expressed concern about growing hatred toward Jews and the rising influence of Islam, with migrants arriving by the thousands from Islamic nations.
After elections in November, the anti-Islam Party for Freedom led by pro-Israel politician Geert Wilders became the largest political force in Parliament.
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