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Amsterdam: New arrests for violence after Ajax-Maccabi football match
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Amsterdam: New arrests for violence after Ajax-Maccabi football match

Youths on scooters drove through the Dutch capital in hit-and-run attacks on visiting Maccabi supporters for their Europa League match on Thursday night, authorities said.

Five people were treated in hospital and others suffered minor injuries.

The five new arrests come on top of the 63 announced by authorities since the violence. One of the five has been released from custody, but remains a suspect.

Police made further arrests after fresh unrest in the city on Monday. No injuries were reported.

Dozens of black-clad youths damaged cars in a western suburb where the tram was attacked in the ’40-’45 Square. Videos posted on social media show a tram being attacked with fireworks and its windows smashed.

A tram fire was quickly extinguished and riot officers cleared the square, making arrests, the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant reports, external.

Schoof promised that the Netherlands would focus on bringing the perpetrators of Thursday’s violence to justice.

“The images and reports for Amsterdam and what we saw this weekend of anti-Semitic attacks against Israelis and Jews are nothing short of shocking and reprehensible,” he told reporters.

He also commented on reports that Maccabi supporters attacked a taxi and burned a Palestinian flag in Amsterdam, as well as chanting anti-Arab slogans.

“We are very aware of what happened earlier with the Maccabi supporters, but we believe it is of a different category and we also condemn any violence, but this is no excuse for what happened later that night in the attacks on the Jews in Amsterdam he said.

Planned pro-Palestinian protests in recent days had been banned, angering activists.

Some argued that they should be free to express their disapproval of Israel’s actions in Gaza and the actions of Maccabi supporters. Police Chief Peter Holla said there were incidents “on both sides” during Thursday’s clashes.

The violence was condemned by leaders in Europe, the US and Israel. For many, it was particularly shocking coming on the eve of the commemorations marking Kristallnacht, the 1938 Nazi pogroms against German Jews.

Three quarters of the Jews of the Netherlands were killed during the Holocaust of World War II.

Reports of anti-Semitic incidents in Europe have increased since the start of the Gaza war just over a year ago.