Amsterdam police arrest pro-Palestine demonstrators for defying protest ban
Al Jazeera
The ban was imposed after violence involving Israeli football supporters around the Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax game.
Dutch police have arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters in Amsterdam after they defied a demonstration ban put in place in the wake of clashes between Israeli football fans and people in the city.
Early on Sunday, the Amsterdam District Court upheld a decision by the mayor to ban protests in the Dutch capital, three days after it was rocked by violence between Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans and residents in several areas.
But hundreds of demonstrators defied the prohibition to gather in Amsterdam’s Dam Square on Sunday, chanting demands for an end to Israel’s war on Gaza and slogans such as “Free Palestine”.
Police in riot gear moved in on the protesters in the afternoon, shortly after the court upheld the protest ban.
Reporting from Amsterdam, Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen said that even tourists in Dam Square were shocked by an aggressive police response that included manhandling peaceful protesters.
