Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof met with representatives of the Jewish community in Amsterdam following the shocking pogrom perpetrated by local Arabs against Israelis on Thursday evening and assured them that he will do everything he can to ensure the community’s safety.

Schoof also met with newly appointed Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Motzei Shabbos.

Sa’ar and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana flew to Amsterdam on Friday morning for urgent diplomatic meetings in a visit that was coordinated with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

Sa’ar and Ohana met with Schoof at his residence. During the meeting, Schoof called the attacks on Israelis a “turning point” and said he is committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice and ensuring that the local Jewish community is safe. He also noted that he canceled his plans to participate in the  COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan [which begins on Monday, Nov. 11] due to the serious incidents in Amsterdam, instead scheduling meetings regarding the attacks in Dutch parliament and other forums.

During the meeting, Sa’ar stated that the brutal attacks on Jews and Israelis and the demand by their attackers that they present their passports to prove their identity were reminiscent of dark periods of history. He stressed that Israel cannot accept the persecution of Jews and Israelis on European soil.

Sa’ar emphasized that “this new antisemitism that denies Israel’s right to exist is manifested in the political assault on Israel in the institutions of the UN and international legal forums. The goals are identical – the delegitimization of Israel and the undermining of its right to self-defense. This is not carried out against any other democracy.”

Sa’ar also thanked Schoof for his friendship and support for Israel and invited him for an official visit to Israel.

Sa’ar also met with his Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp, who stated after the meeting: “Met with my new Israeli colleague Gideon Sa’ar to discuss the appalling attacks on Israeli citizens in Amsterdam. I expressed my horror and stressed that the Netherlands will do all it can to identify these thugs. We will hold perpetrators accountable and combat antisemitism.”

“After an in-depth conversation yesterday evening with representatives of Amsterdam’s Jewish community, I met today with the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Sa’ar,” Prime Minister Schoof wrote on X on Motzei Shabbos.

“We spoke about his impressions and experiences during his brief visit to the Netherlands. The events in Amsterdam affected him deeply, and he expressed his serious concern about and revulsion at the rise in antisemitism. I told him the Dutch government was doing everything to ensure that the Jewish community in this country feels safe.”

Schoof wrote on Friday: “Have been following the news from Amsterdam and am horrified by the antisemitic attacks on Israeli citizens. This is completely unacceptable. I am in close contact with all parties involved and have just spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone to stress that the perpetrators will be identified and prosecuted. The situation in Amsterdam is now calm once more.”

(YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated after tzeis ha’Shabbos in Israel)