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Podcast: North Star with Ellin Bessner
Episode: Amsterdam's mayor says the violence wasn't a pogrom. Dutch Jewish leaders agree, but demand protection
Description: On Nov. 7, mobs of Dutch soccer fans rampaged through central Amsterdam beating up Israeli and Jewish tourists there to see the Maccabi Tel Aviv team play. The outbreak of violence happened on the eve of the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht, when organized gangs of Nazi soldiers in Germany and occupied Austria targeted Jewish businesses, torched synagogues and sent 20,000 Jewish men to concentration camps. Video of the Dutch attacks prompted some world leaders to describe the night as a “pogrom”.
In hindsight, however, the mayor of Amsterdam is now backtracking on using the word “pogrom”, saying the word has been weaponiz...