Two Israeli tourists in the Netherlands suffered injuries after being attacked in a holiday park were they were staying.
On August 21, at the Center Parcs resort in Southeast Brabant, the pair were assaulted in De Kempervennen by local residents.
They needed medical attention at hospital for their wounds.
Local police investigating the case announced one arrest was made of a 15-year-old suspect for alleged assault and attempted aggravated assault
The police reported that a fight broke out over a dispute during a paintball game. The fight continued on the terrace, where several individuals exchanged blows and, according to witnesses, also shouted discriminatory and potentially threatening slogans.
The two injured male Israeli tourists were 37 and 41 years old. One was reportedly hit in the head by a stone.
According to his family, while they were playing paintball with small children present, the pair were confronted by a group of youths shouting anti-Semitic chants. When the men, both fathers, asked them to stop, they were attacked.
A spokesperson for the holiday park confirmed there was a fight during a family activity and measures were taken to control the situation but did not give specifics regarding the incident.
On X on August 21, the Israeli foreign affairs minister Gideon Sa’ar wrote: “Once again, Israelis are being attacked in the Netherlands. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is monitoring and handling this attack through the Embassy of Israel in The Hague.
“Israel calls on the government of the Netherlands to come to its senses and act resolutely to prevent attacks on Israelis in its territory, to locate the criminals and to bring them to justice.”
Once again, Israelis are being attacked in the Netherlands.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is monitoring and handling this attack through the Embassy of Israel in The Hague.
Israel calls on the Government of the Netherlands to come to its senses and act resolutely to prevent…— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) August 21, 2025
A few days earlier, anti-Israel activists posted secretly recorded videos of Israeli holidaymakers in De Eemhof online.
They urged their audience to send a clear message to the Israeli tourists that they were not welcome in the Netherlands, which caused the local authorities to take safety measures.
Chanan Hertzberger of the Central Jewish Council (CJO) told De Telegraaf on August 18 that the park, the police and the local authorities responded very appropriately after the assault.
“This is yet another incident in a long series. People are being accused and attacked for something they have nothing to do with,” he said.
“I would like to take this opportunity to call on the Dutch population to stand by us. People must stop bashing Jews. We are becoming increasingly isolated.”
Hertzberger said he considered the incident “serious” but added he did not want to give the impression that Israeli tourists can no longer safely visit the Netherlands.
“It is yet another incident showing that Jews and Israelis in the Netherlands are being pushed into the corner of ‘you are in the wrong.’”
Chief Rabbi of the Netherlands Binyomin Jacobs said he was shocked by the incident and has been in contact with those involved.
“Things are going from bad to worse. The Dutch authorities must not allow this to continue. It is crazy that Israelis can no longer feel safe in our country,” he said.
The Centre for Information and Documentation on Israel (CIDI) also called the incident “shameful and alarming”.
The Netherlands had already been the scene of anti-Israeli violence after a football game in Amsterdam in July where people where targeted and hunted down based on their nationality.
Masked men were also seen tearing down Israeli flags from buildings and hurling fireworks at facades displaying the banners. Outraged observers referred to the incident as a “pogrom” and “a Jew hunt”.
Reported anti-Semitic violence following a football match in Amsterdam between Dutch team Ajax and Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv has caused shock in Israel and across the West. https://t.co/JTZhW3ClQL
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) November 8, 2024
Shortly after the earlier Center Parcs incident, CIDI filed a police report over the recording and distribution of the video.
“People are being held accountable for alleged crimes of the country they come from. This never happens with tourists from other countries or conflict zones,” it said.
“The war between Israel and Hamas is unleashing dark forces in our society. Stronger action must be taken against this,” said Naomi Mestrum, director of CIDI.
Also, in France on August 20, 150 Israeli holidaymakers, aged between eight and 16 years, were turned away from a holiday park in the southern Pyrenees-Orientales, Le Parisien reported.
The reservation had “been made a long time ago” by the group of travellers but the manager opposed their visit “because of personal convictions”, according to the Perpignan prosecutor’s office.
On August 20, the manager then posted on social media that the park would close on August 21, due to bad weather and the need to inspect all facilities.
The police then placed the manager in custody, for “discrimination based on religion in the context of the offer or supply of a good or service”. An offence punishable by “a maximum sentence of three years in prison”.
The Israeli children were able to continue their stay on another location, without any further incident.
Linksjugend Frankfurt, the local chapter of the youth division of Germany’s hard left Die Linke, has been vilified after tweeting on X that Jewish teenagers expelled from a flight should have been thrown-out mid air. https://t.co/NxTvypsOgn
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) August 20, 2025
