Israel urges basketball fans to skip Maccabi Tel Aviv match in Italy after Amsterdam violence

Israeli authorities have called on fans to avoid going to a basketball match of Maccabi Tel Aviv against Bologna in Italy on Friday, a day after following a football game in Amsterdam.

"The National Security Council (NSC) is advising Israelis to avoid attending Maccabi Tel Aviv's game in Bologna and to avoid displaying Israeli or Jewish symbols as much as possible," the prime minister's office said in a statement.

Earlier on Friday, Israel sent two planes to bring back fans of an Israeli soccer team from the Netherlands after overnight attacks in the streets that officials described as antisemitic.

Videos circulating on social media showed riot police intervening in street clashes, with some attackers shouting anti-Israeli slurs.

Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were "attacked, abused and pelted with fireworks" and that riot police had to intervene several times to protect them and escort them to hotels.

Antisemitic incidents in the Netherlands have surged since Israel launched its assault on Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel by the Palestinian Hamas group, with many Jewish organisations and schools reporting threats and hate mail.