Dutch Justice Minister David van Wiel said in a letter to parliament that the government is investigating the possibility of unheeded warning signals from Israel relating to the events that led to attacks on Israeli football fans.
Van Wel said in a message on Friday evening that “the investigation is still ongoing regarding possible warning signs from Israel.”
At least 5 people were injured during the attack that occurred on Thursday evening and received treatment in hospital, and they were all discharged yesterday, Friday.
The incident concerns fans of the Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv who were in Amsterdam to attend a match against Ajax.
Police said on Saturday that four people remained in custody out of a total of 63 people initially arrested.
“The Public Prosecution confirmed that it aims to implement justice as quickly as possible,” Van Wel said, adding that the “absolute priority” is to identify each suspect.
He indicated that the investigation would also examine whether the attacks were organized, motivated by anti-Semitism.
Political leaders have already denounced the attack as motivated by “anti-Semitism.”
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schauff said on Friday that he was “appalled by the anti-Semitic attacks on Israeli citizens” and assured his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu by phone that “the perpetrators will be identified and prosecuted.”
Israel sent planes to the Netherlands to return the fans, but a Dutch government spokesman has not yet been able to determine the number of people who benefited from this.
Video clips circulated on social media showed riot police intervening in clashes, in which some of the attackers chanted anti-Israel phrases.
Footage also showed Maccabi Tel Aviv fans chanting anti-Arab slogans before the match on Thursday evening.
Amsterdam banned demonstrations throughout the weekend, and gave police emergency stop and search powers to confront the unrest.
Incidents of anti-Semitism have escalated in the Netherlands since Israel launched its attack on the Gaza Strip after a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 of last year, and many Jewish organizations and schools reported threats and hate messages.