Pro-Palestinian protest in Amsterdam with several thousand people

NOS News•yesterday, 8:06 PM•Amended yesterday, 10:41 PM

A few thousand people demonstrated again in Amsterdam tonight. The large group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators was located on the Spui. A sit-in was held there, during which the riot police intervened. The Spui was empty around 10:30 p.m.

The organization called on everyone to leave with a megaphone around 10 p.m. “Leave away from the police,” it was said, AT5 writes. “Come back in the next few days.”

“Peace has returned to the Spui, the demonstrators have left the square,” the police reported. “We remain a visible presence in the city to be able to respond alertly to any disturbances.” Three people have been arrested. They were arrested for insult and incitement.

The police were present in large numbers at the demonstration tonight, accompanied by the Mobile Unit (ME). According to the police, the riot police were “present to prevent escalation”. Police officers dealt several blows to demonstrators after a riot bus was blocked. There were also other short confrontations between the riot police and the demonstrators.

Demonstrators responded en masse to the call for a sit-in:

Protesters hold a sit-in on the Spui in Amsterdam

The police reported that the situation on the Spui was “troubled”. “Police deployment is necessary to restore order.” According to a NOS reporter, part of the square was already swept clean earlier in the evening. The demonstrators had to move away from the police cars.

The pro-Palestinian action group Amsterdam Student Encampment announced another demonstration for today. People were called to protest against “the university’s decision to treat their own students cruelly,” local broadcaster AT5 reported.

The activists believe the police actions during the pro-Palestinian protests in recent days are excessive.

The Amsterdam police speak of “a large group” that is out this evening:

At the beginning of the evening, around 6 p.m., the demonstrators gathered at the Roeterseiland campus of the University of Amsterdam (UvA). Then they moved through the city in a procession.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators at the University of Amsterdam

Also in Utrecht there was another demonstration tonight by about a hundred people. “After the violence our communities have experienced at the hands of the police – who were called in by Utrecht University and the mayor of Utrecht – it is imperative to remember where our strength comes from,” read a post on social media.

The action group, Utrecht Student Encampment, is referring to previous protests that were broken up by the police.

Demonstrators walked from the Janskerkhof to the Domplein, where the protest continued:

At the beginning of this week, demonstrators in Amsterdam had set up tents on the UvA campus. They demanded, among other things, that Amsterdam universities sever their ties with Israel. Two bridges and the entrance to the campus at the Nieuwe Prinsengracht were blocked with pallets and other items.

The police previously reported that there was unrest on Roeterseiland during the evacuation. Police say demonstrators used violence.

A day after the protests in Amsterdam, some local residents look with amazement at the chaos left behind. Others are more understanding:

Local residents about Amsterdam student protest: ‘They have a point’

Yesterday, the Binnengasthuis site was cleared by the police after the UvA filed a report, partly because vandalism had been caused to the buildings. In addition, the safety of local residents would be at stake.

The building had been occupied by demonstrators since Tuesday. Police used shovels to dismantle the barricades made with office furniture, ladders and stones, among other things.

Demonstrations have also taken place in Utrecht in recent days. A university building on the Drift was occupied there. According to the police, no damage was caused to the university building in Utrecht. The buildings there will remain closed until 8 a.m. on Monday morning.