Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema sparked outrage in a Dutch television interview by retracting her previous characterization of last week's violent attacks against Israeli citizens by Hamas supporters.
"In hindsight, I wouldn't use the word 'pogrom' to describe what happened that evening," Halsema stated, claiming the term has become "a political weapon and propaganda."
She suggested her initial use of the word was meant to reflect the fear felt by the attacked Israelis, but now regrets using it.
The mayor also claimed that "international and national pressure was so intense" that they had to present an initial review without complete information about Maccabi supporters, adding controversially that "it wasn't mentioned at the time that Maccabi fans also acted violently."
Aviv Peleg, CEO of Brothers for the Badge, strongly contested this characterization: "Certain media elements are trying to frame this event as if it involved fascist nationalists. This completely misses the point. They're promoting a narrative that if a Jew is attacked, they must self-flagellate because there must be a reason."
The comments come amid ongoing controversy over the violent attacks on Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam streets last week, which were captured on multiple viral videos showing the severity of the assaults.
Channel 14 contributed to this article.