The mayor of Amsterdam regrets her comments about Moroccans

Femke Halsema, the mayor of Amsterdam, expressed her regret for using the word “pogrom” (destruction or looting in Russian) during her intervention following the violence that occurred after the match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax.

“Boys on scooters went through the city looking for Israeli supporters, it was a hit and run. I understand that this could evoke memories of the pogroms,” Halsema said during a lively press conference the day after the incident. The term “pogrom” refers to the massacres of Jews at the end of the 19th century in the Russian Empire. It is generally used to refer to extreme violence directed against the Jewish community.