Français
Español
English
PortugueseThe chief rabbi of the Netherlands was nearly run over in an attack similar to recent acts of terror in Israel, where assailants have been using their vehicles to murder civilians.
Dutch Chief Rabbi Benjamin Jacobs was nearly run over by two youths who seemed to be of Middle Eastern descent on the streets of Holland last Wednesday.
It looked like a copycat attack similar to recent acts of terror in Israel, in which assailants have been wounding and murdering civilians and soldiers by running them over. The youngest victim was a three-month-old baby.
The newest method of violence against Israelis is through hit-and-run attacks, which terrorists now promote through the arts and on Facebook as a car intifada.
Rabbi Jacobs noticed that he was being watched by two youths who appeared to be of Middle Eastern extraction, according to news reports. He had exited his car at a gas station when one of the young men returned to his own vehicle and immediately began speeding, apparently aiming directly for the rabbi.
“When I walked past their car to pay, they started the car and lunged in my direction, laughing. It was clear that they had waited to do this with the intention of at least scaring me, if not worse,” the rabbi told JTA.
He immediately contacted police, who opened an investigation, saying that they hoped to catch the culprits.
Growing Anti-Semitism in Europe
This is not the first anti-Semitic attack against Rabbi Jacobs. Over the summer, during Operation Protective Edge, stone-throwers targeted him. Then, too, he escaped unharmed but suffered property damage.
The Jewish Daily Forward noted at the time that to Rabbi Jacobs, who had “worked intensively to build bridges between non-Jews and Holland’s Jewish community of 40,000, the latest attack sharpens the dilemma facing Dutch Jews.”
Rabbi Jacobs, 65, also told the Forward that if he were not an emissary with a special mission in Holland, he would leave Europe, in part because of the growing anti-Semitism but also due to assimilation.
In fact, in July 2010, in an Arutz Sheva interview, the rabbi expressed alarm at the acute rise in anti-Semitism in Europe. His family had been living in Holland for generations, he said.
Also in 2010, the Virtual Jerusalem website published that the son of a another prominent rabbi in the Netherlands had “announced plans to move to Israel due to anti-Semitism. Benzion Evers, son of well-known Dutch rabbi Raphael Evers, told De Telegraaf that he feels ‘suffocated and caged’ in his home country due to anti-Jewish sentiment.”
Author: United with Israel Staff
.
Do You Love Israel? Make a Donation - Show Your Support!
Donate to vital charities that help protect Israeli citizens and inspire millions around the world to support Israel too!
Now more than ever, Israel needs your help to fight and win the war -- including on the battlefield of public opinion.
Antisemitism, anti-Israel bias and boycotts are out of control. Israel's enemies are inciting terror and violence against innocent Israelis and Jews around the world. Help us fight back!
