Netherlands increases security around Jewish institutions

The Ministry of Justice and Security drew up a list of Jewish institutions that may need extra protection on Saturday, shortly after the Hamas terrorist group committed attacks in Israel, sources told De Telegraaf.

As of Tuesday morning, Dutch time, around 900 people had been killed in Israel and nearly 700 people in the Palestinian territories. Hamas terrorists also abducted 150 Israelis, the Israeli government reported.

According to the newspaper’s insiders, the Justice Ministry sent the institutions, mayors, police, and Public Prosecution Service in the involved municipalities a letter asking them to do “an extra check” to see that security around the Jewish institutions was in order. The Ministry worried about an increased threat due to the devolving situation in Israel and Gaza.

Several cities heeded the warning. The increased security is clearly visible in Amsterdam-Zuid, where there are many Jewish institutions, according to the Telegraaf. Police cars and vehicles from the Koninklijke Marechaussee regularly make rounds at the Orthodox Jewish school Cheider and other important buildings for the community.

The authorities in Tilburg and Middelburg also took extra measures around the local synagogues since the weekend. The Tilburg synagogue reported a noticeable increase in threats since the Hamas attacks and Israel’s retaliation.

After a National Security Council meeting on Monday, outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that the government was “extra alert” to the security of Jewish buildings. He said that the Netherlands as a whole, and the Jewish community in particular, was shocked by the violence. He did not say what extra measures the authorities were taking around Jewish institutions. “We shouldn’t make people wiser than they are.”