2 Israelis hurt in brawl around paintball match at Dutch holiday park; Boy, 15, arrested
Two Israeli tourists were injured in a brawl that started in a paintball game at a holiday park in Westerhoven, Noord-Brabant, on Thursday. One of the two men sustained a serious head wound, the police said on Friday. A 15-year-old boy was arrested. According to the police, the incident appears to involve “violence with a potentially discriminatory context.”
The police said that a fight broke out between a group of tourists from Israel and a group from Maarssen during a paintball game at the resort. They disagreed about how the game was being played, the police said. The argument escalated into a fight that spilled onto the terrace.
“Heavy blows were exchanged,” the police said. Witnesses reported that “discriminatory and possibly threatening slogans were shouted.” The police intervened, and calm returned.
Two Israeli men, aged 37 and 41, were injured in the brawl, the police said. One sustained a significant head wound. Paramedics treated them at the scene.
The police arrested a 15-year-old boy. He is suspected of assault and attempted aggravated assault.
The brawl happened at the Center Parcs resort De Kempervennen, NOS reported. According to the broadcaster, this is the second incident involving Israelis at a Center Parcs resort this week.
Earlier this week, Israeli tourists were filmed at Center Parcs de Eemhof in Zeewolde, and the footage was posted online by pro-Palestinian activist groups with the message to “make it clear they are not welcome.”
The Center for Information and Documentation Israel (CIDI) has filed a complaint against the activist groups that posted the footage online, accusing them of inciting hatred.
