Left-wing leader Timmermans harassed at Amsterdam café

A group of masked men harassed and verbally attacked GroenLinks-PvdA leader Frans Timmermans on a terrace in Amsterdam on Sunday, shortly before he participated in a televised election debate. During a far-right anti-immigration protest in the Dutch capital on the same day, protesters also chanted insulting and anti-Semitic slogans, targeting Timmermans.

RTL Nieuws was interviewing Timmermans on the terrace when a group of masked men walked by. One recognized Timmermans and approached him, shouting curses and threats, the RTL journalist said. He was between the man and Timmermans. “He tried to push me aside, and then the café staff intervened appropriately,” the journalist said.

Timmermans took the incident stoically. He said he wasn’t fazed by these kinds of situations anymore because they happen so often, according to RTL. Timmermans and his group immediately left the terrace and returned to the hotel where they were staying. According to the broadcaster, they did so because the men could easily communicate in large chat groups where Timmermans was, which could lead to bigger problems.

Also on Sunday, the police arrested around 30 people during a far-right anti-immigration protest in the capital. After the official protest on Museumplein ended, groups of often masked men marched through the Amsterdam canals, chanting slogans against asylum seekers.

According to Parool, some of the slogans also targeted Timmermans. Translated from Dutch, one chant was: “Hey Fransie Timmermans, you filthy, dirty, cancer Jew. Hey Fransie Timmermans, just drop dead.” Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema was also repeatedly verbally abused.

Halsema responded to the attack on Timmermans by calling on everyone to keep their hands off politicians. “If you confuse freedom of speech with intimidation, you’ve lost it. All our democratic leaders (whether they’re called Wilders or Timmermans) should be able to debate freely.”