The X Files: Islam and communists in the Netherlands

The following is a series of links to articles, tweets and videos that give a solid sense of what is taking place across the Netherlands in the past couple of weeks. There is a lot of material here, and we have not vetted it all obviously. But the source is excellent and what we did see is too important to leave in the comments.

Wilders and friends have big plans:

Hope, guts and pride: The new right-wing Dutch coalition plans
https://www.dutchnews.nl/2024/05/hope-guts-and-pride-the-new-right-wing-dutch-coalition-plans/
The agreement put together by the four coalition parties over the past five months covers 26 pages and contains what the new partners say is the headline strategy.
Given the title Hoop, lef en trots (hope, guts, and pride) the document is supposed to pave the way for ministers to flesh out actual policy and how the new strategy will be implemented. Nevertheless, it contains a string of detailed plans covering 10 key areas including immigration, the economy, public safety and boosting individual financial security.
“Whether we are talking about feeling secure about the future, healthcare, money in your pocket or the availability of sufficient housing, we have big ambitions,” the four parties say in the introduction. “We also want to reverse the much too high influx of refugees and immigrants. We want farmers, market gardeners and fishermen to have a future again.
Here are some of the main points:
[..]

This point is remarkably Trumpian:
“Research will start on the logistics of moving the Dutch embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem”

The university of Leiden, the Netherlands, seems to be giving in to protester’s demands:
https://twitter.com/UniLeidenNews/status/1791060039366504911
Today, after a constructive and fruitful discussion between the rector of
@UniLeiden
and the chair of Campus The Hague with SfP and LSP, we agreed on several concrete steps the University will take regarding its ties to Israeli Universities. We will publish the details tomorrow.

The university was re-occupied because protestors feel the university’s consessions do not go far enough. Article in Dutch:
Pro-Palestijnse betogers bezetten gebouw van Universiteit Leiden in Den Haag
https://www.nu.nl/binnenland/6313150/pro-palestijnse-betogers-bezetten-gebouw-van-universiteit-leiden-in-den-haag.html

The same goes for the university of Ghent, Belgium. Two articles in Dutch:
https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2024/05/16/ugent-roept-extra-mensenrechtencommissie-samen-voor-nieuw-advies/
https://www.nu.nl/buitenland/6313140/ugent-wil-band-met-instellingen-in-israel-verbreken-leiden-kondigt-stappen-aan.html

Article in English, cencelling research is a bit problematic:
Horizon Europe: Can Belgian universities cancel research contracts with Israel?
https://www.brusselstimes.com/1041821/horizon-europe-can-belgian-universities-cancel-research-contracts-with-israel

This article in Dutch contains an interesting statement from an activist group in Rotterdam, the Netherlands:
https://www.nu.nl/binnenland/6313132/pro-palestijns-protest-na-sluiting-universiteit-verplaatst-naar-rotterdam-cs.html
In de post schuwen de organisatoren dreigende taal niet. “Ze (de bestuurders, red.) zijn terecht doodsbang. We zullen ze blijven achtervolgen tot Palestina bevrijd is.”
[..]
“We zijn niet geïnteresseerd in ‘beschaafd debat’”, schrijven ze. “Fuck jullie met je uitnodiging! We willen geen gesprek, we willen revolutie.”

translates as:
In their post, the organizers do not shy away from threatening language: “They [the board] are right to fear for their lives. We will continue to stalk them until Palestine is freed”.
[..]
“We are not interested in a civil debate. Fuck you and your invitation! We don’t want to talk, we want revolution”.

Another day, another university occupation in the Netherlands, and of course another baton session. In the city of Utrecht this time:

Police used batons on pro-Palestinian protesters at Utrecht University
https://nltimes.nl/2024/05/16/police-used-batons-pro-palestinian-protesters-utrecht-university
Police in Utrecht used batons against pro-Palestinian demonstrators who blocked a city bus containing other protesters. The bus contained around 40 pro-Palestinian activists who occupied a building at Utrecht University (UU) earlier on Wednesday. They were removed from the building by the police on Wednesday evening.
Just after midnight, peace had returned near the university building, according to an ANP reporter.
Before using their batons, the police wanted protesters outside to move away or they would use force. When the protesters did not comply, police officers struck them with their batons.
The city bus containing the activists left. It was not clear where it went. At an earlier pro-Palestinian protest in Utrecht this month, dozens of demonstrators were taken in buses to Houten, where they were dropped off at the cell complex and then allowed to go home.
The demonstrators on the bus occupied a university building at the Janskerkhof for hours. About 150 sympathizers stood outside for a long time. Anton Pijpers, the chairman of the university’s executive board, was also on site for a short time. A university spokesperson previously said that he would like to talk to the demonstrators.
However, the demonstrators said there was no negotiating with the Executive Board. Their demands have been known for a long time, but the university is not acting on them, they argued.
All Utrecht University buildings in the city center will reopen on Thursday. Education in the occupied Janskerkhof 15a building has been moved to another location, the university said on Thursday.
The University of Amsterdam (UvA) locations will also reopen on Thursday after a two-day closure due to Gaza support protests. The Executive Board finds the risk of opening the doors again acceptable and attaches great importance to resuming education and research. The UvA does not rule out new protests and is closely monitoring developments.
While the UvA and UU locations are reopening, Erasmus University in Rotterdam (EUR) is closing for one day. All buildings on the Woudestein campus and the Erasmus University College will be closed to accommodate pro-Palestinian organizations, which announced protests there from 1:00 p.m. The EUR wants to prevent “Amsterdam scenes.”

Only video I could find of this incident:
https://www.nu.nl/308504/video/politie-haalt-demonstranten-uit-bezet-universiteitsgebouw-utrecht.html

Video from attempted occupation of the Utrecht university’s humanities library last week:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/9b4in5dXSyY

Pro-Palestine uni students caught doing Nazi salute on Zoom call
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5A_OnXxBQM

Edwin Wagensveld (Pegida netherlands) finally managed to burn a quran in Arnhem, the city where he was assaulted by a mob and later banned by the mayor:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZd58nkIRR4

More on the intafada in dutch academia and across europe.

Video from last week, counter-protestors attacked the camp at Roeterseiland (uni of Amsterdam), flares were brandished around and thrown. I suspect these guys were hooligans (Ajax supporters):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbAJpmXMrps

Protests at the university of Groningen. Scuffles, general unfriendliness:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRn-oF2NhDE
and
https://www.dumpert.nl/?selectedId=100092331_175e613a

Some staff from the uni of Amsterdam stage a walkout to protest “police violence” against “protesters” last week. No masks, names and faces visible. I suspect some were involved with those protests:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8_YUAJs31M
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xamEyJxJlUA

Summary of the invasion of the uni of Amsterdam. Angry protesters are angry, press is harassed, vandalism etc. Baton work at 4m26 and 7m24. Reporter kicked out by aggressive masked men with arab accents at 5m17.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K-7c55z7rU

Short report by local new network:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5x6rXOigfJc

Elegant baton work:
https://www.dumpert.nl/item/100092332_2742de7d

Riot police intervenes at uni of Amsterdam (long, uneventful video, for the completist):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHJ-djY64e4

Vandalism at uni of Amsterdam:
https://www.dumpert.nl/?selectedId=100092339_86139220

Whole floor of uni of Amsterdam vandalized:
https://www.dumpert.nl/tag/universiteit?selectedId=100092324_67d1945d

The same crap in Berlin, Germany:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks58r9zmVCI
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwlvVtMkkEw

Utrecht, the Netherlands and Geneva, Switzerland :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98N1uX0dl14

Free University of Brussels:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWJsxbcbP3g

Greece:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uq-7qDUcVw

Rome, Paris and Istanbul
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqR5Y9VlHT0

A second round of protests at dutch universities: Utrecht, Wageningen, Nijmegen, Groningen and Maastricht. Tent camps have been set up in some cities (Eindhoven, Groningen).
In Amsterdam, university buildings have been occupied again. The university has filed charges, and riot police is clearing the buildings as I write this. Liveblog here (in Dutch):
https://www.nu.nl/binnenland/6312700/live-me-betreedt-uva-gebouw-amsterdam-na-aangifte-tegen-demonstranten.html

Protesters at the university of Maastricht harass journalists. Video:
https://www.nu.nl/308433/video/maastrichtse-studenten-belemmeren-media-bij-pro-palestijnse-demonstratie.html

This is obviously a developing story, videos to follow soon.