A Boeing 777-200ER is the first El Al rescue flight to the Netherlands.
Some 3,000 Maccabi Tel Aviv fans attended their club’s Europa League away game at Ajax Amsterdam.
Tensions were expected to be high, also due to the fact that Turkish side Fenerbahce played away at AZ Alkmaar, just 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Amsterdam, with Turkish supporters known to support the Palestinian cause.
Clashes broke out between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and Dutch police before the fixture who had reported “tensions” in several parts of the city in the run-up to the match, which Ajax won 5-0.
Police said 57 people were arrested and that due to unrest, police were still visible in the city.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday ordered two planes be sent to the Netherlands to bring home football fans following violent clashes in Amsterdam.
Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on X that “two rescue planes” were being sent “to immediately assist our citizens.”
The Boeing 777-200ER (registration 4X-ECF) departed Ben Gurion Airport at 09:45 IST and is expected to land in Amsterdam at 13:00 CEST.
