The attack took place after similar terrorist acts against synagogues in Rotterdam and in Belgium’s Liège.

According to Claude Moniquet, an expert in counter-terrorism, who spoke to European Jewish Press, ‘’these attacks were carried out by “contractors” from the criminal underworld of North African or Middle Eastern origin acting on behalf of a proxy of Tehran, likely Iraqi.’’

“The intimidation is having an impact and the question remains how this will stop and what the future holds for a community where the question is whether there is still a future in the Netherlands, which is raised more and more often,” wrote Dutch pro-Israel advocacy group CIDI.

During the night from Friday to Saturday, an explosion occurred on the facade of the Cheider Orthodox Jewish community school in the distrct of Buitenveldert, in the south of Amsterdam, Jonet.nl new website reported.

Once again, pro-Iranian terrorist group in Iraq Harakat Ashab al-yamin al-islamiyyah claimed responsibility for the attack. This group has previously detonated explosives at synagogues in Liège and Rotterdam earlier this week.

The emotion is high within the Jewich community and many are critical of the response of the political leaders.

A video accompanied by a bombastic music shows the perpetrators setting off a firebomb near the school building. There are several Jewish schools in the area.

The perpetrators fled on a scooter. The police arrived quickly, but the perpetrators were already gone.

“Anyone who carries out an attack on a school wants to instill the most primal fear there is. To deliberately terrorize a community to make them feel that the most vulnerable are being targeted,” wrote the country’s anti-Semitism coordinator Eddo Verdoner on X. “Yesterday’s attack on the synagogue already had a major impact, but apparently that wasn’t enough,’’ he added in referencfe to an explosion that occurred at a synagogue in Rotterdam.

“It is of the utmost importance that we do not let fear rule us and that we do everything in our power to protect Jewish life in our country and ensure it continues. Terror must never be allowed to prevail.”

In a reaction, the Center for Information and Documentation on Israel (CIDI),  a pro-Israel advocacy group,  stressed that ‘’hatred knows no bounds.’’ Now another attack on a Jewish school. A place where children come to learn. A place that has never really been safe and has always needed security. Even more so since October 7, 2023, ‘’ the organization said.

“The intimidation is having an impact and the question remains how this will stop and what the future holds for a community where the question is whether there is still a future in the Netherlands, which is raised more and more often,” CIDI added.

‘’ Anti-Semitism is alive and well and has been taking on serious forms for some time now. Taking action and setting standards is more than necessary. Looking the other way or downplaying it is no longer an option.”

Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsemasaid :‘This is a cowardly act of aggression against the Jewish community. I understand the fear and anger of Jewish Amsterdammers. They are increasingly confronted with anti-Semitism, and that is unacceptable. A school must be a place where children can learn safely. Amsterdam must be a place where Jews can live safely. ‘The damage to the building was limited,’’ she added.

The mayor, who is a member of the leftist GroenLinks-Pvda party, is facing criticism  on social media for ‘’’turning a blind eye to anti-Semitism’’.  ‘’ Warnings about this have been issued for much longer, precisely because of the rising anti-Semitism and the half-hearted way in which politicians have dealt with it. They believe that politicians should have taken decisive action much sooner and that it is now too late,’’ one could read on X.

Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel said : ‘’Two nights in a row, a cowardly attack with an explosive at a Jewish building. First in Rotterdam, now in Amsterdam. Thanks to measures and vigilance, greater damage was prevented. The safety of Jewish institutions has our full attention. An investigation is underway to find the perpetrators,’’

Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten called that attack against the school “horrible” and also stressed the country must remain a safe place for the Jewish community.

He said that he has been in contact with the Jewish community. “They are simply our Jewish Dutch citizens, and you don’t lay a finger on them.”

The new coalition government led by Jetten has been criticized for its anti-Israel stance.

Following the Rottardem arson  attack, police increased monitoring of synagogues as a precaution. The Dutch police arrested four men suspected of being involved in the attack.

Earlier this week, another explosion targeted a synagogue in Liège, in neighbouring Belgium. The explosion was also claimed by an Iraq-based pro-Iranian group.

According to Claude Moniquet, an expert in counter-terrorism, who spoke to European Jewish Press, ‘’these attacks were carried out by “contractors” from the criminal underworld (drug traffickers?) of North African or Middle Eastern origin acting on behalf of a proxy of Tehran, likely Iraqi.’’ He noted the modeus operandi which saw buildings of the Jewish community targeted at night and therefore empty and not guarded, as well the used of medium-power homemade explosives.

He also referred to the the fact that three Iraqis have been arrested after the Rotterdam attack and to the ‘’highly credible’’ claims, backed by footage, for Liège and Rotterdam. ‘’As was the case in Scandinavia,’’ he said.

Moniquet believes that ‘’there will be other such attacks and that the source of the perpetrators must probably be in the Netherlands.’’

For David Lega, a former member of the European Parliament for Sweden and currently Secretary-general of the European Jewish Association (EJA) “”what we are witnessing is not a series of random acts. It is part of a broader pattern of threats and violence directed at Jewish life, a pattern that for decades has been encouraged, financed and ideologically driven by the Iranian regime and its international networks.”

”When Israel confronts Iran today, many Europeans seem to believe the conflict has only recently begun. In reality Israel’s confrontation with the Iranian regime started decades ago, when the Islamic Republic made the destruction of Israel part of its state ideology and began constructing a global system of proxy organisations, militias and operational cells,” he adds.