Storm in the Netherlands: Teacher refused to teach an Israeli who refused to define the fighting as genocide | Listen
An Israeli in the Netherlands seeking to learn Dutch was refused by a private school director in Rotterdam, who conditioned enrollment on condemning the war in Gaza. The director, Max Koden, demanded the student define the fighting as 'genocide,' and after the student refused, he ended the call. The incident sparked a public uproar and appeals to human rights bodies.
An Israeli named Yonatan, living in the Netherlands, sought to improve his Dutch language skills and encountered a blunt refusal from the director of a private school in Rotterdam, Max Koden. During an introductory Zoom call on September 18, Koden set an ideological condition: Yonatan had to define the fighting in Gaza as 'genocide' as a condition for enrollment. Yonatan, who said he lost his uncle in the October 7 massacre, clarified that he does not believe a deliberate genocide is taking place. Koden called his stance 'denial' and ended the call. Koden boasted about the boycott on social media. The affair sparked a storm in the Netherlands: the national coordinator for combating antisemitism determined it was 'unequal treatment and discrimination.' The umbrella organization of the Jewish community (CIDI) appealed to the Dutch Institute for Human Rights, and the national center for combating discrimination is examining the complaint.