What is it about Europe’s music festivals? Two Israeli citizens have been arrested in Belgium after anti-Israel activist groups spotted them over the weekend at a music festival and accused them of committing war crimes in Gaza.    

The Israelis were detained and interrogated by Belgian national police for nearly two hours before their release. No charges were filed, the Israeli foreign ministry confirmed Monday. When they were taken from the Tomorrowland music festival at Boom, Belgium, the unidentified men were beaten up, Israel’s N-12 news reports.  

“The foreign ministry and the IDF handled the matter and are in contact with the two,” Jerusalem’s ministry confirmed in a statement. After their release, the civilian and Israel Defense Force soldier on vacation flew back to Israel. Their ordeal started when they waved a banner of an IDF unit, the Givati Brigade. 

Two activist legal groups, the Hind Rajab Foundation and Global Legal Action Network, alleged that the IDF’s Givati is “involved in the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza and in carrying out mass atrocities against the Palestinian population.”

The HRF has long advocated for Belgium and other European authorities to try Israelis on war crimes. The Sunday arrests mark a “significant step forward,” the group wrote in a statement. It “signals that Belgium has recognized its jurisdiction under international law and is treating the allegations with the seriousness they deserve.”

The Belgian authorities, however, gave no indication as to why the two were arrested, or why they were released. 

The annual Tomorrowland festival of techno dance music was reportedly marked this year by amicable vibes. Israelis, Palestinians, and Iranians carried national flags with few incidents. Some conversed with each other with no sign of violence. Raising the Givati banner, according to the HRF, was a bridge too far. 

The incident followed a major scandal at the British Broadcasting Corporation. The public-funded broadcaster aired a live performance in the Glastonbury music festival in which a music duo named Bob Vylan chanted “death, death to the IDF.” Evidently cashing in on the notoriety, Bob Vylan announced a European tour of music festivals after its American visa was revoked. 

Separately, at the Belgian city of Spa, an Israeli artist who on Friday participated in the Francofolies music festival was widely condemned, leading to high tensions among other participants. Participating artists denounced Amir Haddad, who mostly sings in French, for supporting the IDF after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. A Swiss artist, Yoa, canceled her performance, as other artists stated their opposition for his stance on Israel. 

Some of the worst Hamas atrocities on October 7 were committed at the Nova music festival, where young Israelis gathered to celebrate near the Gaza border. The vast majority of the 378 people who were killed there were civilians. Survivors reported wide cases of rape, sexual abuse, torture, beheadings, and other war crimes.

With that background, Israelis are puzzled over how hate for their country is increasingly expressed during Europe’s music festivals.