Amsterdam's Royal Concert Hall cancels annual Chanukah concert, citing singer's IDF ties

Last year, Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall held its 10th anniversary of a Chanukah concert series that was rebooted 70 years after it was halted by the Nazis, in what some Dutch Jews saw as a repudiation of antisemitism that had swelled during the war in Gaza.

This year, the concert has been called off — and the prestigious concert hall citing the chosen singer’s ties to the Israeli army.

The Chanukah Concert Foundation, which organizes the event, had booked Shai Abramson to sing. Abramson is a retired lieutenant colonel for the IDF who serves as the army’s chief cantor.

The Royal Concert Hall,...