VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz has apologised to singer Douwe Bob for a tweet accusing him of anti-Semitism, averting a potentially damaging court battle ahead of the elections.

Yeşilgöz posted the message on X after Douwe Bob cancelled a planned performance at Jom Ha, an annual football tournament in Amsterdam for Jewish children.

The singer pulled out of the event in June, saying Zionist propaganda was being spread there, contrary to an agreement between his team and the organisers.

His decision led VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz to criticise him on social media, saying: “Children are being denied a show because of what they are: Jewish. (…) This is how normalised hatred for Jews has become. Pure hate, in plain sight”.

As a result of the tweet, Douwe Bob received death threats and had to leave the country. Last week, the singer announced he would seek an injunction against the VVD leader to force her to take down the post.

In a short joint statement on X, in which both Yesilgöz and Douwe Bob refer to themselves in the third person, Yesigöz admitted her accusation was “untrue” and that she had therefore removed the tweet.

Douwe Bob en ik zijn tot een gezamenlijke verklaring gekomen. We zetten daarmee samen een streep onder de afgelopen periode. We kiezen voor verbinding en verantwoordelijkheid.
Zie hier het statement. pic.twitter.com/rE3M6NOe8r

— Dilan Yesilgöz – Zegerius (@DilanYesilgoz) August 11, 2025

The statement concludes by saying that “in a time of growing polarisation, we are choosing connection and responsibility. We are now jointly leaving this question behind us,” signed Dilan Yesilgöz and Douwe Bob.

An opinion poll published by Maurice de Hond at the weekend put support for the VVD on 16 virtual seats, equivalent to just over 10% of the vote. The party won 24 seats at the last election in November 2023 but support has been declining since the end of May, when it was projected to win 25.