There was a 27 per cent drop in the number of major antisemitic attacks worldwide last year.

Britain fell from the top country for attacks in 2010 to second place in an annual Tel Aviv University antisemitism report. In 2010 there were 144 attacks in the UK, more than anywhere else, but last year it dropped to 105 - nine fewer than in France.

Roni Stauber, co-author of the report, commented on the global drop: "There is always influence from events in the Middle East, and last year there were no major confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians." He pointed out that 2009 was dominated by the aftermath of the Gaza War, and in 2010 there was anger over the Gaza flotilla.

Another reason for last year's decrease, he said, is that antisemites were distracted. Across Muslim communities people were preoccupied with the Arab Spring and, among the far right, as rhetoric has grown against Muslims and Roma, less energy has been put in to attacking Jews.

But the report stressed that it is not all good news - major incidents may be less common, but it says that harassment of Jews, such as the shouting of abuse in the street, is on the rise.