CST’s six-monthly report shows 1,308 antisemitic incidents recorded between January and June 2021, a record half-year total.
The spike in antisemitism reported that resulted from reactions to the escalation of violence in the Middle East is a significant reason for the 49 per cent increase from the 875 antisemitic incidents recorded in the first six months of 2020.
More than half of these 1,308 reports occurred in May and June, during and in the aftermath of the intensification of hostilities between Israel and Hamas. More than half of these 1,308 reports referenced Israel and Palestine, were linked to the conflict, demonstrated anti-Zionist motivation, or a combination of all three, alongside antisemitism.
When so much antisemitism occurs, it is clear that Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred become much the same thing in the minds of the perpetrators. They direct their anger at Jews they know, Jews they don’t, Orthodox Jews, secular Jews, Jewish children, adults, organisations, schools, synagogues: there is no single victim profile, and no single avenue for the expression of anti-Jewish sentiment.
