The International Day Commemorating
the Victims of Acts of Violence based on Religion or Belief
takes place this Thursday, on August 22. A study by the European
Commission against Racism and Intolerance shows that key
challenges in Europe remain the rise in anti-Semitism and
anti-Muslim racism as a result of the current Middle East
conflict.
Following the Hamas terror attack against Israel on October 7,
2023 and Israel's subsequent war in Gaza, several European
countries have reported a spike in anti-Semitism, and in some
countries the number of hate incidents against Muslims has
multiplied. These are the findings of the European Commission
against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) in its annual report on
the main trends observed in 2023. ECRI is the Council of
Europe's human rights monitoring body, specialising in issues
related to the fight against racism, discrimination, xenophobia,
antisemitism and intolerance.
"In several states, the number of anti-Semitic incidents
reported in the last three months of 2023 far exceeded the
number usually reported for an entire year, and in some cases
was much higher," the statement of the ECRI said. At the same
time, the study found that "in the aftermath of the Hamas terror
attack of 7 October 2023 against Israel the number of hate
incidents against Muslims increased manifold". It was also said
that "Muslims received blame for the attack and other attacks in
the Middle East, based on stereotyping of whole communities and
their perceived connections with the use of violence".
Muslims are also often unfairly blamed for crimes committed in
Europe. An example of this is the recent events in the UK
following the murder of three girls aged nine, seven and six.
Initially, false rumours spread on social media that the
attacker was a Muslim asylum seeker. The suspect was later
identified as a 17-year-old who was born in Wales. British media
reported that his parents were from Rwanda. Despite the police
statement, initial disturbances in Southport centred around a
mosque, and widespread violence has rocked England and Northern
Ireland since.
The acts of anti-Semitism have covered a wide range of
incidents, from hate speech, online and offline - including
death threats - to acts of vandalism and destruction of Jewish
community sites, such as synagogues and cemeteries, to physical
attacks against Jews, the ECRI said.
The Commission "is particularly concerned" that many of these
incidents have occurred in schools "which should be places where
future generations learn about and practice diversity, inclusion
and mutual respect".
Europe's Jewish community is experiencing a "rising tide of
anti-Semitism", the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
(FRA) reported in July. "The spillover effect of the conflict in
the Middle East is eroding hard-fought-for progress" in tackling
anti-Jewish hate, FRA's director Sirpa Rautio said. This was
jeopardising the success of the EU's first-ever strategy on
combating the issue adopted in 2021, she added.
To assess the impact the conflict in the Middle East has had on
anti-Semitism in Europe, the report relied on information
collected from twelve Jewish organisations in 2024. "FRA's
consultation with national and European Jewish umbrella
organisations in early 2024 shows a dramatic surge" in
antisemitic attacks, Rautio said.
In France, 74 percent of Jews felt the conflict affected their
sense of security, the highest rate among the countries
surveyed. Across Europe, 76 percent reported hiding their Jewish
identity "at least occasionally" and 34 percent avoid Jewish
events or sites "because they do not feel safe", a press release
accompanying the report said.
On a positive note, the ECRI's report said that many heads of EU
member states and representatives of national, regional or local
authorities and civil society organisations, as well as
politicians and personalities from the world of culture and
religion, among others, have publicly demonstrated their
solidarity with Jewish communities in Europe since October 7.
The report mentioned that some governments have also increased
the security measures necessary to protect Jewish institutions
from antisemitic violence and potential terrorist attacks and
continue to do so.
The opposite trend seems to be true for Muslim communities. The
ECRI highlighted that "there have been several cases of
speeches by politicians and other public figures in which
aspects of anti-Muslim racism have been mixed with general
xenophobic discourse or who have used the threat of a so-called
Islamisation of European societies, to gain votes in elections".
"Those who use this latter narrative exploit people's
ignorance," said the ECRI chair Bertil Cottier. "Public figures,
not only politicians but also those in entertainment and sports,
should say that such discourse is unacceptable," he added.
France, which is home to one of the largest Muslim populations
in Europe, with around six million people of Islamic faith or
background, recorded 242 anti-Muslim acts in 2023, the interior
minister, Gerald Darmanin, said in February. He added that this
was an increase of almost 30 percent on the previous year.
Situation of Jews before the outbreak of war in Gaza
The FRA survey, however, does not only refer to the situation of
Jews in Europe after the Hamas attack on Israel, but also to how
Jews described their situation before the war in Gaza broke out.
80 percent of Jews surveyed said they feel anti-Semitism has
worsened in recent years. The most common "negative stereotypes"
those questioned listed as encountered included the accusation
that Jews were "holding power and control over finance, media,
politics or economy". Many also reported encountering denials of
Israel's right to exist as a state.
A total of four percent of respondents in 2023 said they had
experienced antisemitic physical attacks in the twelve months
prior to the survey - double the number recorded in 2018. About
60 percent of those asked said they were not satisfied with
their national governments' efforts to combat anti-Semitism.
The survey covered 13 EU countries home to 96 percent of the
bloc's Jewish population: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic,
Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands,
Poland, Romania, Spain and Sweden. Here are some examples from
this study and a report by the US State Department.
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