Anti-semitism. (photo credit: REUTERS)
Diaspora Affairs Minister Naftali Bennett pointed at the rise of the far right in various countries, the refugee crisis and the Internet as major factors spurring an increase of antisemitic incidents around the world, as he presented the annual report on antisemitism to the government on Sunday.
In his opening comments on the report, Bennett noted that while the number of violent antisemitic incidents recorded around the world decreased, the number of general antisemitic incidents increased.
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"Antisemitism is the dangerous fuel feeding our enemies for generations,” he said. “We must ensure every Jew in the world can live a safe and proud life."
"Also in 2017 we saw a strong antisemitic presence online,” Bennett added. “Much of this discourse was related to the changes in governments around the world, the refugee crisis and the visibility of antisemitism in social media. We must act with all available tools against current antisemitism to ensure the security of the Jewish People, in Israel and the Diaspora."
Presenting the report ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which will be marked on January 27, the ministry highlighted the record number of antisemitic incidents recorded in the UK in the first half of 2017, with a 78% increase in physical attacks and a 30% increase in the number of overall antisemitic incidents.
The ministry also flagged the rise of the far right in Germany and the influx of refugees to the country as factors that have negatively impacted the Jewish population. A study released in December by the American Jewish Committee’s Ramer Institute for German-Jewish Relations in Berlin found that antisemitism among Muslim refugees is rampant and requires urgent attention. A new edition of Adolf Hitler's antisemitic manifesto Mein Kampf also became a bestseller in German bookstores in 2017, the report noted.