German Chancellor Angela Merkel told an international conference on anti-Semitism in Berlin that crimes against Jews and attacks on Jewish sites were attacks on Germany.
Speaking at an assembly at the Bundestag, the German parliament, on Monday, Merkel said: "We must never accept it when tombstones on Jewish cemeteries are being desecrated because then, our culture is being desecrated.
"If synagogues become the target of hate and violence the pillars of our free society are shaken," Merkel added.
Her comments came as official figures show German-born far-right supporters commit the vast majority of anti-Semitic crimes in the country.
In January, Merkel stressed that anti-Semitic attitudes among some young people arriving from countries where "hatred toward Israel and Jews is commonplace" needed to be dealt with.
The safety of Jewish communities is particularly sensitive in Germany due to the murder of over 6 million Jews by Hitler's Third Reich.