Austria's Jewish community has expressed concern that anti-Semitism is on the rise again as a result of the Israel-Hamas war. The Jewish community of Vienna (IKG) said in a statement that the number of anti-Semitic commentaries, graffiti and attacks had "risen dramatically" in recent weeks. "One-sided condemnation of Israel's offensive against the radical Islamist terrorist organization Hamas... is playing into the hands of anti-Semitic forces," said the statement.
The statement was released following a meeting of representatives of German-speaking Jewish communities in Austria, Germany and Switzerland in Zurich. The IKG also expressed concern at the decision by Pope Benedict XVI to lift the excommunication of Richard Williamson, a British bishop who has dismissed as "lies" historical evidence that six million Jews were gassed by the Nazis during World War II.
Meanwhile, the European Jewish Congress has called on the European Union to act more decisively against anti-Semitic incidents. EJC president Moshe Kantor criticized that the European Parliament was apparently not prepared to pass a resolution against the growing number of anti-Semitic acts, but instead chose to give the floor to Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas. Perhaps some deputies regarded the anti-Semitic incidents in recent weeks as a justified reaction to the Middle East conflict, Kantor said.
