A record number of anti-Semitic incidents was registered in Britain in 2009, according to the annual report by the Community Security Trust (CST). They were mainly sparked by Israel's offensive against Hamas in Gaza. The CST, set up to advise Jews in the UK on security issues, said it had been notified of 924 incidents in 2009, which represents the highest number since the CST began collating figures in 1984, and a 55 percent increase on the previous record registered in 2006.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called the rise in anti-Semitism “deeply troubling”. He said debate over the Middle East conflict was welcome, but “no strength of feeling can ever justify violent extremism or attacks and we will stand firm against all those who would use anti-Israeli feeling as an excuse or disguise for anti-Semitism and attacks on the Jewish community. Whether online, on campus or on the streets, there is absolutely no place for racism or discrimination of any sort and the CST has my wholehearted support.
CST spokesman Mark Gardner stated: “These record figures show that anti-Semitism is an increasingly significant problem for British Jews. The trend must be reversed and we call upon decent people to speak out against anti-Semitism in all its forms."
Of the 924 incidents, 124 were rated as violent, the highest annual number the CST has recorded. Three involved a threat to life or grievous bodily harm, including an arson attack against a rabbi's house.
Victims of abuse and assaults included Jewish academics, students, schoolchildren and teachers. Most incidents took place in London and Manchester, home to the two biggest Jewish communities in the country, which has the second-largest Jewish community in Europe after France.
Read the summary of the CST report here.
