Anti-Semitism in the Netherlands nearly doubled in 2009 compared to 2008. Police said that 209 incidents had been documented last year, accounting for nearly a tenth of all discriminatory incidents in the country. Experts said this increase might only be “the tip of the iceberg”. This represented a 48 per cent rise year-on-year against Jews and Jewish sites. During Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip in January 2009, 98 attacks were documented, including nine physical assaults. Other incidents in 2009 included vandals damaging synagogues and spraying graffiti on Jewish monuments.
The Jewish community in the Netherlands numbers around 30,000, less than 0.3 per cent of the country’s total population.
Meanwhile, the Dutch Foreign Ministry canceled a visit by Israeli mayors to the Netherlands because the delegation was to include leaders of West Bank settlements. Participants in the delegation, sponsored by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, would have included the heads of 30 small local councils, including from Arab communities.
