A survey commissioned by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has found that nearly a third of Europeans blame Jews for the global economic meltdown and that a greater number think Jews have too much power in the business world. The ADL says the opinion poll carried out in seven European countries confirmed that anti-Semitism remained strong. For the survey, 3,500 people, 500 each in Austria, Britain, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Spain, were interviewed and asked about their views on Jews.
In Spain, 74 per cent of respondents said it was "probably true" that Jews hold too much sway over the global financial markets. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed in Spain said Jews were more loyal to Israel than they were to their home countries.
Britain consistently registered the lowest levels of anti-Jewish sentiment, and numbers there have fallen from a similar survey conducted in 2007. Austria also registered a slight drop in the level of anti-Semitism, while in other countries anti-Semitic sentiment either remained the same or deepened, the survey indicated.
Overall, about 40 per cent of those questioned said Jews had too much power in the business world, including more than half of Hungarian, Spanish and Polish respondents. And 44 per cent said it is was "probably true" that Jews still talk too much about the Holocaust.