15 February 2008
The number of violent attacks on Jews in the UK reached a record high in 2007, although the total number of anti-Semitic incidents was down, according to a study published this week. Overall, there were 547 "anti-Semitic race hate incidents" in 2007, down 8 per cent compared to the previous year, according to the Community Security Trust (CST), the group established to ensure the safety and security of the British Jewish community and to fight anti-Semitism.
CST is the only organization in the UK dedicated to collecting, analyzing and publishing statistics relating to anti-Semitic figures. It publishes these figures annually in an anti-Semitic Incidents Report. According to the new report, the number of violent attacks rose to 114, the highest since the CST began recording figures in 1984. "The fall in the number of anti-Semitic incidents is very welcome, but is less than we had hoped for. 2007 was still the second worst year on record and the worst ever for violent assaults. Over the past decade there has been a significant rise in the basic level of anti-Semitic incidents in our society, and it is affecting the lives of far too many British Jews,“ CST spokesman Mark Gardner said.
The CST figures break down into six categories, from extreme violence, damage and desecration and threats down to abusive behavior and anti-Semitic literature. The 547 incidents in 2007 included assaults, hate mail, anti-Semitic graffiti and verbal abuse. The victims were largely Jewish individuals and community organizations, especially synagogues. According to the CST, the overall fall of 8 per cent is largely due to the lack of "trigger events" from the Middle East or elsewhere during 2007, which would normally lead to temporary rises in the number of anti-Semitic incidents. In 2006, the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon had led to the highest ever recorded number of anti-Semitic incidents in the UK (594). The decrease from 2006 does not alter the long-term trend of rising ant-Semitic incident levels since the late 1990s, according to the CST.
