WJC alarmed at spike in attacks against Jews in wake of Gaza war

The World Jewish Congress (WJC) on Monday expressed its grave concern about the wave of anti-Semitic attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions worldwide in the wake of the conflict in Gaza. “Such attacks are intolerable, and the authorities must do everything they can to guard Jews and Jewish institution from this wanton violence,” said WJC President Ronald S. Lauder.

“Police must prevent demonstrations, such as those that dissolved into mayhem yesterday in Paris, if there is a clear danger to public order. Many of these rallies are no longer about free speech, they are about incitement to violence and hate against Jews, and it some cases it is actual violence. Such incidents must be prevented,” Lauder declared.

On Sunday, pro-Palestinian rioters attacked the Abravanel Synagogue in Paris, trapping hundreds of people attending a memorial service for the three teenagers who were abducted and murdered in Israel last month. The projectile-throwing mob injured six policemen and several members of the Jewish community, according to reports. Some rioters were armed with axes and knives, according to eyewitnesses, and police was unable to control the situation. A private Jewish security unit had to engage the attackers until police reinforcements arrived.

On Friday, a firebomb was thrown at the synagogue of Aulnay-sous-Bois, a Paris suburb. Meanwhile, in Belleville, another suburb of the French capital, a demonstration on Saturday reportedly featured calls to “slaughter the Jews.”

The CRIF, WJC’s French affiliate, issued a denunciation of the attacks and called on the French authorities “to significantly reinforce security around community sites and to impose a ban on ostensibly violent and radical demonstrations and rallies that pose a threat to public order, in particular the one scheduled to take place next Saturday in Paris.” The CRIF also urged that authorities dissolve the groups that have called for attacks on Jews and severely punish the perpetrators of anti-Semitic riots. “There is a danger that the situation is degrading and that the worst might have happened,” the WJC’s French affiliate said in a statement.

Anti-Semitic incidents have also occurred in other countries in recent days. In Casablanca, Morocco, a rabbi was viciously assaulted as he walked to synagogue. In Germany, a number of pro-Hamas rallies took place where anti-Semitic incidents were shouted by protestors. A reporter was attacked by stone-throwing youth and a passer-by severely injured.

In The Hague, the Netherlands, a few hundred people blocked a central shopping street while carrying signs that juxtaposed the Israeli flag with the flag of Nazi Germany. One sign read: “Stop doing what Hitler did to you.”

In Santiago de Chile, mock arrest warrants were widely distributed alleging that Israel was torturing, interrogating or incarcerating every year 700 Palestinian minors aged between 12 and 17. Moreover a Chilean Jewish family had its house stoned to the beat of anti-Semitic chants (“killer Jews”, “get out of the country”), according to information from the Chilean Jewish community.