Dear Friends, Addressing the Knesset, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said antisemitism was contrary to European values, and vowed to combat resurgent Jew-hatred. Meanwhile, lawmakers in New York State passed Holocaust education legislation. U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt gave her first key-note address in New York at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organization's Convening on Antisemitism. The Ambassador described antisemitism as “free-flowing and coming from all directions,” noting both how the Buffalo mass shooting demonstrated a pervasive antisemitic ideology, and that “we cannot ignore the connection between antisemitism and attacks on Israel,” pointing out that "some criticism of Israel is a foil for antisemitism." The same day, Iran's Foreign Minister speaking at the World Economic Forum said “The national interests of the United States have been taken hostage by the Zionists.” Iraq's parliament passed legislation to execute or imprison for life citizens who have contacts with Israelis, which the U.S. State Department said fosters “an environment of antisemitism.” In a shocking provocation, members of the Goyim Defense League, dressed in Nazi uniforms, shouted antisemitic rhetoric through a megaphone in Los Angeles, saying “Nazis are coming,” "You got six million?” and “Come on Jewboy.” The group drove around in a truck covered in antisemitic messages such as “Jewish Lives Matter Most” and “Resisting the Great Replacement = Greatest Threat??” In New York City, a woman threw fiery objects at a synagogue, a Baltimore JCC received a second bomb threat, and a menorah at the University of Cincinnati was vandalized for the fourth time. In London, a Jewish-owned Israeli restaurant was targeted with 'Free Palestine' graffiti, and a group of Jews were told “Hope you die in another Holocaust, f***ing Jews” after leaving another restaurant. Two Jewish cemeteries were also vandalized in Germany, one with Nazi symbols. This week's global antisemitism report highlights 36 new media reports of antisemitic incidents. The total includes 17 (47.2%) from the far-right, 6 (16.7%) from the far-left, 8 (22.2%) with Islamist motivations, and 5 (13.9%) unidentifiable in nature. |