“EXPLOSION IN HATRED”: Anti-Semitic Incidents in the United Kingdom Rose to a 40-Year High in 2023

“Jesus said, They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.” – John 16:2-3

“Satan stood up against Israel.” – 1st Chronicles 21:1

DAILYMAIL.com reports: British Jews suffered an ‘explosion in hatred’ in the wake of the Hamas terror attack, shocking figures reveal today.

The number of anti-Semitic incidents jumped 147 per cent last year to record levels, with a massive surge in the wake of the Hamas atrocities on October 7, a report said.

The Community Security Trust, a charity, recorded 4,103 instances of anti-Semitism, up from 1,662 in 2022. It included 266 violent assaults on Jews, up 96 per cent year-on-year and the highest figure since the CST started gathering data 40 years ago.

For the first time, it recorded at least one anti-Semitic incident for every police force in the UK, with the majority – more than 2,400 – in London, including some at vigils for Hamas’s Israeli hostages.

Home Secretary James Cleverly last night condemned the figures as ‘utterly deplorable’. Ten of the violent incidents involved fake firearms and three involved knives. Victims were struck with metal bars or other objects in 13 cases, 53 were punched or kicked and 36 were spat upon.

A further 58 saw stones, bricks, eggs, bottles or other objects thrown at victims.

Offenders removed Jews’ religious clothes or accessories in 15 cases, and vehicles were driven at pedestrians in a further ten.

Exactly half of the violent incidents occurred in just five boroughs – Barnet in north London saw 56; Hackney in east London saw 41; Bury and Salford in Greater Manchester saw 17 and 13 respectively; and Gateshead saw six.

Forty cases of assault were perpetrated by children against other children. The report said that, in all, 325 incidents involved schools or schoolchildren, up from 98 year-on-year, and a further 182 were at universities, up from 60.

A ‘worrying proportion’ of incidents involved children perpetrating anti-Semitism, the report said, with 379 cases involving under-18s either alone or in mixed age groups.

The CST said the week immediately after the October 7 massacre in Israel saw the highest levels overall, suggesting the spike in anti-Semitism was prompted by twisted celebrations of Hamas’s atrocities rather than Israel’s military response.

The charity, which monitors levels of anti-Semitism and provides security for British Jews, said in its report: ‘This record total is due to the sheer volume of anti-Semitism perpetrated across the UK following Hamas’s attack on Israel.’

‘Of the 4,103 instances of anti-Jewish hate reported, 2,699 (66 per cent) occurred on or after October 7. This figure alone exceeds any previous annual anti-Semitic incident total recorded by CST. This trigger event had a seismic effect on anti-Semitic incident levels in the UK that outweighs the impact of previous wars involving Israel, and the impact was instant.’… (Continue reading)