Since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas the United States and other nations have reported dramatically heightened numbers of antisemitic and Islam
Since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, the United States and other nations have reported dramatically heightened numbers of antisemitic and Islamophobic threats, leading to heightened security for their faith-based communities.
The number of reported antisemitic incidents in the U.S. increased by 388% in the four weeks after October 7, according to the Anti-Defamation League, or ADL, while the number of Islamophobic incidents in the U.S. increased 216% during the same timeframe, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR.
As 2023 comes to a close, both anti-hate watchdogs say the most recent conflict in the Middle East – in which 1,200 people were killed and 240 others kidnapped by Hamas, the deadliest terrorist attack in Israel’s history, as well as a U.S.-backed Israeli response in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 19,000 people – has resulted in a record year for reported incidents of anti-faith hatred.
‘In just 8 weeks in October and November of 2023, CAIR received 42% of the complaints it received in all of 2022,’ the U.S.-based Muslim civil rights and advocacy group said in a report published on December 20. ‘Following the escalation of hostilities in Israel and Palestine, and specifically the Israeli government’s apparent intent to commit genocide against the Palestinian people, 2023 is set to lay claim to one of the worst waves of anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States in the last three decades.’
Israeli and Palestinian representatives at the United Nations have traded accusations of ‘genocide’ over the war raging in Gaza, with both sides demanding an international response.
FILE – Jewish Americans and supporters of Israel hold signs as they protest against antisemitism during a rally on the National Mall in Washington on Nov. 14, 2023.
The ADL last week issued a report stating that from October 7 to December 7 it recorded the highest number of antisemitic incidents of any two-month period since the group began tracking them in 1979.
‘ADL recorded a total of 2,031 antisemitic incidents, up from 465 incidents during the same period in 2022, representing a 337% increase year-over-year,’ the report stated. ‘This includes 40 incidents of physical assault, 337 incidents of vandalism, 749 incidents of verbal or written harassment and 905 rallies including antisemitic rhetoric, expressions of support for terrorism against the state of Israel and/or anti-Zionism. On average, over the last 61 days, Jews in America experienced nearly 34 antisemitic incidents per day.’
As reported by Reuters, virtually no continent was spared, with incidents of antisemitism registered in North and South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
