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In the first half of 2024, almost 2,000 anti-Semitic incidents were recorded, according to a charity.
The Community Security Trust (CST) said it documented a record 1,978 incidents from January to June, double the number in the same period last year.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the level of hate as “truly appalling”. The charity, which monitors anti-Semitism and keeps Britain’s Jewish community safe, said more than half – 1,026 – of the incidents recorded featured rhetoric or imagery relating to Israel, Gaza, the Hamas attack or the war.
In one such incident in May, a metal menorah outside a building in London was painted over with red paint and the wall behind it was scrawled with “Gaza.” In another incident in June, a swastika was painted inside a Star of David on a wall in London.
The aid organization said there had been a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents following the October 7 attacks and that the number of incidents remained high.
About 121 incidents were classified as physical assault – another case was so serious that it had to be classified as “extreme violence”, the aid organization said.
In another 26 incidents, homes or vehicles belonging to Jewish citizens were damaged, in 20 incidents, posters of the hostages captured by Hamas were damaged, and in 11 Jewish businesses and organizations were damaged. According to the aid organization, seven synagogues and two Jewish schools were affected.
According to the descriptions of the perpetrators collected by the aid organization, 42 percent of the perpetrators were white people from Northern Europe.
A significant proportion of the incidents, namely 1,037, were recorded across the Greater London area.
Chief executive Mark Gardner said the data showed a “shameful rise in British anti-Semitism”. He added: “It is happening everywhere in society, including in schools, on campus, in the workplace, on public transport and on the streets.”
“We find that although this hatred is initially directed against Jews, it quickly turns against others as well.”
Home Secretary Cooper added: “There is no place for this vile hatred in the UK and we are absolutely clear that those who spread this poison – on the streets or online – will always face the full force of the law.”
