Antisemitic incidents in the UK hit record levels in the first half of this year, continuing a surge seen after Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, a Jewish charity said Thursday.
The Community Security Trust (CST), which monitors antisemitism in Britain, recorded 1,978 such incidents from January to June, its highest six-month tally since it began its count in 1984.
It represented a 105-per cent increase on the 964 incidents recorded in the same period in 2023.
The figures emerged with parts of the UK rocked by significant community tensions, after more than a week of violent disorder in towns and cities across England and in Northern Ireland.
The unrest — sparked by a deadly knife attack in which three children were killed, and which was falsely blamed in social media posts on a Muslim immigrant — has included a strong anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant bent.
CST said the unprecedented levels of antisemitic incidents seen in the first half of the year were linked to Gaza.
“There was an instant increase in antisemitic incident levels in the UK following Hamas’ attack on Israel, before Israel had coordinated any large-scale military response in Gaza,” it said in a statement.
“The subsequent war, and the widespread public focus it has drawn, have continued to impact the scale and content of antisemitism so far this year.”
Prior to the riots over the last 10 days, Britain had also already seen a spike in Islamophobia and hate crimes against Muslims, dating back several years, according to other advocacy groups.
