Group reports record tally of antisemitic incidents in 2021

COLLEGE PARK, Md.– A Jewish civil rights organizations annual tally of antisemitic occurrences in the U.S. reached a record high in 2015, with a surge that coincided with an 11-day war between Israel and the Hamas militant group, according to a report released Tuesday.The Anti-Defamation League counted 2,717 antisemitic events of attack, harassment and vandalism in 2021, a 34% boost over the previous year and the highest number since the New York City-based group started tracking such occurrences in 1979. Over 260 Palestinians and 13 Israelis were eliminated throughout the May 2021 war in between Israel and Hamas. Israeli aircraft struck numerous targets in Gaza, while Hamas released thousands of rockets at Israel. The Israeli air force bombed and ruined a 12-story tower that housed lots of families along with workplaces belonging to The Associated Press and the Al-Jazeera satellite channel.ADL counted 297 antisemitic occurrences that happened in between the May 10 start of military action and the end of the month, a 141% increase from the 123 incidents that it counted during the very same period in 2020.”The wrongdoers of many of these occurrences clearly referred to the dispute between Israel and Hamas,” the report says.ADL said its tally of antisemitic incidents still increased by 46% throughout the last 20 days of May 2021, compared to the same duration in 2020, even when occurrences with explicit referrals to Israel or Zionism are excluded.”Its disconcerting due to the fact that the vitriol against the Jewish neighborhood is coming from all angles,” said Oren Segal, vice president of the ADLs Center on Extremism.ADL counted 15 antisemitic assaults between May 10 and May 30 of in 2015 after counting none throughout the very same period in 2020. The group said there is evidence that a minimum of 8 of those attacks were inspired by “anti-Israel/anti-Zionism sentiment.”For example, it pointed out a May 18 incident in which people in a caravan of cars and flying Palestinian flags attacked Jewish diners outside a Los Angeles restaurant.”The Palestinian advocates pressed among the victims to the ground and kicked him. Not long after, a brawl emerged, and subsequent news reports indicated the attackers also hurled anti-Jewish slurs throughout the melee,” the ADL report says.ADL also pointed out a May 20 incident in New York City, where a Jewish man wearing a yarmulke was attacked on his method to a pro-Israel rally. His assaulters screamed anti-Jewish and anti-Israel slurs while they punched, kicked and pepper-sprayed him, the report says.ADL says its audit includes incidents of harassment, vandalism or assault that included “anti-Israel and/or anti-Zionism themes” if they also reveal “traditional anti-Jewish animus” or “demonize Jews as a group genuine or viewed support of Israel.”The 11-day war led to numerous “anti-Israel” demonstrations and rallies in the U.S., the report says. The group says its audit didnt include those events unless they “included slogans or indications that straight linked their opposition to Israel or Zionism to all Jews or incorporated antisemitic tropes.”The audit discovered that extremists groups or people, including white supremacists, was accountable for 484 incidents last year, up from 332 in 2020. The distribution of antisemitic fliers, banners, stickers or composed messages represented the majority of those incidents. They also consisted of acts of vandalism and bomb risks to Jewish institutions.The groups tally of overall 2,717 occurrences last year included 1,776 cases of harassment, a 43% increase from 1,242 in 2020. ADL likewise counted a 14% boost in vandalism cases (from 751 in 2020 to 853 last year) and a 167% increase in attack incidents (from 33 in 2020 to 88 in 2015). The 88 assault events included 131 victims, none of whom were killed, the report says.ADL states it compiles information for its yearly audit by evaluating info reported by news media, victims, police and community leaders. The group states it prevents conflating basic criticism of Israel or anti-Israel advocacy with antisemitism.”However, Israel-related harassment of recognizable groups or people may be included when the harassment incorporated anti-Jewish recommendations, accusations and/or conspiracy theories, or when American Jews are demonized for their real or viewed assistance of Israel,” the report states.

COLLEGE PARK, Md.– A Jewish civil rights organizations annual tally of antisemitic events in the U.S. reached a record high last year, with a rise that coincided with an 11-day war between Israel and the Hamas militant group, according to a report launched Tuesday.The Anti-Defamation League counted 2,717 antisemitic occurrences of assault, harassment and vandalism in 2021, a 34% increase over the previous year and the greatest number considering that the New York City-based group began tracking such events in 1979. The Israeli air force bombed and damaged a 12-story tower that housed dozens of households as well as workplaces belonging to The Associated Press and the Al-Jazeera satellite channel.ADL counted 297 antisemitic events that happened between the May 10 start of military action and the end of the month, a 141% increase from the 123 incidents that it counted throughout the very same duration in 2020.”The perpetrators of numerous of these occurrences explicitly referred to the dispute in between Israel and Hamas,” the report says.ADL stated its tally of antisemitic events still increased by 46% during the last 20 days of May 2021, compared to the exact same duration in 2020, even when events with specific referrals to Israel or Zionism are omitted.