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Anjem Choudary sentenced to life in prison with minimum term of 28 years

Anjem Choudary, one of Britain’s leading Islamists, has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 28 years after he was found guilty of directing terror group Al-Muhajiroun and encouraging support for it through online meetings.

He was arrested and charged with three terrorism offences last year: directing a terrorist organisation, being a member of a proscribed organisation, and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation. He was recently convicted and a sentence has now been handed down at Woolwich Crown Court.

Mr Choudary, born in the UK and of Pakistani descent, failed his first-year medical exams at the University of Southampton due to his party lifestyle, but eventually graduated in law, later becoming Chairman of the Society of Muslim Lawyers. He became radicalised in the 1990s, launching al-Muhajiroun in the UK – later banned under terror laws – in 1996 with Syrian-born Islamist, Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed.

The Jihadist group became linked to international terrorism, antisemitism and homophobia as it sought a world subject to Sharia law, and praised the 9/11 highjackers. The group disbanded in 2004 following its proscription but is believed to have continued to operate under different aliases. According to The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Choudary was involved in recruiting Muslims to undergo weapons training in the UK in order to fight for Osama Bin Laden’s International Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders, and in 2010 he was linked to those involved in an al Qaeda plot to bomb the London Stock Exchange.

Mr Choudary praised the murderer of drummer Lee Rigby in 2013, in response to which comments then-Prime Minister David Cameron said: “Let’s be clear about Anjem Choudary: he does have absolutely despicable and appalling views, an absolutely classic case of that poisonous narrative of extremism and violence that we need to confront and defeat.”

In 2016, Mr Choudary was convicted of supporting the Islamic State in connection with speeches posted on YouTube. He was jailed for five years and six months. At the time he was jailed, he had reportedly been linked to fifteen terror plots dating back approximately twenty years, and had connections to hundreds of British jihadists who had travelled to Syria to fight.

He was released from Belmarsh prison after serving half of his sentence, although he remained subject to some 25 licence conditions.

In 2021, he was reported to have suggested that the MP Sir David Amess may have been murdered because of his “rumoured pro-Israel views”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer has consistently showed that large majorities of British Jews consider the threat from Islamists to be very serious.

Image credit: Metropolitan Police Service

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Expelled former Conservative mayor apologises following exposure of “offensive and inappropriate comments”

Councillor Atiqul Hoque, the former Conservative Mayor of Salisbury, has apologised after a number of “offensive and inappropriate” messages were leaked.

In a published statement, issued on his behalf, it said: “Cllr Atiqul Hoque in considering the content of his texts which were reported in the Salisbury Journal and the response which they have occasioned, has reflected and revisited those words and the offence that they have cased. He wishes to offer an unreserved apology.

“He wholeheartedly regrets and apologises for any hurt and or offence that he may have caused when his words were reported in the Salisbury Journal. His texts, written in haste, were clumsy.

“He intended no offence to anyone and apologises without reservation. Cllr Hoque is opposed to violence from whatever source and is deeply committed to peace and the inclusion of all people of whatever religion, racial or cultural persuasion.”

Cllr Hoque was expelled from the Conservative Party in February, following complaints from a whistleblower regarding a number of messages on WhatsApp and a post on Facebook. At the time, the Party confirmed that Cllr Hoque had been expelled for sending “offensive and inappropriate comments”.

One of the alleged messages appeared to refer to “Zionist pay masters”.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions,” is an example of antisemitism.

Our representing polling also shows that eight in ten British Jews consider themselves to be a Zionist. Only six percent do not.

Another of the alleged messages said: “Don’t forget who planted crucifixion of our beloved Jesus Christ peace be upon him, they are good at that,” appearing to reference the accusation that Jews were responsible for the death of Jesus Christ, a conspiracy which has fuelled centuries of anti-Jewish violence and rhetoric.

He also reportedly shared a photo of a published letter, published less than two months after Hamas, an antisemitic genocidal terror group, carried out barbaric attacks in Israel on 7th October, with the caption: “Faith RESTORED […]” The letter included the statement: “Despite being Jewish, I do not support the genocide and ethnic cleansing by Israel. My religion has taught me compassion and to strive for universal peace. It certainly does not advocate violence, death and destruction.”

Cllr Hoque now sits as an Independent councillor on Salisbury City Council.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Jewish student allegedly physically assaulted at school which already has alleged history of racist bullying

A Jewish student at Desborough College, a school in Maidenhead, was allegedly physically assaulted by fellow students. 

According to the father of the student, his son, whose identity has been kept anonymous, has experienced multiple incidents of bullying following the barbaric attacks carried out by Hamas, an antisemitic genocidal terror organisation, in Israel on 7th October last year.

Since the attacks, antisemitism in Britain has skyrocketed, including a reported 1,350% increase in hate crimes against Jewish people. 

In November last year, the student was allegedly physically attacked by students who were shouting, “f*** Israel” and performing Nazi salutes. The students also allegedly threatened to hurt or kill him if he reported the incident. The school sanctioned these students in January but did not exclude them.

Earlier this year, another student allegedly shouted at the Jewish boy: “From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free.” The genocidal chant ‘From the River to the Sea’, which is regularly heard at anti-Israel protests, refers to the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea, and, whether intended or not, is widely understood to represent a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a Palestinian state. It is reasonably interpreted to be a call for the annihilation of half the world’s Jews, who live in Israel. 

In March, whilst waiting for a bus after school, two students allegedly approached the victim and accused him of “supporting the genocide of Palestinians”. In a separate incident, also in March, another student allegedly shouted at his friends when the victim was with them: “Stop talking to [name] because he supports genocide.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the State of Israel” is an example of antisemitism.

According to a “Stage 2 outcome letter” addressed to the father of the Jewish pupil from the Pioneer Educational Trust, the trust that oversees the school, three complaints were made to the Trust, which were summarised as follows:

1) “Handling of incidents involving religiously aggravated assaults and malicious communications and the failure of AM (Assistant Master) to address these incidents in a timely manner according to practices and policies advertised by the school’ extending to ‘the lack of cooperation, imposition of unnecessary hurdles for parents seeking resolution, and misguided responses that do not align with the official policies of the school.

2) “Recent incident of repeat victimisation outside the school is a direct result of its inability to enforce the school’s own policies.

3) “The school failed to change the timetable of one of the perpetrators and effectively put him into the same class with [the victim] causing stress and anxiety to [the victim].”

For all three complaints, the Trust resolved to deliver “a management response” where there had been a “failure to apply school policies and practices”. 

For the first complaint, the Trust recommended “further training” in terms of pastoral care and “timely and appropriate communications with parents” for its school leaders, as well as “further messaging and support to staff about the school’s policy on mobile phones”. 

Regarding the second complaint, the Trust committed to an “appropriate package of leadership training to ensure and assure school policies and practices are implemented robustly” and to “continue to implement a programme of anti-racist education, including assemblies, tutor programme and PSHE (Personal Health and Social Education)”.

The school reportedly has a recent history of racist bullying, when a black student found dozens of notes on their desk, including one that said: “Go back to the plantation.” 

The police became involved in an investigation into that incident, and Desborough College said regarding the matter: “Our aim as a school is to provide a safe, nurturing and welcoming environment so that every pupil, colleague and family member feels welcome in our community.”

The father escalated the complaint further through the school’s complaints procedure as he felt that the school’s response to the recent alleged antisemitic incidents was inadequate and failed to address the issue at hand. He thought that, given that the school has an alleged history of racist bullying, its promises were too vague and had no immediate resolution.  

The complaint was considered by the Trust’s Complaint Appeal Panel, which partially upheld one of the father’s requests for the Trust “to conduct a thorough investigation into the School’s leadership, policy and application of policy and whether it is sufficient to ensure a ‘secure, inclusive environment that actively combats racism, including anti-semitism [sic]’”.

According to a letter sent to the Jewish student’s father, the Panel stated: “It is noted that the Director of Education has been tasked with regular oversight and review of the school’s policies and procedures and that the School and the Trust have multiple layers of scrutiny over policy and performance as a matter of course.

“In light of the seriousness of the issue and the crucial importance to the Trust, the Panel recommends an appropriate sub-committee of the Trust Board (which should include any appropriate link-Trustees) is convened by the Chair of the Trust Board and to which the Director of Education should report with his periodic review. It is important to the Trust Board that the anti-racist policy and procedure at Desborough is comprehensive and effective and the subcommittee should be assured of that on behalf of the Trust Board in addition to usual reviews.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism is assisting the family of the victim.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “It is harrowing that a Jewish child has had to endure such vile bullying apparently for the mere fact that he is Jewish. Schools should be environments where pupils are taught values of tolerance and harmony, not where pupils can expect to be verbally and violently assaulted because of their ethnicity. The school’s response has been utterly lacklustre and has, understandably, failed to inspire the confidence of the victim’s family that the school understands the gravity of these incidents or that their child will be protected. We are continuing to support the victim and his family throughout this painful ordeal.”

If you are concerned about antisemitism at your child’s school, please contact us in confidence on 0330 822 0321, or e-mail [email protected].

Image credit: Google

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Lawyer in Manchester Airport case says he has been chosen by Allah to “challenge the Zionist regime”

Akhmed Yakoob, a lawyer who is representing two brothers that were involved in an incident with police at Manchester Airport, has reportedly claimed the he has been chosen by Allah to “challenge the Zionist regime”.

In a speech at a mosque in Dewsbury in April, he is reported to have said: “I know now why Allah has put me in this position, it’s to challenge the Zionist regime, challenge the elites of this country and the world.”

It has also been alleged that he has described Zionism as a “fascist ideology” and claimed that Zionists “control everything”.

Mr Yakoob also ran as an independent Parliamentary candidate for the Birmingham Ladywood seat in the recent General Election and previously as a candidate for West Midlands Mayor.

Earlier this year, Campaign Against Antisemitism published screenshots of his alleged online activity, which included posts with the text, “WILL YOU GUYS SUPPORT ME?! Anti Zionism is NOT Anti Semitism [sic],” and “ANTI ZIONISM IS NOT ANTI SEMETISM [sic]!!”

Mr Yakoob was also alleged to have said: “So this general election can be a slap on the faces of the political elites who are ruled by the Zionist lobby.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions,” and “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g. by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour,” are examples of antisemitism.

Our lawyers are looking at a potential regulatory complaint to the SRA.

It is understood that brothers Mohammed Fahir Amaaz and Amaad Amaaz contacted Mr Yakoob after a video circulated online, which appeared to show a police officer kicking one of their heads at Manchester Airport.

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Anjem Choudary found guilty of terror offences

Anjem Choudary, one of Britain’s leading Islamists, has been found guilty at Woolwich Crown Court of directing terror group Al-Muhajiroun and encouraging support for it through online meetings.

He had been arrested and charged with three terrorism offences last year: directing a terrorist organisation, being a member of a proscribed organisation, and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

Mr Choudary, born in the UK and of Pakistani descent, failed his first-year medical exams at the University of Southampton due to his party lifestyle, but eventually graduated in law, later becoming Chairman of the Society of Muslim Lawyers. He became radicalised in the 1990s, launching al-Muhajiroun in the UK – later banned under terror laws – in 1996 with Syrian-born Islamist, Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed.

The Jihadist group became linked to international terrorism, antisemitism and homophobia as it sought a world subject to Sharia law, and praised the 9/11 highjackers. The group disbanded in 2004 following its proscription but is believed to have continued to operate under different aliases. According to The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Choudary was involved in recruiting Muslims to undergo weapons training in the UK in order to fight for Osama Bin Laden’s International Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders, and in 2010 he was linked to those involved in an al Qaeda plot to bomb the London Stock Exchange.

Mr Choudary praised the murderers of Drummer Lee Rigby in 2013, in response to which comments then-Prime Minister David Cameron said: “Let’s be clear about Anjem Choudary: he does have absolutely despicable and appalling views, an absolutely classic case of that poisonous narrative of extremism and violence that we need to confront and defeat.”

In 2016, Mr Choudary was convicted of supporting the Islamic State in connection with speeches posted on YouTube. He was jailed for five years and six months. At the time he was jailed, he had reportedly been linked to fifteen terror plots dating back approximately twenty years, and had connections to hundreds of British jihadists who had travelled to Syria to fight.

He was released from Belmarsh prison after serving half of his sentence, although he remained subject to some 25 licence conditions.

In 2021, he was reported to have suggested that the MP Sir David Amess may have been murdered because of his “rumoured pro-Israel views”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer has consistently showed that large majorities of British Jews consider the threat from Islamists to be very serious.

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Foreign Secretary announces UK will restore UNRWA funding

David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, has announced that the UK will restore funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

Under the previous government, funding was halted in January this year, following allegations that some UNRWA staff were involved with the Hamas terrorist organisation.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This is a deeply regressive and dangerous step. The UN and its agencies like UNRWA do not recognise Hamas as a terrorist organisation, which means that they are less inhibited in their activities and their hiring processes than they would be if they had to operate under UK law, which rightly does recognise Hamas as the antisemitic genocidal terror group that it is.

“UNRWA’s official educational curricula have promoted antisemitism and violence, referring to the Jewish state as the ‘enemy,’ teaching mathematics by counting ‘martyred’ terrorists, using phrases like “Jihad is one of the doors to Paradise” in grammar lessons, and more.

“UNRWA teachers have glorified terrorism and some UNRWA personnel have been found to be members of Hamas, and UNRWA schools and premises have been used as storage facilities for munitions and launching pads for rockets.

“UNRWA prefers to downplay its failures rather than address them, the body lacks proper oversight and has constantly faced allegations of corruption. If one wants to know how Gazan society became radicalised, start with its schools. They are run by UNRWA.

“It is not only disappointing but dangerous that David Lammy and the FCDO have chosen to restore funding to this nefarious organisation.”

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What does this election result mean for British Jews?

The Labour Party arrives in Government as levels of anti-Jewish racism have skyrocketed and rocked the Jewish community for months. Our polling of British Jews is proof of the widespread fear that antisemitic extremists in our country are now completely out of control, with the effects of their hatred most visible on our streets and our campuses.

So far, precious little has been done to tackle this outpouring of hatred and we are making urgent proposals to the new Government, seeking firm action to halt the surge of Jew-hatred in Britain.

Labour has had to confront rampant antisemitism in its midst in recent years, and we hope that at this time of need it will do what is necessary to confront antisemitism in society, and defend this country’s Jewish community.

Two other noteworthy local results were in Islington North and Rochdale:

Jeremy Corbyn comfortably won his London seat as an Independent. This is the man who led Labour from being an anti-racist party to becoming the first ever political party found by the Equality and Human Rights Commission to have unlawfully discriminated against, harassed and victimised Jews, following our referral. At a time of record-breaking antisemitism, the man who used to call Hamas his “friends” and oversaw the normalisation of Jew-hatred in one of the most shameful episodes of modern British politics is back making our laws. Many British Jews will find it hard not to read into this.

George Galloway narrowly lost his Rochdale seat, which he had won in a by-election earlier this year (the Labour candidate was suspended by the Party in relation to antisemitism allegations which we helped to publicise). Given Mr Galloway’s track record and the situation currently faced by Jews in this country, it seems unlikely that many in the Jewish community will be mourning his departure from the institution that makes our laws.

But the real stories of this election were beneath the surface.

First, the fragmentation of our politics. While the Labour Party won a landslide, it was with fewer votes than Jeremy Corbyn had won, and with one of the smallest vote shares of any winning party in modern British history. The Conservatives, meanwhile, suffered their worst-ever defeat, in an election with one of the lowest turnouts in recent times.

Taken together, it meant that the main parties haemorrhaged more vote share than ever to smaller parties, with the Liberal Democrats, Reform UK and the Greens all breaking records in votes or seats. Numerous candidates for the latter two parties faced serious antisemitism allegations during the campaign following our revelations, albeit not those who ultimately won seats. In Northern Ireland, meanwhile, Sinn Fein became the largest party for the first time.

Regardless of one’s political views, this result clearly represents heightened scepticism about our nation’s institutions – a feeling apparently shared across the Channel as well, judging by the recent French election results. While the Jewish community may share some of this disillusionment, given the failures of the authorities to act decisively against the antisemites over the past several months, it also cannot be forgotten that political and societal instability also tend to pose unique risks to the Jews.

Second, the Gaza vote. One of the biggest stories from this general election has been the rise of sectarianism in our politics. The emergence of single-issue pressure groups purporting to represent particular communities risks pitting certain communities against others. It is an extremely worrying omen for our politics, and all major parties must be absolutely resolute in their rejection of its implications.

The prospect of a handful of MPs – some of whom have records of grossly inflammatory language – bringing what seems to be a single-minded obsession with Gaza to Parliament is not a positive development.

Jeremy Corbyn declared on election day, “Today, Palestine is on the ballot,” and promised that he would “stand up for the people of Gaza” and fight for “an end to the occupation of Palestine”. He was joined in victory by four other Independents who ran on the Gaza issue: Ayoub Khan in Birmingham Perry Barr, Adnan Hussain in Blackburn, Iqbal Mohamed in Dewsbury and Batley, and Shockat Adam in Leicester South – where Shadow Cabinet member Jonathan Ashworth was defeated.

We have published an exposé on these new MPs.

Meanwhile, Health Secretary Wes Streeting and prominent backbencher Jess Phillips were among several more Labour MPs who only narrowly escaped defeat by other Gaza candidates, whose presence was felt in many constituencies across the country.

As a Parliamentary grouping, this Gaza caucus is level with Reform UK on five MPs, outranking the Greens and Plaid Cymru.

It is difficult to think of another instance in modern times when a foreign policy issue in which Britain is not directly involved has captured so much attention at home as to bring our streets to a standstill week after week, undermine many of our major institutions, and bring more MPs to Parliament than even some long-established parties – with numerous more candidates only narrowly missing out.

Why this foreign policy issue in particular? The Jewish community believes that it knows why, and it will take a fundamental reset of our political culture to convince British Jews that they have nothing to fear from this ominous development.

What we do know is that all of the attention on Gaza in the UK is not bringing peace to the Middle East but spreading hatred here at home. We have sought to promote that message.

BBC lets Gaza propaganda go unchallenged

One of the reasons that Gaza candidates do so well is that our broadcasters allow unverified statistics and propaganda to go unchallenged – and sometimes even repeat it.

Recently, BBC Newsnight allowed a panelist – the climate activist Mikaela Loach – to say: “The Lancet yesterday, in one of their reports, said that the death toll [in Gaza] is probably more likely to be more than 186,000 people.” The host did not challenge this assertion.

For context, the so-called “report” to which Ms Loach was referring is simply a letter to The Lancet – the prestigious medical journal – by readers with documented hostility toward Israel. It is not a peer-reviewed study nor a figure which the journal has endorsed. It is not even an estimate of current deaths. It is a speculative estimate about a future, final death toll that includes excess deaths and other categories. Indeed the letter itself acknowledges that even Hamas, a proscribed antisemitic genocidal terror organisation, estimates the current death toll at around 37,396, a figure that does not differentiate between combatants and non-combatants and which has been revised downwards considerably by the United Nations.

Given how controversial these statistics have proven, it is not possible that the host of a debate on Newsnight could plausibly plead ignorance of this issue.

We are submitting a complaint to the BBC. It will be just the latest of the many complaints that we have submitted to our national broadcaster in recent months.

While our broadcasters are failing in their duty, one social media company is making an effort.

Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, has announced: “We will now remove speech targeting ‘Zionists’ in several areas where our process showed that the speech tends to be used to refer to Jews and Israelis with dehumanising comparisons, calls for harm, or denials of existence.”

Our polling shows that eight in ten British Jews consider themselves to be a Zionist. Only six percent do not.

While there is still more work to be done in combatting online antisemitism, this is certainly a step in the right direction.

“They use the Holocaust as a sort of cover”

Last week, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Redbridge National Education Union (NEU) hosted an event “in association with” the Newham, Tower Hamlets and Redbridge branches of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). According to an online flyer for the event, the supposed conference would include “workshops on antisemitism and anti-Zionism”.

Attendees at the antisemitism workshop were told: “They use the Holocaust as a sort of cover”; “It makes me very angry when people talk about the Jewish community because there’s no such thing”; and “Israel is nothing to do with being Jewish”; among other outrageous remarks.

It appears that this so-called workshop was rife with antisemitism, from comparisons of Israel to Nazi Germany, to allegations that the Jewish state was somehow complicit in the murder of its own people on 7th October, to characterising Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’, to describing Zionism as a virus, to the wild claim that Israel ‘wanted the Holocaust to happen’.

Both the PSC and NEU have long histories of causing distress to the Jewish community. You can listen to excerpts from the here, which we have published exclusively.

No expulsion for Sir Alan Duncan

The former Conservative MP and Minister, Sir Alan Duncan, recently suggested on-air that members of the House of Lords were working at the behest of the Israeli state, and that was not the first time that he had made such an assertion. We submitted a complaint to the Party and urged the Conservatives to expel him as a member.

However, a spokesperson for the Conservative Party has now said: “Following a two-month investigation, an independent panel has reviewed the complaint and dismissed it.”

At a time when antisemitism is at an all-time-high, invoking conspiracy theories and tropes about dual loyalty only inflames the situation for British Jews. This is a shameful decision, and we are aware of members resigning from the Party in response.

The new Government comes into office facing an array of challenges. For the Jewish community, skyrocketing antisemitism is among the most important. Sir Keir Starmer has shown a willingness to confront antisemites in his own party. Now he must do it in wider society, and ensure that the authorities do so as well.

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Attendees at PSC “antisemitism training” at local National Education Union event told “Israel is the biggest amplifier of antisemitism there is”

Last night, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Redbridge National Education Union (NEU) hosted an event “in association with” the Newham, Tower Hamlets and Redbridge branches of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). 

PSC is known to regularly organise national anti-Israel demonstrations and earlier this year, its Director, Ben Jamal, encouraged thousands of protestors to “ramp up pressure on MPs” and flood into Parliament “so that they would have to lock the doors of Parliament itself”.

The event, which took place in Newham, East London, was titled, “How to talk about Palestine in our schools”. According to an online flyer for the event, the supposed conference would include “workshops on antisemitism and anti-Zionism”. 

Approximately 40 people attended the event, which was open to parents, carers, youth-workers and the general public. Attendees were split into smaller workshops to talk about specific topics. 

Several people, including three children, attended a workshop on antisemitism and anti-Zionism, which was led by two representatives of the PSC. The discussion in the workshop was primarily focused on criticising the widely-accepted International Definition of Antisemitism, which was reportedly dubbed “the bad one”, whilst promoting the adoption of the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, which was allegedly referred to as “the good one”. 

The Jerusalem Declaration is a wrecking document intended to undermine the globally-recognised Definition.

In the supposed critique of the International Definition, the PSC representatives allegedly said: “Speak against Israel, oh you’re antisemitic,” and “If people say something against Israel, they say it is antisemitic.” 

Another reported comment regarding the Definition was: “They use the Holocaust as a sort of cover because it says once you’ve got Holocaust in there, it must be right.”

During the workshop, the PSC session leaders allegedly claimed that “Israel is nothing to do with being Jewish” and are understood to have told attendees that “if you’re anti-racist you’re anti-the-State-of-Israel.” 

One of the representatives allegedly stated: “Israel is a racist endeavour.” According to the International Definition, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination (e.g. by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour)” is an example of antisemitism. 

Organisers were also heard saying: “A large proportion of the people killed on October the 7th were killed by the Israeli army,” before going on to later claim that Israel has not fought for its hostages that currently remain in Gaza. 

On 7th October last year, Hamas, an antisemitic genocidal terror organisation, carried out barbaric attacks in Israel, massacring over 1,200 Israelis and taking some 250 hostage. The event has since been described as the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. 

Astonishingly, these claims were not the only controversial statements that were heard at the workshop. One PSC representative was heard stating: “The Nazis were ashamed of the gas chambers, sadly Israel is not ashamed of what it’s doing in Gaza,” and “Gaza is not an open-air prison camp, it is an open-air ghetto in the same way that our ancestors were kept in ghettos before they were murdered.”

According to the International Definition, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism. 

In yet another sickening comparison to the Holocaust, a representative allegedly said: “Like the Nazis, [Israel] wanted to keep the Holocaust quiet because it didn’t play into their narrative.” 

Attenders were also given supplementary written materials, which included a “further reading” list. On the list was Norman Finkelstein’s The Holocaust Industry. Mr Finkelstein is a controversial American activist who once praised Holocaust-denier David Irving at a pro-Corbyn meeting of Labour Against the Witchhunt, an antisemitism-denial group of former and expelled Labour members.

Other claims that were heard throughout the event were: “They [Israel] wanted the Holocaust to happen,” and “Israel is the biggest amplifier of antisemitism there is.”

A clear theme throughout the workshop was opposition to Zionism, the embodiment of the Jewish right to self-determination. Attendees reported that organisers compared Zionism to a “virus” and asserted that “too many Jews” have been “injected” with it. 

Eight in ten British Jews consider themselves to be a Zionist. Only six percent do not, according to our representative polling. 

This is not the first time that the PSC has found itself at the centre of an antisemitism-related controversy, with many of its rallies being host to antisemitic placards and rhetoric. A month-long investigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism in 2017 exposed extensive antisemitic bigotry amongst PSC supporters on social media. Last year, the PSC Brixton published an Instagram post calling Zionists “brainwashed racists” who should be fired from their places of work.

The General Secretary of the NEU also has a controversial record when it comes to antisemitism.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism: “It appears that this so-called workshop was rife with antisemitism. This conference had it all, from comparisons of Israel to Nazi Germany, to allegations that the Jewish State was somehow complicit in the murder of its own people on 7th October, to characterising Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’, to describing Zionism as a virus, to the wild claim that Israel ‘wanted the Holocaust to happen’.

“What makes the whole thing even more appalling, is that it was organised by the National Education Union ‘in association with’ members of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Both organisations have a long history of causing distress to the Jewish community. The only silver lining of this conspiracy-fuelled event is that it was so very poorly attended.”

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Conservatives shamefully clear Sir Alan Duncan following use of antisemitic tropes on-air

The Conservative Party has cleared Sir Alan Duncan, a former Minister and MP for the Party, of accusations of using antisemitic tropes on-air, following an investigation.

Sir Alan was under investigation after he suggested in an LBC interview that members of the House of Lords were working at the behest of the Israeli state.

A spokesperson for the Conservative Party said: “Following a two-month investigation, an independent panel has reviewed the complaint and dismissed it.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This decision is shameful, and the Conservative Party’s rationale is even more insulting. The Party has effectively concluded that an antisemitic trope targeting a Jewish person is not antisemitic if it is in the context of debate about Israel. The implication of this decision, spelled out somewhat more explicitly by Sir Alan Duncan in his statement reacting to the decision, is that antisemitism accusations are used to silence criticism of Israel. The Conservative Party has thus in effect endorsed the Livingstone Formulation as a defence against allegations of antisemitism. This is utterly appalling.

“This judgement totally fails to grasp the gravity of what Sir Alan said and shames the Conservative Party, which claims to stand with the Jewish community. We are aware of members who have resigned from the Party in reaction to this decision.”

This is not the first time that he has drawn links between our Parliament and the Jewish state. In 2014, he delivered a speech in which he said: “We need British Jews for the Conservative, Labour, or other UK parties; not the Israeli lobby for any party. The time has come to make sure above any doubt that the funding of any party in the UK is clearly decoupled from the influence of the Israeli state.”

It was also reported that he said during a BBC interview regarding the speech: “We all know that the United States is in hock to a very powerful financial lobby which dominates its politics.” He did not specify who he believed to be behind this “lobby”.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, which has been adopted by the Conservative Party, “Making stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective, such as, especially the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the economy, government or other societal institutions,” is an example of antisemitism.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Now, the Jewish community and its allies can make an informed choice

Antisemitism is a major issue for so many voters in the Jewish community and among our allies. That is why, when this election was called, Campaign Against Antisemitism jumped into action.

We set out to do everything that we can to ensure that you have the facts and insight that you need to make an informed decision on this issue.

What do the parties propose to do about antisemitism?

We have reviewed the manifestos of the major national parties in relation to antisemitism, and you can read the pertinent points here. Most remarkable is that the manifestos do not in fact say very much about what the parties intend to do about antisemitism. That is why our Hustings Against Antisemitism was so important.

Last week, we hosted an urgent and unprecedented hustings, where, for the first time, senior figures from the major national political parties participated in an open event focusing exclusively on the fight against antisemitism.

Hundreds of attendees joined us for an informative and sometimes boisterous evening in North London with the Conservatives’ Security Minister, Tom Tugendhat; Labour’s Shadow Policing Minister, Alex Norris; the Liberal Democrats’ Lords Foreign Affairs Lead, Lord Purvis; and Deputy Leader of Reform UK, Ben Habib.

The scale of interest in this hustings shows how important this issue is to the Jewish community. The party representatives were left in no doubt about the strength of feeling and the scale of the task ahead for whomever forms the next Government.

These hustings leave the Jewish community better informed about the parties asking for their votes, when it comes to antisemitism. We were proud to have hosted this unique event. You can watch the whole event here.

Pledge against antisemitism

‘Our Policy team has invited all Parliamentary candidates to sign up to our pledge to adopt and abide by the International (IHRA) Definition of Antisemitism, and to encourage and promote its widespread adoption and implementation, unamended and in its entirety, to the exclusion of any other definition or modifying document. It is so important to engage incoming MPs now and show them the issues that matter to us.

We are pleased to report that hundreds of candidates have signed so far, from a wide range of parties.

If you want to encourage your local candidates to sign, please ask them to e-mail [email protected].

Candidates exposed

Our Political and Government Investigations Unit has spent the past few weeks rapidly researching thousands of candidates from across political parties. Those findings have made the front pages and impacted the national conversation.

These include significant revelations about the Green Party, the Workers Party of Britain – whose candidates have allegedly said things like “Zionists are rap**ts…Zionists kill kids and then play victim…Zionists are trying to legalise peados,” and “world financial institutions are controlled by Jews” – and now Reform UK.

We have exposed a number of Reform candidates who have propagated conspiracies from Rothschilds and Israel controlling American presidents to antisemitism-denial, comparisons of the Jewish state to Nazis and the great replacement theory. The revelations were also mentioned on Sky News and on Channel 4 News.

We have also exposed a number of Independent candidates, including some who are members of the Alba Party. We are currently working with the media in Scotland regarding the Scottish National Party.

The Conservatives and Labour have also not escaped controversy.

Fight for our future

Thanks to so many of you who donated to our crowdfunder last week, we have the funds to defend the Jewish community and Fight for our Future. If you have not yet had a chance to donate, there is still time.

Campaign Against Antisemitism is a grassroots organisation that you built. It is only with your support that we are able to do what we do, including pursuing the three major cases that we announced last week. Thank you.

Help the March Against Antisemitism win an award!

The branding and graphics for our March Against Antisemitism last November, produced in collaboration with the design, brand and digital agency Creative Clinic, have been shortlisted for two awards which are decided by votes by the general public. We warmly congratulate our friends at Creative Clinic.

At a time of high levels of antisemitism, the shortlisting itself is noteworthy. With your help, the designs can now scoop one or two awards.

You can vote for each of the two categories by clicking on the links below (you can vote in each separately). You may need to register in order to vote.

  • To vote for the Effectiveness Award, please click here.
  • To vote for the Social Good Award, please click here.

When the General Election was called, we jumped into action. To ensure that those who are concerned about surging antisemitism are able to make an informed choice, we resolved to:

  • Expose candidates and parties with troubling records;
  • Review the parties’ manifestos in relation to antisemitism and;
  • Arrange a hustings for senior party representatives to explain their positions.

In addition, we pledged to begin engaging with all candidates and would-be MPs on antisemitism, and we have begun devising new policy proposals for incoming ministers. The election may be this week, but, regardless of who forms the next Government, our policy work begins anew.

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CAA reviews the parties’ manifestos

Campaign Against Antisemitism has reviewed the manifestos of the major national parties in relation to antisemitism.

The following is not an exhaustive analysis of how all of the manifesto policies could impact the fight against antisemitism, but what follows are some of the most pertinent policy proposals and pledges.

Conservatives

Regarding protests, the Conservatives propose “a plan to counter extremism and to protect our streets” and pledge to “introduce further powers to ban face coverings, pyrotechnics and climbing on war memorials.” Moreover, the Party declares that it “will strengthen police powers to prevent protests or marches that pose a risk of serious disorder, by allowing police to take into account the cumulative impact of protests.” In addition, they promise to “place a duty on the police and prosecutors to publish regular guidance on the statements, chants or symbols, for example, the swastika or the term ‘jihad’, that in the context of political protest may constitute an offence. We will explore ways for the police to recover some of the costs of policing disruptive protests from the groups that organise them.”

On protection of Jewish institutions, the Conservatives reiterate that “we have pledged £54 million for the Community Security Trust to give Jewish schools and synagogues the security measures they need.” Meanwhile, on education, the Conservatives note that “we have allocated additional funding to support schools and universities to understand, recognise and tackle antisemitism,” adding: “we will get the UK Holocaust Memorial built.”

Finally, the manifesto pledges to expand the Online Safety Act, consulting widely, including in partnership with other countries.

Labour

The Labour Party in its manifesto pledges to “introduce a landmark Race Equality Act, to enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for Black, Asian, and other ethnic minority people, strengthen protections against dual discrimination and root out other racial inequalities.” They add that “Labour will also reverse the Conservatives’ decision to downgrade the monitoring of antisemitic and Islamophobic hate.”

On proscriptions, the Labour manifesto explains: “From the Skripal poisonings to assassination plots by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, threats from hostile states or state-sponsored groups are on the rise, but Britain lacks a comprehensive framework to protect us. Labour will take the approach used for dealing with non-state terrorism and adapt it to deal with state based domestic security threats.”

In the online sphere, Labour says that it “will build on the Online Safety Act, bringing forward provisions as quickly as possible, and explore further measures to keep everyone safe online, particularly when using social media.”

Liberal Democrats

The Liberal Democrats say that they will “scrap the Conservatives’ draconian anti-protest laws, restoring pre-existing protections for both peaceful assembly and public safety, and immediately halt the use of live facial recognition surveillance by the police and private companies.”

They also pledge to “work with communities to tackle the alarming rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia.”

Regarding proscriptions, the manifesto says they will: “Work with our allies to help bring security to the Middle East…including by recognising the existential threat of Iran not just in the Middle East but to Western democracies, by proscribing Iran’s Revolutionary Guard [the IRGC].”

Turning to social media, the Liberal Democrats pledge to “free up local officers’ time to focus on their communities by creating a new Online Crime Agency to effectively tackle illegal content and activity online, such as personal fraud, revenge porn and threats and incitement to violence on social media,” and to “require social media companies to publish reports setting out the action they have taken to address online abuse against women and girls, and other groups who share a protected characteristic.”

Reform

Reform UK, in its ‘Contract’ manifesto, announced that it would “change the definition of Hate Crime,” arguing that “the CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] and police definition of a hate crime has led to systemic bias. Members of the British public must not be investigated because ‘any’ person ‘perceives’ that a hate crime has been committed. Proper evidence must be required.”

They also pledge to “enforce existing laws to stop violent, hate demonstrations such as Free-Palestine marches.”

Finally, the Party also promises to “replace the 2010 Equalities Act [sic],” reasoning that “the Equalities Act requires discrimination in the name of ‘positive action’. We will scrap Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DE&I) rules that have lowered standards and reduced economic productivity.”

Green Party

The Greens would “scrap the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, Public Order Act and other legislation that erodes the right to protest and to free expression.” The Party also says that it would scrap the Prevent anti-radicalisation programme.

The Party also writes in its manifesto: “The recent rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism highlights the importance of tackling hate crime and opposing divisions in our society. Elected Greens will support the right to religious expression and work with religious communities to defend the safety of places of worship.”

Plaid Cymru

Plaid Cymru says in its manifesto that the Party “believes that non-violent protest is an important mechanism in democracy to show public support of solidarity for a cause. We support the right of an individual to freedom of expression and assembly. The rights of the individual should be respected, as should the rights of police officers not to be under threat of harm while carrying out their legitimate duties. We do not support the legislation introduced by the Conservative UK Government which unfairly restricts opportunities for non-violent protest. Plaid Cymru would repeal these powers at Westminster, including the relevant parts of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023. Sadly, some groups frequently resort to violence in order to make their point, and this needs to be policed in a stronger manner than events which are non-violent in nature.”

Workers Party

The Workers Party of Britain writes in its manifesto: “Our criticisms in this case are not antisemitic nor supportive of terrorism. Our analysis can be said to be very courageous in the current climate. Our stand against Israel is a stand for the Jewish people. We welcome Jews into our Party and we will remain steadfast opponents of antisemitism. However, we also abhor the weaponisation of antisemitism for dubious political purposes in British politics and consider that the neglect of Islamophobia in society and its weaponisation by the populist Right receives inadequate attention.”

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CAA announces three new private prosecutions

We are pleased to be able to announce three new private prosecutions.

We have received permission from the Attorney General’s Office to pursue a private prosecution against a prominent individual for incitement to racial hatred contrary to section 19 of the Public Order Act 1986. Those inciting hatred during the past few months must be held to account. That is what we are here to ensure. There will be more details to come in due course on this significant case.

We have also been granted our application for summons by the court in a case relating to horrendous activity on social media which engages section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 and section 127 of the Communications Act 2003. We will ensure that posting online from the comfort of your home does not immunise trolls from the consequences of their actions.

Finally, we are particularly proud to let you know that we are among the very first to bring a case under the new Online Safety Act 2023. Specifically, the offence in this case engages section 181 of the Act: sending a message online conveying a threat of death or serious harm, with the intention that an individual encountering the threat would fear the threat would be carried out.

We continue to pioneer new legal strategies to ensure that those who pose a risk to the Jewish community do not do so with impunity.

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First-ever Hustings Against Antisemitism enlightens Jewish community in week before election day

This evening, Campaign Against Antisemitism hosted an urgent and unprecedented hustings, where, for the first time, senior figures from the major national political parties participated in an open event focusing exclusively on the fight against antisemitism.

Hundreds of attendees joined us for an informative and sometimes boisterous evening with the Conservatives’ Security Minister, Tom Tugendhat; Labour’s Shadow Policing Minister, Alex Norris; the Liberal Democrats’ Lords Foreign Affairs Lead, Lord Purvis; and Deputy Leader of Reform UK, Ben Habib.

The hustings took place at a venue in North London, and you can watch the whole event here.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Monday evening’s event was the first ever hustings devoted exclusively to antisemitism. The scale of interest shows how important this issue is to the Jewish community. We were able to put questions to senior figures from the main national parties to understand what they propose to do to fight unprecedented levels of antisemitism were they to win power in July.

“The situation for British Jews is desperate, with urban centres becoming no-go zones for Jews during weekly anti-Israel protests that have persisted for eight months now. The party representatives were left in no doubt about that strength of feeling and the scale of the task ahead for whomever forms the next Government.

“The Jewish community leaves these hustings better informed about the parties asking for their votes, when it comes to antisemitism. We were proud to have hosted this unique event.”

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For many in the Jewish community, this election is about antisemitism

All elections are about a range of issues, but with the surge in antisemitism since the Hamas attack last October, for so many Jews and our allies, so much of this General Election is also about that.

With the surprise calling of a snap election, in the midst of this global rise in antisemitism, CAA has sprung into action.

We have exposed candidates from across political parties – with some stories making the front pages of national newspapers – and there will be more to come this week.

We are also urging all Parliamentary candidates to sign up to our pledge to adopt and abide by the International (IHRA) Definition of Antisemitism, and to encourage and promote its widespread adoption and implementation, unamended and in its entirety, to the exclusion of any other definition or modifying document.

With the polls showing likely changes in the size of the party representation in the House of Commons and so many incumbents stepping down, we are likely to see a vast number of new MPs in July. It is vital that we engage as many of them as possible, educate them about antisemitism and win their commitment to the Definition.

Scores of candidates from across the political spectrum have signed the pledge so far.

Please encourage your local candidates to sign the pledge by inviting them to e-mail us at [email protected].

We are also looking closely at the parties’ manifestos in relation to antisemitism, and will have more to say in the coming days, but you can put your questions directly to party representatives at our antisemitism hustings in London tomorrow evening.

Hustings on antisemitism tomorrow: Have you booked your place?

We have organised an urgent hustings, where, for the first time, candidates from the major national political parties will participate in an open event focusing exclusively on the fight against antisemitism.

Join us for an evening with the Conservatives’ Security Minister, Tom Tugendhat; Labour’s Shadow Policing Minister, Alex Norris; the Liberal Democrats’ Lords Foreign Affairs Lead, Lord Purvis; and Deputy Leader of Reform UK, Ben Habib.

The hustings is taking place at a venue in North London tomorrow evening – Monday, 24th June – so please book your place now.

For more information, please visit antisemitism.org/hustings.

Victims of antisemitism speak out

As part of our work making the voices of British Jews heard, our unique series of powerful testimonials by members of the Jewish community and allies continues, detailing how they have been affected by the events of the past several months.

Previously, we have shared testimonials from:

  • Lysa, who revealed the precautions that she feels that she must take to maintain her safety as a Jew in Britain.
  • Anatole, a Jewish student at Leeds University, who, like so many other students, does not feel safe right now.
  • Sarah (not her real name), who told us that when she and her friends went out one evening to put up posters of hostages taken by Hamas, they were assaulted, and she now fears for her safety.
  • Josh, who recounted how the screening of his film about two gay Jews at an LGBTQ+ support group was cancelled, leaving him questioning where he fits in as a gay Jewish man.
  • Farhad, who, though not Jewish, is horrified by what is happening on our streets, and believes people should speak up when they see antisemitism occurring.

We have now published our final three testimonials.

The anti-Israel marches in London have forced Jessica* and her family to alter the way they live. It is the same for many British Jews.

She describes in her testimonial how there is a sense of “doom” when the marches take place.

Jessica and her family are not alone. A staggering 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid travelling to a city centre if a major anti-Israel demonstration was taking place there. Our urban centres have become no-go zones for Jews.

*For security reasons, we have changed the name of the interviewee.

When Liahav and other Jewish audience members were hounded out of a comedy show, Campaign Against Antisemitism immediately investigated the situation to ensure that the comedian was held to account.

As a result of our efforts, the comedian has been banned from the Soho Theatre in London, and was also recently disinvited from the Glastonbury Festival.

No one should have to endure the events described in this testimonial.

In the final instalment of our testimonial series, Simon recalls the night when he was told by a fellow London Underground passenger that he “kills Muslims” because he is Jewish.

More than six in ten British Jews say that they have either personally experienced or witnessed an antisemitic incident since 7th October or know somebody who has.

As our eight-part testimonial series has shown, there are faces with stories behind the statistics. Racism against Jews is only getting worse in Britain, and we won’t stay quiet about it.

We would like to sincerely thank everyone who agreed to be interviewed for this project. Their stories are being used to educate and spread awareness of the current situation for Jews in Britain.

Fight for our Future

This week, Campaign Against Antisemitism will be running a crowdfunding campaign, to give you the chance to join us in the fight for our future. We will be trying to raise the funds that we need to continue bringing cases, exposing political parties, assisting victims, exposing hate on the marches, supporting students on campus, holding the media to account, putting antisemitism on the front pages and giving a voice to the Jewish community and our allies.

Please consider making a donation when the campaign goes live on Wednesday morning.

If you would like to help by becoming a Team Leader and spending just a few minutes this week encouraging your family and friends to support Campaign Against Antisemitism, or you would like more information, please e-mail us at [email protected].

No previous experience is necessary, and we will provide all the resources and instructions that you need.

If you can’t wait to support us and want to make a donation now, you can do so by clicking here! But you may wish to wait, because during the crowdfunder your donation will be matched.

Maccabi Fun Run

Campaign Against Antisemitism was proud to join organisations from across the Jewish community at the Maccabi Fun Run this weekend.

Thank you to everyone who visited our stall for such a positive reception!

With election day fast approaching, we are proud to have arranged the first-ever hustings focusing exclusively on antisemitism, featuring senior representatives from the major national political parties.

This will be your opportunity to ask them about what they propose to do to defend the Jewish community during this unprecedented surge in antisemitism. Tickets are going fast, so be sure to reserve your place.

We hope that you will join us!

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How well do you know your local candidates for Parliament?

Over the past few weeks, we have been monitoring developments across all political parties, first among local council candidates and councillors in the run-up to and aftermath of the local elections, and now with a greater focus on the candidates for Parliament, following the announcement of the snap general election.

We have worked with national newspapers to publicise our research, which has been reported in multiple articles, including on the front page of The Times. The Jewish community and the wider public have a right to know about the records of the candidates who are asking for our votes, and we are doing everything we can to provide that information.

What we have found is that no party is immune from antisemitism, but some are doing better than others to address concerns and investigate allegations.

Green Party

Of the main national parties, the Green Party is proving to be a magnet for controversy relating to antisemitism, and is largely failing to deal with cases as they arise.

Our fears that the far-left would gravitate towards the Greens following the end of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party have proved prescient. This trend is encapsulated by Green candidates like Cllr Jo Bird, formerly of Jewish Voice for Labour.

We are uncovering Green candidates who have made statements like “there’s no such thing as a good Zionist” and called Zionism a “cancer”; compared Israel to the Nazis; denied Labour antisemitism; provided apparent justifications for the “resistance”; and denied the Hamas attack or victim-blamed the Jewish state.

We have written about a sample of these candidates, and they have been covered extensively in the press using our research.

The Greens have dropped a small number of problematic candidates, but many are still running with the Party’s endorsement. It is therefore difficult to escape The Times’ assessment that there may be more than merely a dysfunctional internal vetting process at play here.

Workers Party of Britain

Candidates in George Galloway’s Workers Party of Britain have even more frightening records, which we have worked hard to expose and publicise in the media. Among them is a candidate who said: “It can’t possibly be six million.” Every day we seem to uncover new horrors from candidates for the Workers Party. The rhetoric from these candidates is utterly shocking.

The Party must urgently consult the EHRC’s antisemitism report, but given Mr Galloway’s record of baiting the Jewish community – and that of his deputy leader, disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson – we will not be holding our breath.

Conservatives

The Conservative Party has selected a lot of its candidates at very short notice, reducing the timeframe that we have to investigate. We are aware of at least one candidate of interest so far and are continuing to examine the records of others.

On the local level, however, some problems persist. For example, Cllr Mohammad Aslam is alleged to have a history of engaging with conspiratorial rhetoric regarding the Jewish community. The Party said some time ago that it was investigating Cllr Aslam and yet now he is the Mayor of Pendle. This is not what a transparent disciplinary process looks like, and it is not the only instance of the Tories appearing to brush antisemitism allegations relating to local councillors and associations under the carpet.

Labour

Labour may be unrecognisable from what it was in recent years, but it still has challenges relating to antisemitism. The Party has finally expelled Jeremy Corbyn, not for his role in staining UK politics with antisemitism, but for standing as a candidate against the Party.

Candidate Faiza Shaheen has been dropped by the Party after she liked a social media post which appeared to support conspiratorial claims and make reference to the “Israel lobby”, as well as publicising her closeness with Mr Corbyn.

But Diane Abbott has had her suspension lifted after a seemingly interminable investigation by the Party that lacked transparency.

Other parties

We are continuing to monitor Liberal Democrats, the SNP, Reform UK, other parties and independent candidates, and our research will be published soon.

#ItWasAScam is a scam

Since the 2019 electoral defeat of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party and the EHRC’s finding that Labour had become institutionally antisemitic, some of his most ardent supporters on the far-left of British politics have sought any way to undermine that finding.

An idea has developed that it was the Jewish community and its supposedly false and malicious allegations of antisemitism that fatally undermined Labour’s electoral ambitions at the time. This idea has been heavily promoted via a social media campaign that uses the hashtag “#ItWasAScam”.

This phrase has trended on social media repeatedly over the past several years. Today, the Labour Party is unrecognisable from what it was at the time of the EHRC’s investigation. Not perfect, but unrecognisable. But whenever Labour has tried to address far-left antisemitism in its ranks, it has been confronted by antisemitism-denial – by #ItWasAScam.

We scrutinised the claims of the #ItWasAScam campaign, and found each claim to be nonsense. In other words, #ItWasAScam is a scam.

Read the full rebuttal at antisemitism.org/itwasascam-is-a-scam/.

Victims of antisemitism speak out

As part of our work making the voices of British Jews heard, our unique series of powerful testimonials by members of the Jewish community and allies continues, detailing how they have been affected by the events of the past several months.

Last week, we shared testimonials from Lysa, who revealed the precautions that she feels that she must take to maintain her safety as a Jew in Britain; and Anatole, a Jewish student at University of Leeds, who, like so many other students, does not feel safe right now. This week, we have published further testimonials.

We spoke to Sarah*, who told us that when she and her friends went out one evening to put up posters of hostages taken by Hamas, they were assaulted. She now fears for her safety.

*For security reasons, we have changed the name of the interviewee.

In another testimonial, Josh recounts how his film about two gay Jews was due to be screened at an LGBTQ+ support group. However, fearing the reaction that Josh might have faced, the organiser cancelled it. Josh now questions where he fits in as a gay Jewish man.

Speaking with Farhad, it is clear that he is horrified by what is happening on our streets.

Though not Jewish himself, he considers himself an ally and recognises what a frightening time it is for many British Jews right now. Farhad believes people should speak up when they see antisemitism occurring. He’s right. We need more people like Farhad right now.

Campaign Against Antisemitism launches Student Ambassador programme!

Are you a student at university in 2024-2025, or do you know somebody who is? Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Student Ambassador programme is an exciting opportunity to work with us in a prestigious year-long initiative.

Student Ambassadors will work closely with our Education Officer and wider team to help us expose and challenge the rising tide of antisemitism overwhelming UK university campuses.

Student Ambassadors will:

  • Meet the Campaign Against Antisemitism team, receive our training and gain the knowledge and skills to effectively advocate against antisemitism at university and in the student sphere.
  • Host Campaign Against Antisemitism on campus throughout the year and build a network of students helping your work.
  • Take part in our summer workshop hearing from expert speakers.
  • Develop life-long skills and experiences in leadership, public advocacy, campaigning and community building.
  • Outstanding participants will also receive the opportunity to apply for a two-month work placement within any one of our flagship in-house teams.

The contributions of our students is more important now than ever before to the fight against antisemitism.

For further information and details about the programme please visit antisemitism.org/become-a-student-ambassador.

Would you like to become a Team Leader for Campaign Against Antisemitism?

Later this month, we will be running a crowdfunding campaign to help us raise the funds that we need to continue bringing cases, exposing political parties, assisting victims, exposing hate on the marches, supporting students on campus, holding the media to account, putting antisemitism on the front pages and giving a voice to the Jewish community and our allies.

If you would like to help by becoming a Team Leader and spending just a few minutes in late June encouraging your family and friends to support Campaign Against Antisemitism, or you would like more information, please e-mail us at [email protected].

No previous experience is necessary, and we will provide all the resources and instructions that you need.

If you can’t wait to support us and want to make a donation now, you can do so by clicking here! But you may wish to wait, because during the crowdfunder your donation will be matched.

With the General Election campaign underway, we are working hard to expose candidates whose records concern us and calling attention to parties that are failing to act. We are bringing this information to the Jewish community and the wider public, with front-page exposés in national newspapers, without fear or favour.

We will always advocate for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we will continue to monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Victims of antisemitism speak out

As part of our work making the voices of British Jews heard, we have begun publishing a unique series of powerful testimonials by members of the Jewish community and allies, detailing how they have been affected by the events of the past several months.

In the first of our testimonials, Lysa reveals the precautions that she feels that she must take to maintain her safety as a Jew in Britain.

When nearly 70% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism right now, this is what that looks like.

The second testimonial features Anatole, a Jewish student at University of Leeds. There are so many students who, like him, do not feel safe right now.

With so little being done by the universities about the intimidation on campus and antisemitic chanting by students and lecturers alike, can you blame them? As Anatole rightly says, this inaction by universities is a betrayal of their Jewish students.

Campaign Against Antisemitism stands up for Jewish students

We are continuing to monitor incidents on campuses across the country, including recently at Newcastle University and Central Saint Martins.

As a community, we can no longer tolerate how vulnerable Jewish students are feeling on campus. That is why we have produced an open letter for students to hold their universities accountable for the rise in hostility and intimidation exacerbated by the campus encampments.

As it is fashionable to make demands of university administrations these days, Jewish students make the following demands of their own in the letter:

  1. Vice-Chancellors must not accept any of the demands of the organisers of the encampments, and, making it clear that universities will not be pressured into action by this sort of conduct, they must pledge not to begin to consider any policy changes relating to such demands for at least three months after the encampments are removed.
  2. University policies must be applied on trespassing, property damage, bullying, racist conduct and other relevant provisions in order to bring the encampments to an end and punish participants to the full extent of student codes of conduct.
  3. The creation of a new paid staff position dedicated exclusively to tackling antisemitism and promoting Jewish inclusion at each university must be announced, where such a position does not yet exist.
  4. Every university must publicly reassure its community of its commitment to the International Definition of Antisemitism as its sole and unamended definition of antisemitism.
  5. All staff and faculty members, including campus security and welfare officers, must be required to undertake updated antisemitism training.

We are thrilled by how many students have signed the letter so far and had their voices finally heard. Students can sign at antisemitism.org/studentletter.

We have also visited campuses over the past several weeks, speaking directly to students and offering support. On our trip to UCL, we spoke directly with students and showed Jewish students that they are not alone. You can watch the video here.

If you like the t-shirts that the Jewish students in the video are wearing, you too can make a statement with our ‘Quite Openly Jewish’ and ‘Quite Openly Standing With Jews’ t-shirts. Some people also wore them at the march for the release of the hostages yesterday, which Campaign Against Antisemitism was proud to support.

Join the movement, wear the message, and stand proudly with us. Together, we can combat antisemitism.

Available now at antisemitism.org/shop.

Check out the latest episodes of Podcast Against Antisemitism

In our latest episodes, we spoke to two of the Jewish community’s best non-Jewish friends, the former MP Mike Freer and Rev. Hayley Ace.

Mike Freer announced his decision not to stand for re-election citing the “intolerable stress” that he and his family have been enduring from the several serious threats that he has received to his personal safety, including a recent arson attack on his constituency office. You can listen to our discussion about the impact of these threats and his decision.

Reverend Hayley Ace is the co-founder of the grassroots movement, Christian Action Against Antisemitism, along with her husband Timothy Gutmann. Both Hayley and Timothy have been standing firmly alongside the British Jewish community against antisemitism, using their perspective as Christians to educate people on racism against Jews. You can learn more about their work by listening to our conversation.

You can subscribe to the podcasts wherever you get your podcasts, or receive the podcast straight to your inbox by subscribing here.

With the General Election campaign now in full swing, we are working hard to expose candidates whose records concern us and calling attention to parties who are failing to act. We will have more on this in due course.

Whoever forms the next Government, they must be left in no doubt about what British Jews think and need right now. That is why it is so important that as many of you as possible complete the surveys above, so that we can convey your wishes and concerns to our lawmakers.

Once you have made your voice heard to us, we will stop at nothing to make sure that everybody else hears it too.

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Jeremy Corbyn expelled from Labour Party

Today, it was announced that Jeremy Corbyn has been expelled from the Labour Party, and will be running as an independent candidate in the upcoming general election.

In 2020, the Party was found by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to have engaged in unlawful discrimination and harassment of Jews under the leadership of the Mr Corbyn. The report followed the EHRC’s investigation of the Labour Party in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the complainant, submitting hundreds of pages of evidence and legal argument. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the report a “day of shame” for the Labour Party.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Good riddance. In the end, Jeremy Corbyn has been thrown out of the Labour Party not for his role in staining UK politics with antisemitism, but for standing as a candidate against the Party. This day should have come much sooner, and it should have been brought about due to his racism rather than party political reasons, but at last it is done.

“Almost four years after the Equality and Human Rights Commission vindicated our complaint against Labour by finding the Party to have unlawfully discriminated against, harassed and victimised Jews, the man responsible for that horrendous period has finally been shown the door. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the EHRC’s report a ‘day of shame’ for the Party. Today that era finally comes to an end and marks the new start for Labour that British Jews have long awaited. The man who made the Jewish community feel so unwelcome in Labour has finally been told that he is unwelcome in the Party he once led.”

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Will policing of antisemitism finally change?

Under the leadership of Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Service’s policing of the anti-Israel protests and campaigns has been an expensive shambles.

Practically nothing has been done to curtail them, with marchers being given two-mile routes though the centre of our capital. For over seven months, Sir Mark has claimed that he requires additional legal powers to curtail the marches even though the law already plainly gives him the powers he needs.

To break the deadlock, we have provided Home Secretary James Cleverly and Minister of State for Crime and Policing Chris Philp concrete measures that will give the Met nowhere to hide:

  1. Issue regulations to make the meaning of “serious disruption to the life of the community” even clearer under sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986, to force the Met and other forces to take into account the cumulative effect of protests and whether they cause intimidation to a particular community. The police must finally be made to treat the weekly marches as one single campaign, rather than as numerous discrete protests, and judge their impact on the rights of others accordingly.
  2. Issue directions to the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, under section 40 of the Police Act 1996, to require the Mayor to work with the Met to ensure that sufficient police are at the marches to effect arrests for unlawful behaviour immediately, and keep Jews and others in the vicinity safe. There must be enough officers present to police the protests in real time, not after the fact.
  3. Make orders under section 3 of the Terrorism Act 2000 to proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Ansar Allah (the Houthi rebels) and various terrorist organisations involved in the 7th October atrocity which have not already been proscribed. This would render illegal the display of various terrorist flags and chants such as “Yemen, Yemen, make us proud, turn another ship around.”

These measures do not require any new laws to be passed, and if they are adopted, they will have an immediate and profound impact on the policing of processions and public assemblies.

No more excuses instead of arrests. No more ‘contextualising’ offences away instead of enforcing the law.

The proposals have been positively received by the Home Office, which said in a statement: “The right to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy, but there are clear concerns about the cumulative impact protests are having on some of our communities which we are looking at.

“All communities should be able to go about their daily lives without fear. We have been clear with the police that they must use all the powers available to them to police protests appropriately and will always have our backing in doing so.

“We thank the Campaign Against Antisemitism for their proposals and we will be looking closely at them alongside Lord Walney’s recommendations which will be published this week.”

Our proposals were then echoed in a major report published today by Lord Walney, the Government’s independent adviser on political violence and disruption, titled “Protecting our Democracy from Coercion”.

Lord Walney’s review of antisemitism within the current anti-Israel protests represents a damning assessment of the police and Crown Prosecution Service for failing to apply their existing powers and politicising their response. The report lays bare how far our branches of law enforcement have fallen behind these extremist groups and the expectations of the British public, which abhors extremism and the use of illegal or intimidatory tactics to accomplish goals that cannot be secured at the ballot box.

One only has to look at the footage recorded by our Demonstration and Events Monitoring Unit from this past weekend’s march or the previous march, when a masked protester shouted “Go back to Poland!” at a Christian reverend whom he mistook for a Jew.

Where will this all end? In Manchester, three men have appeared in court, charged with planning an ISIS-style attack against Jews on British soil, while in Stamford Hill in North London, a woman allegedly brandishing a knife at Jews in the street was stopped by police and Shomrim.

She allegedly told a Jewish man that he is a “provocation” before specifying “you people, you Jewish…all the trouble you’re creating in the world.” When asked what she meant, she allegedly replied: “Who do you think started the Second World War? You, the Jewish, started the Second World War.”

These events do not occur in a vacuum. Policing in the UK must change course now, before it is too late.

Those who ignore the lessons of history

For a recent anti-Israel weekly march passing nearby, the Royal Parks covered up the Holocaust memorial in Hyde Park, a new low. At every turn, the authorities seem to be trying to keep Jews and anything Jewish out of sight to appease these mobs.

Concerns over the safety of the memorial are not, however, unfounded. Since 7th October, Holocaust memorials and museums around the world have been vandalised, blockaded, covered up or otherwise targeted in some way. Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, Drancy…the list goes on and on.

Then, on Yom HaShoah, anti-Israel demonstrators wore yellow stars – akin to the sort that Jews were forced to wear during the Holocaust – and picketed outside Auschwitz concentration camp.

Whether by tearing down posters of the hostages or targeting Holocaust memorials, the supporters of Hamas not only support the antisemitic slaughter of Jews but they also oppose any remembrance for the victims. They want them forgotten. But we will not forget.

Campaign Against Antisemitism funds another successful appeal for Iranian dissident

For the second time this year, we have funded a successful appeal by Iranian dissident Niyak Ghorbani against excessive bail conditions imposed by the Metropolitan Police.

This time, the police wished to restrict Mr Ghorbani from attending or participating in “any protest demonstration related to the Palestinian cause or events occurring in Gaza”, and force him to refrain from any “behaviour aimed at inciting or disturbing participants of any protest demonstration in support of the Palestinian cause or against events in Gaza”, and from entering Camden or the City of Westminster for anything but medical or legal appointments.

However, following a successful appeal that was funded by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the court has rejected the Met’s conditions, with a judge saying that “they are not necessary let alone proportionate.” Mr Ghorbani is now free again to continue pointing out the legal fact that Hamas is a terrorist organisation and expressing his right to protest and counter-protest.

You may recall that we created t-shirts and hoodies emblazoned with the same message that Hamas are terrorists, which we have made available for sale. Many of you have already bought them, wearing them to protests and posting pictures on social media.

Supporting Jewish students in hostile campus environments

Over the last couple of weeks, we have seen anti-Israel thugs swarm university campuses with calls for intifada, the eradication of the State of Israel, and references to Hamas as “freedom fighters”. The growing number of encampments comes against a backdrop of escalating antisemitism, with Jewish students facing verbal abuse, receiving death threats and enduring physical violence.

We have met with the Department for Education and been on the forefront of exposing these incidents on campuses across the country, including in University College London, SOAS, University of Leeds, The University of Manchester, Newcastle University and elsewhere.

The hostile environment for Jews that has been created on British campuses challenges the very foundations of academia. Bastions of inclusivity and diversity operating in pursuit of truth are becoming cesspits of racist hate and intimidation.

We are assisting students around the country who are facing antisemitism where they live and study. Any student or faculty member can e-mail us in confidence at [email protected].

The Prime Minister has recently made it clear that antisemitism has no place in our universities. We thank the Prime Minister for doing so. It is now up to vice-chancellors to show that they agree. If they do not, we will do everything that we can to hold them and their institutions to account.

Podcast Against Antisemitism is back!

Season Five of our podcast is now streaming.

In the first episode, marking Yom HaShoah, we spoke to Mervyn Kersh, a distinguished WWII veteran. Now 99 years old, he joined the army in 1943 at the age of eighteen, and you can listen or watch as we discuss his conversations with survivors of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp just days after its liberation.

Our guest in episode two was Elad Poterman, who, along with his baby daughter and wife Maria, are survivors of the Kibbutz Nahal Oz massacre on 7th October. Nahal Oz sits just 800 metres from the Gaza border and was one of the first targets in the early hours of the Hamas terrorist attacks. Listen or watch as Elad takes us through how he and his family spent seventeen hours in the safe room of his home hiding from Hamas terrorists.

For our third episode we interviewed the acclaimed actor, writer, and comedian Brett Gelman, known for his roles in BBC’s “Fleabag,” FX’s “Married” and Netflix’s “Stranger Things”. Brett is not only known for his impressive performances but also for his outspoken stance against antisemitism. You can listen or watch Brett dive into his Jewish identity and speaking on the silencing of Jewish voices.

You can subscribe to the podcasts wherever you get your podcasts, or receive the podcast straight to your inbox by subscribing here.

Some of our additional recent work includes:

  • We have led the coverage of newly-elected local councillors with concerning records, especially in the Green Party, and we are assisting in a police investigation into an independent councillor.
  • We have reported the comedian Dane Baptiste to the police over serious threats to a Jewish individual, with whom we are in touch.
  • We are writing to Ofcom about Hamas atrocity-denial by Natasha Devon on LBC (for which she has apologised).
  • We reported Dana Abuqamar, the President of Manchester Friends of Palestine and final year law student, to the Home Office after she said that “We are full of pride. We are really, really full of joy of what has happened” in apparent reference to 7th October. Her visa has now been revoked.
  • We are writing to the BBC after presenter Eddie Nester MBE asked “Why is [the Jewish lobby] so much more powerful than people with disabilities?” and we are also writing to the broadcaster after Gary Lineker appeared to dismiss the 7th October massacre as “the Hamas thing”.
  • A few weeks ago, to mark Pesach, our digital van drove around London with a message to “let our people go” in reference to the hostages who remain in Hamas captivity.

The Met’s policing of the anti-Israel protests and campaigns has been an expensive shambles, supposedly because the force needs additional legal powers. We have now provided a blueprint for moving forward. Our criminal justice system must be brought into line, and the laws on which it operates must be brought up to date. For the Jewish community, action cannot come soon enough.

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It is time for Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to go

Last Saturday, our Chief Executive went to synagogue and then went for a walkabout in London with a few others.

Just over six months ago, as law-abiding Londoners, that would not have been a problem. Supposedly it still isn’t.

They were openly Jewish but had no badges or placards, were not shouting anything, did not say or do anything political and did not seek to engage with any protesters or join any counter-protest.

They sought to walk through London, wherever they wanted, as Jews.

But they were not able to.

We then announced that, this coming Saturday 27th April, we will be going for a walk through London, openly as Jews and allies, wherever we want. There is more information on the walk below.

In response to our video recounting the incident on 13th April and announcing that we will go for another walk on 27th April, the Metropolitan Police Service released a statement.

The Met Police’s response included an offer to “meet and discuss with anyone who wishes to organise a march or protest ahead of 27th April”.

That is kind of them, but they are missing the point.

We have no intention of starting or joining any protest or counter-protest. Being Jewish in London is not a ‘cause’ that we should need to ‘march’ for. It is a right.

The Met released a number of statements, including one in which an Assistant Commissioner, one of the most senior officers on the force, appeared to double down on the suggestion that an “openly Jewish” person present near these marches could be “provocative”. The statement was an appalling example of victim-blaming, and the Met withdrew the statement and apologised.

The story has received national media coverage, including three front pages this weekend and another three on Monday morning. Campaign Against Antisemitism spokespeople have also featured numerous times across BBC television and radio, ITV, Sky News, LBC and more.

There was also a full interview in The Sunday Times, and on Sunday evening, Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Chief Executive held a one-hour phone-in with Rachel Johnson on LBC, explaining how these marches and the failed policing around them is affecting the Jewish community.

The incident on 13th April and the back-and-forth with the Met just confirm what we know: that it is dangerous to be a Jew in London when these marches are taking place, and the blame for that lies squarely with the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Mark Rowley.

What happened last weekend was the inevitable conclusion of six months of inertia and contextualising crimes away by a Met that has curtailed the rights of law-abiding Londoners in order to appease mobs rife with anti-Jewish racists and terrorist sympathisers.

It has been six months of this now, and enough is enough. Britain is a country of tolerance and decency. Jewish people and other law-abiding Londoners should not be intimidated against walking the streets of the cities we live in.

That is why it is time for Sir Mark Rowley to go.

Sir Mark has the distinction of presiding over the worst surge in antisemitic criminality in our capital city since records began. We are in a time when 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid the centre of town when an anti-Israel protest is taking place. Those protests have made our city centres into no-go zones for Jews every weekend for six months now, and as the recent incident showed, that no-go zone is enforced by the Met.

Please join the thousands who have already signed the petition calling on Sir Mark to go.

Walk with us

On Saturday 27th April — the next major anti-Israel march — we are asking you, Jewish or not, to stand up for the tolerance and decency of which this country is so rightly proud, simply by going for a walk.

For those who want to walk together on the 27th, we will suggest a time and location where people can meet, which we will post on our social media accounts on the 26th.

If you would like to be notified of the suggested meeting place and time by e-mail instead, please sign up.

For those who wish to walk with us, please note that we have no intention of starting or joining any protest or counter-protest. We will not have placards or flags, we will not be chanting, we will not be wearing stickers. Those are not things one does when one goes for a walk.

We are not looking for a confrontation. We will simply be walking around our capital city as Jews and law-abiding Londoners, wherever we want. It is our right.

Time to finally proscribe the IRGC and the Houthis

Last weekend, the Islamic Republic of Iran flaunted its true colours and escalated its war against Israel with an unprecedented direct attack in its latest attempt to extinguish the Jewish state.

This is an antisemitic theocracy that means harm to Jews worldwide, Britain and its interests and the West. It is finally time to clamp down on Iran, its proxies and its supporters in the UK.

We have again called on the Home Secretary and the British Government to swiftly proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Houthis — as well as all of the terrorist groups in Gaza that were actively involved in the Hamas-led 7th October attack — and clamp down on the documented threats that they pose to our national security and empower the police to arrest those praising attacks on British shipping every week on our streets.

It makes no sense for Britain to engage this foe abroad while giving its supporters free rein here at home. For months, Britain has been generous with protesters in our own country who support our enemies. The time has come to take the gloves off.

Campaign Against Antisemitism funds successful appeal for Iranian activist’s right to call Hamas terrorists

A judge has rejected an attempt by the Metropolitan Police to prevent Iranian dissident Niyak Ghorbani from attending anti-Israel protests to display his sign calling Hamas terrorists.

Under draconian bail conditions imposed by the police, Mr Ghorbani, who has been arrested and de-arrested several times, would have been prohibited from approaching any demonstrations relating to Israel and Gaza in London.

However, following a successful appeal that was funded by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the court has rejected the Met’s conditions, ruling that they were neither proportionate nor necessary.

All Mr Ghorbani wants to do is point out to anti-Israel marchers that Hamas is a terrorist organisation under UK law.

If only the police were half as concerned with the marchers as with people like Mr Ghorbani. How did British policing get so topsy-turvy?

You may recall that we created t-shirts and hoodies emblazoned with the same message, which we have made available for sale. Many of you have already bought them, wearing them to protests and posting pictures on social media.

These achievements are only possible thanks to our dedicated staff, extraordinary volunteers and your support. Thank you to all of you who support our work.

Passover, which begins this Monday evening, is also known as the Festival of Spring. It is a time of birth and rebirth — of the Jewish people, of the nature all around us — and a time of optimism.

This is not an easy time to celebrate or be optimistic, as hostages remain in captivity, uncertainties abound in the Middle East, antisemitism surges around the world, including here at home in the UK, and policing in London is in shambles.

But let us choose, at this time of rebirth, to remake the environment that we live in. We will start with something simple. We will start with a walk.

Wishing those celebrating a happy Passover!

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Six months.

This weekend marked the six-month anniversary of the 7th October atrocity, the bloodiest day in Israel’s history and the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.

In the wake of the attack, as Israelis and Jewish communities worldwide grappled with the trauma, a distressing contrast emerged: while grief and shock engulfed many, expressions of support for Hamas erupted in various forms of jubilation and celebration across the globe, some within hours of the massacre.

Some chose to turn a blind eye to the atrocities.

Others attempted to rationalise the unjustifiable.

And, shockingly, some even found inspiration in this heinous act.

For the Jewish people, with hostages still in captivity and justification, glorification and celebration of antisemitic terrorism still ongoing around the world, October 7 is 24/7.

Al Quds Day: a tale of two cities

Every year, on the last Friday of Ramadan, the Al Quds Day march takes place in cities around the world, including in London. Since it was established in Iran in 1979, following the Islamic Revolution, Al Quds Day marches are displays of support for the antisemitic Islamist theocracy that rules Iran, kills its opponents and supports Jew-hating terrorist groups across the world, and for its terror proxies.

In the UK, for example, participants in the marches used to fly Hizballah flags and hold placards stating “We are all Hizballah”, until we and others secured the proscription of Hizballah.

In the days prior to this year’s march, which took place on Friday, the organisers had the audacity to complain about occasional arrests at recent anti-Israel marches in London notwithstanding that their own march was in support of a foreign regime that murders protesters.

Our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit was present at the march on Friday. What they saw was predictably despicable, including a woman screaming “Zio-Nazis” at people, flyers emblazoned with Hitler’s face, and more.

As the march proceeded, what became clear was that London on Al Quds Day was a tale of two cities: the hateful marchers in one tale, and, in the other, our digital van displaying the images of hostages and peaceful counter-protesters, some of whom were wearing our “Hamas are terrorists” hoodies.

The Met Police posted on social media that they had identified particular placards that appeared to incite violence in a vehicle that they had proactively stopped near the starting point of the march. “As a result,” they triumphantly declared, “we don’t believe they have been distributed.” Still, they were firm: “Should they be displayed in the crowd, action will be taken.”

But after so many months of policing-by-tweet, it should come as no surprise that our volunteers observed plenty of these placards on display during the march, very often within the sight of police officers. To our knowledge, no action appeared to be taken. This was just the latest example of questionable policing.

The week before, during the anti-Israel demonstration on Easter weekend, a woman reported a placard featuring a swastika to a police officer, who appeared to try to explain that the meaning of a swastika would depend on the context, in echoes of Met Police policy on other antisemitic rhetoric.

Apparently the context of an anti-Israel demonstration rife with analogies of Israel to Nazis and other antisemitic signs, calls for violent intifada, support for Houthi attacks on British vessels and glorification of Hamas terrorism, was not clear enough context of what a swastika might portend.

The Met claimed that it arrested someone in relation to this incident. If so, it raises even more questions about why the police reflexively make excuses instead of taking action in real time.

Extremism in the UK: we want to hear from you

If you could poll the British public on antisemitism or extremism, what questions would you ask?

Click here to let us know.

It is time for Sir Alan Duncan to be expelled

Sir Alan Duncan, the former Conservative MP and Minister, and a particularly unpopular figure in the Jewish community, suggested in an interview on LBC that certain peers in the House of Lords are working for Israel, invoking classic tropes of Jewish power and disloyalty. He later went on to victim-blame Israel for the 7th October Hamas attack.

This is not the first time that he has made accusations of parliamentarians being controlled by Israel. But we believe that it should be the last time that he does so as a member of the Conservative Party.

We called on the Party to investigate, which they have announced that they are now doing. He is not the only Conservative figure that we have been following recently.

We also called for the whip finally to be withdrawn from Baroness Warsi, after she spoke at a Muslim Council of Britain event with Ghada Karmi. The MCB is a controversial group, and Dr Karmi has previously said: “What you saw on October 7th was breaking out from the cage of Gaza by a resistance movement.” Dr Karmi also previously told George Galloway on Al Mayadeen television: “It’s wonderful really and admirable that the Hamas fighters exploded this whole rotten structure.”

We called in addition for the suspension by the Labour Party of another attendee, Afzal Khan MP, of “mass murdering Rothschilds Israeli mafia criminal liars” infamy.

Meanwhile, it was reported that Azmat Husain, the Chairman of the Salford Conservative Federation and the Conservative candidate for Eccles in Salford in the May elections, has withdrawn his candidacy after a Facebook post emerged in which he appears to have written “Jew pigs”. He had claimed that the post was fake.

This is not the first time that there have been serious concerns relating to antisemitism within local Conservative associations in Manchester. The Party has yet to investigate transparently.

We also exposed the social media history of the independent MP, Angus MacNeil, who used to sit with the SNP.

Furthermore, we called out the crossbench peer Lord Bird for saying in a debate in the House of Lords that “The amount of antisemitism you see around the world is because of the fact that Israel is not thinking about the next five or ten years but is only thinking immediately.”

No, Lord Bird, the amount of antisemitism that we are seeing is not because of the Jews or their state. It is because there are antisemites.

The effect of antisemitism on British Jews

Our two-week nationwide billboard campaign spotlighting what it is like to be Jewish in Britain today has concluded. On the billboards, online and on our digital van, we highlighted a number of scenarios to give viewers pause, including:

  • “How would you explain guards outside your child’s nursery?”
  • “Imagine your family feeling unsafe every time they leave their place of worship.”
  • “Do you know how it feels to hide your school blazer so you won’t be attacked?”

Thank you to all of you who have got in touch about the campaign. To quote just one response from Glasgow: “I saw an ad about your campaign in Glasgow today at Finnieston Quay and I wanted to get in touch to say that it really spoke to me. I have been appalled by what I have been reading about antisemitism in the UK. The words on the billboard about guards at nurseries and abuse at a football stadium were really powerful. I hope it helps to make a difference.”

So do we.

Great Ormond Street Hospital

Last December we began discussions with Great Ormond Street Hospital, at the initiative of members of their staff, about providing antisemitism training. This is the same training that we have delivered for years to other NHS trusts, police forces, industry regulators, academic institutions, local authorities and others.

Discussions were proceeding smoothly until approximately six weeks ago, when we were informed that the Hospital’s Muslim Network had expressed concerns about Campaign Against Antisemitism as a provider. We addressed in writing the issues that were raised and offered to meet with the relevant members of staff, with a view to hearing and allaying any concerns.

Unfortunately, the offer was ignored and, apparently without regard for the views of its Jewish staff, the Hospital decided that the Muslim Network should have a veto in relation to antisemitism training, and withdrew from the discussions.

The Hospital assured us that it will still be arranging the provision of antisemitism training, but with a different provider. We replied to the Hospital to say that that is acceptable to us, provided that it uses a reputable trainer that will not compromise on the material to appease anyone at the Hospital who may be ideologically opposed to learning about certain contemporary manifestations of antisemitism.

The Hospital not only failed to provide us with this assurance, but has not responded to us at all for several weeks.

We continued to await contact from the Hospital, but in view of the length of time since our last correspondence, we had no choice but to make this public last week.

If non-Jewish staff at institutions are given a veto over the delivery or content of antisemitism training, such an institution simply cannot be said to be upholding its commitment to equality and diversity. Jewish people and the racism that they suffer cannot be ignored. That is itself antisemitic.

After we revealed the incident, the Hospital released a statement that was wholly unsatisfactory, and we have submitted a Freedom of Information request in order to release more information.

In addition to the victims whom we are assisting and other incidents that we are responding to, here are some of our other high-profile recent cases:

  • We submitted complaints to Ofcom about Matthew Wright for comments on two LBC programmes.
  • We wrote a letter to the Scottish Funding Council regarding the election of Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah as Rector of the University of Glasgow.
  • We called on UK Border Force to suspend officers involved in potential mistreatment of Israeli survivors of 7th October visiting the UK.
  • We publicised appalling footage from the Refectory at Goldsmiths, which is also midway through an inquiry, to which we have contributed, regarding antisemitism on its campus.
  • We reported a man appearing to make serious threats in a TikTok video to Counter-Terrorism Police, and were in touch with the victim.

It has been six months.

Six months of war. Six months of hostages in captivity. Six months of weekly anti-Israel protests and antisemitic rhetoric on our streets. Six months of surging antisemitism — on campuses and online, in workplaces and in our public life. Six months of police failures.

But we are resolute, and we will continue to fight for justice for the Jewish community, no matter how many more months or years it takes.

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What is the real everyday impact of antisemitism on British Jews?

Following 7th October, the Metropolitan Police Service reported a 1,350% increase in hate crimes against Jewish people. This statistic is incredibly alarming, but on its own it does not paint the full picture of what the effect of this surge in antisemitism is on British Jews.

That is why Campaign Against Antisemitism has today launched a nationwide billboard campaign spotlighting what it is like to be Jewish in Britain right now, and showing how the impact of that antisemitism penetrates the daily life of British Jews of all ages.

Kindergartens with guards, Jewish schools discouraging their pupils from wearing blazers with a Jewish school crest, university students afraid to reveal their religion, football stadiums full of people invoking the Nazi gas chambers, and intimidation outside synagogues.

We have chosen a sample of the real-life everyday effects of antisemitism on British Jews.

At a time when 69% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism, it is important now, more than ever, that the British public is informed about the extent of the scandal of antisemitism in Britain.

Let everyone know that Hamas are terrorists

On 9th March, Niyak Ghorbani held a sign condemning Hamas as a terror organisation next to an anti-Israel demonstration in London. Footage appears to show that he was abused by protesters and potentially assaulted.

The police did not arrest those who were furious that he was pointing out that Hamas is a terrorist organisation. Instead, a phalanx of officers pulled him to the ground and violently arrested him, as he shouted “shame on you!” Police snatched, scrunched up and confiscated his accurate and perfectly legal sign which, from the footage, appears to be exactly what the protesters had sought to do. Mr Ghorbani was injured and required hospital treatment for a wound.

We provided Mr Ghorbani with assistance, including arranging legal representation, and we are pleased to announce that the outrageous charges brought against him have been dropped and the case is now closed.

The police are now, rightly, seeking the man who is on video appearing to assault Mr Ghorbani. If you have any information, please contact us at [email protected].

In the meantime, our lawyers are continuing to examine legal options in relation to the unacceptable police response to Mr Ghorbani’s lawful exercise of his free speech rights.

Policing of these weekly anti-Israel demonstrations is a shambles. Mr Ghorbani’s case – where an innocent man was arrested while potential criminals continued on their way – is a scandal. We will do everything in our power to force the Met Police to change course and finally start punishing criminality and extremism.

Mr Ghorbani was accosted and then arrested, all because he was trying to point out that, under UK law, Hamas is a terrorist organisation. So when the police censored him, we decided to amplify his message.

We created t-shirts and hoodies emblazoned with the same message, which we have made available for sale. Many of you have already bought them, wearing them to protests and posting pictures on social media.

We also enlisted our digital van to help spread the message, driving it to the very location where Mr Ghorbani was wrongly arrested.

It is a sad reflection of the times we live in when it has become controversial to promulgate the simple moral and legal truth that Hamas are terrorists.

Broadcasters must call Hamas terrorists too

This week, the BBC called the terror attack in Moscow, for which ISIS took responsibility, a “terror attack”. Perhaps realising that this might mean that the broadcaster would also have to call the Hamas terror attack, which was the biggest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, a “terror attack”, the description of the Moscow attack was quickly deleted. This is not the first time that the BBC has done this.

The broadcaster’s refusal to describe Hamas as terrorists – and its increasingly comical efforts not to be called out for hypocrisy by calling other terrorist groups by their name – is, at best, a failure to live up to its own principles of accuracy, impartiality and fairness. That is why it is so important to have our voices heard.

Our Parliamentary Petition calling for terrorism legislation to be amended to require all broadcasters regulated by Ofcom to describe all terrorist organisations proscribed in the UK and their operatives as “terrorists” and not by any other descriptor, has been signed by over 10,000 of your so far, from almost every constituency in the UK. That means that the Government must now consider and respond to the proposal.

With 100,000 signatures, the topic will be considered for debate in Parliament. Please help us to right this wrong and urge lawmakers to act to ensure that television and radio audiences get the real facts in the news that they consume.

How many people in Britain sympathise with Hamas?

New polling has found that there are over 2.5 million Hamas sympathisers currently in Britain (4% of the British population). Almost a further 17 million (26%) “don’t know” if they sympathise with Hamas.

The figures are worst amongst the young. For example, one in ten of those aged 18-24 say that they hold a favourable view of Hamas.

The polling also shows that over three million Britons (5%) want all Jewish presence in the Middle East eliminated through mass expulsion, and the same number say that the 7th October atrocity was “justified”.

Terrorists pose a threat not only to British Jews, but to the entirety of British society. The approaches tried so far by our Government and police forces have not worked. The radicalisation of our country, and particularly our youth, poses a grave danger to the whole United Kingdom.

We hope that those celebrating had a joyous Purim

With antisemitism surging in the UK, war in Israel and hostages still trapped in Gaza, the story of Purim and the power to overcome genocidal hatred of Jews is as relevant as ever.

We hope that, circumstances notwithstanding, those who were celebrating this Jewish holiday had a joyous weekend.

Those protesting on our streets and our national broadcasters must be reminded that Hamas are terrorists — and they cannot be allowed to hide away from that fact. Whether by exposing the failures and hypocrisies of our public institutions, making apparel available, or by changing the law, we will continue to find innovative and effective ways to spread that vital message.

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Imagine it’s your first day of university, and you’re praying nobody finds out your religion: CAA launches national billboard campaign

Today, Campaign Against Antisemitism has launched a nationwide billboard campaign spotlighting what it is like to be Jewish in Britain today.

Following 7th October, the Metropolitan Police Service reported a 1,350% increase in hate crimes against Jewish people. This statistic is incredibly alarming, but on its own it does not paint the full picture of what the effect of this surge in antisemitism is on British Jews.

Whereas our campaign last year – the first ever national billboard campaign about antisemitism – raised awareness of antisemitism and showcased the diversity of the Jewish community, this year we have sought to show how the impact of that antisemitism penetrates the daily life of British Jews of all ages.

Kindergartens with guards, Jewish schools discouraging their pupils from wearing blazers with a Jewish school crest, university students afraid to reveal their religion, football stadiums full of people invoking the Nazi gas chambers, and intimidation outside synagogues: these are just a sample of the real-life effects of antisemitism on British Jews.

At a time when 69% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism, it is important now, more than ever, that the British public is informed about the extent of the scandal of antisemitism in Britain.

Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “People are often presented with statistics and studies when trying to understand the experience of the Jewish community, and we have been conducting polling on antisemitism in recent months. But such data only goes so far. What is the real effect of surging antisemitism on the everyday lives of British Jews, from infants to the elderly, at schools, university and at cultural and sporting events? Routines are disrupted and fear infects daily lives, which is why the community must take so many security precautions. That impact is the message that this billboard campaign is trying to deliver to the British public up and down the country.”

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Police arrest suspect who made “allegedly antisemitic comments” when being detained in connection with alleged arson attack in Hackney

Police have arrested a man in connection with an alleged arson attack on a house in Hackney.

The suspect made “allegedly antisemitic comments” when being detained in connection with the fire on Newick Road in London. Police were called to the scene shortly before 12.45 this afternoon.

The police believe that the blaze was started deliberately.

It is understood that the ground floor and first floor of the three-story house have been destroyed by the fire, with four victims injured. They have been taken to hospital but are not in a life-threatening condition, according to reports.

A suspect – a man in his 60s – also reportedly suffered minor injuries from the fire and is being treated in hospital. He has been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life.

The London Fire Brigade said that eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters helped to bring the fire under control.

Detective Chief Superintendent at the Metropolitan Police, James Conway, said: “On his arrest the man made a number of threatening comments, some of which were allegedly antisemitic. We take instances of antisemitism extremely seriously and for this reason we’re investigating the incident as a potential hate crime. Undoubtedly this will be extremely concerning news for our Jewish communities in Hackney and beyond.” He added: “Whilst the investigation will continue to explore the motivation for this offence, we believe at this stage that this was centred on a localised housing-related issue. We have no indication, at this very early stage, that the motivation was connected with any specific local or global events.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Over the past few months, we have seen an extremely worrying surge in antisemitic violence, from beatings to knife-wielding. This suspected arson attack, if it had an antisemitic motivation, takes our society to a whole new level of hate. Was it not enough that Jews may, judging from the evidence, have been burned alive by Hamas on 7th October? We cannot sit by as that grotesque violence is potentially mimicked by Jew-haters in the UK. We thank the first-responders and medical practitioners for bringing the fire under control and treating the wounded, and commend the police for a swift arrest. Justice must now be done.”

Image credit: London Fire Brigade

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Former barrister Ian Millard given shockingly lenient sentence after being convicted of five communications offences

After over seven years of action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the former barrister Ian Millard has been handed a shockingly lenient sentence at Southampton Magistrates’ Court.

In November last year, Mr Millard was convicted of five offences contrary to section 127(1)(a) Communications Act 2003 in relation to the posting of grossly offensive material relating to his assertions regarding the Jewish race on his blog.

However, Mr Millard was only prosecuted following seven years of work by Campaign Against Antisemitism, due to a reluctance to prosecute on the part of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

The charges related to five blog entries dated between May 2021 and April 2022, which Mr Millard had posted on his website.

In one post on 10th May 2021, Mr Millard wrote: “Where Jews exist in any but very small numbers, non-Jews will always be exploited, and can never be free. That is as true in Europe (and including the UK) as it is in the Middle East.”

On 15th May 2021, Mr Millard wrote: “I lived on and off in the USA, mostly in the early 1990s though I did also spend time there in 1999, 2001 and 2002. Many Americans are fine people, but the mass media there is almost, not quite, 100% owned and operated by Jews. TV, radio, film, newspapers, magazines, book publishing. Americans have little choice but to see the world largely through the Jewish, Zionist, and Israeli lens. Fact. They are also brainwashed from childhood with ‘holocaust’ propaganda and fake history.”

In another, dated 20th November 2021, Mr Millard posted an image of an arm — which had a Star of David emblazoned on the sleeve — holding a hammer above a computer with the words “free speech” on it. Above the image, text read: “Wherever Jews have power, non-Jews eventually become victims or slaves. Look at history. The ridiculous thing is that, in the UK, many of those who oppose Jewish supremacism in Israel or occupied Palestine, effectively support the Jewish lobby in Europe, eg in the UK itself; they pay lip-service to the ‘holocaust farrago’, in particular, and applaud the Zionist efforts to destroy free speech.” 

Defending himself in court, Mr Millard admitted to ownership and editorial control of the blog, but did not admit to posting the offending posts. He did, however, state that he agreed with all the sentiments expressed in the posts.

During the course of his time on the stand, Mr Millard attempted to portray himself as the victim of a Jewish plot to crush free speech, telling the court that the CPS had been able to highlight only five blog posts out of more than 1,600 that he had published. A cursory glance at his blog reveals that it is strewn throughout with antisemitic conspiracy theories and imagery glorifying Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime.

He went on to brag about how he had visitors to his blog from all over the world.

When confronted with the opinions expressed in his posts, he maintained that they were “perfectly acceptable”.

Attempting to defend his Holocaust-denial, he said: “There’s history and there are views of history and people are entitled to adopt whichever view they want.”

He further professed that there were “a great number of hoaxes” around the Holocaust, going on to lament: “It’s the only history that’s acceptable and I disagree with that.”

Mr Millard told the court that “Jewish control of media is pervasive.”

He also made the claim that British politics is controlled by Zionists, citing as evidence of this the fact that the Star of David — the flag of Israel — had been projected onto 10 Downing Street as a display of solidarity with the Israeli public following the 7th October Hamas terror attacks.

Parroting the far-right antisemitic Great Replacement conspiracy theory, he asserted during his cross-examination that “They [Jews] are trying to get more immigrants into the country and the truth is coming out.”

While insisting that he could not recall if he had written any of the posts, owing to the fact that he allegedly blogs daily, he also said: “It’s not about whether I’m right or wrong. It’s about freedom of expression.”

He maintained that he had never set out with an intent to offend and that while some of the posts were “shocking”, they were not against the law and in fact merely satirical. 

Despite the alarming number of inflammatory comments made by Mr Millard during proceedings, and the CPS referring in its own online post-sentencing report to Mr Millard’s “continuous barrage of offensive material”, it failed to challenge his asserted mitigation that, out of approximately 1,800 blog posts, the CPS could find only five that were grossly offensive.

At neither the trial nor the sentencing hearing did the CPS tell the court that Mr Millard’s blog is in fact awash with Nazi imagery, adoring photos of Hitler, the fetishisation of Aryan supremacy and extracts from Nazi texts, such as the SS doctrine.

During sentencing, Mr Millard was only given a nine-month community order and a costs order of £734, despite the severity of his offences.

Despite being told that, since his conviction, Mr Millard had continued to post material similar to that which had led to his prosecution,the court also denied a criminal behaviour order, which was requested by the CPS in order to tackle this persistent offending behaviour.

The police have confirmed that they are assessing new evidence supplied by Campaign Against Antisemitism, in relation to alleged further offending by Mr Millard in the period between his conviction and sentencing.

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CAA reacts to Government’s new Extremism definition

Today, the Government has announced a new definition of “Extremism”.

The new definition, announced by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, updates the previous definition “to respond to increased extremist threat since the 7th October terror attacks in Israel,” provides “new engagement principles to ensure that Government does not legitimise extremist groups,” and “follows the Prime Minister’s commitment to stamp out extremism to ensure we keep our citizens safe and our country secure.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Today’s announcement is a very belated admission by the Government that it has engaged with and even funded extremists over the years, and that it will no longer do so. That is welcome, but that is as far as this announcement goes. It proposes no sanction whatsoever for extremists caught by the new definition other than a loss of state support that they should never have had in the first place, and far too many extremists will not be caught under this definition at all.

“It is particularly ironic that the definition draws on the work of Sir Mark Rowley, who has become one of the country’s foremost enablers of extremism by his refusal to use his existing powers in relation to the weekly marches that are threatening the fabric of our society. Ultimately, today’s move by the Government amounts to yet more words at a time when firm action is already decades late.”

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Making antisemitism front page news

This week, Campaign Against Antisemitism brought antisemitism to the forefront of our nation’s mainstream media coverage.

Many of you will have seen the Evening Standard’s front page on Tuesday, titled, “London’s antisemitism shame”.

As our Chief Executive told the newspaper: “It’s the biggest untold story, the impact mass intimidation is having on Jewish families. The cumulative effect is pretty devastating…This is not the tolerant Britain that we cherish — it is a Britain succumbing to a racist mob.”

Now more than ever, antisemitism is at the forefront of our minds in the Jewish community. This is why we are working tirelessly to ensure that victims’ stories are told and that the British public comes to understand how antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue, but a national one. With our streets taken over by a mob every week, our politicians threatened and inept police leadership, our country is in crisis.

Reacting fast to injustice

Yesterday, a man was violently arrested by police in London for carrying a sign stating that under UK law, Hamas is considered to be a terrorist organisation. We are reviewing all of the footage available in relation to this incident.

The police response appears to have been not only outrageous and disproportionate but potentially legally actionable.

For a phalanx of police officers to violently arrest a man who was verbally and physically attacked for observing that Hamas is a proscribed terrorist group while taking no action against his assailants is a breathtaking inversion of the law.

Not only are the police failing to enforce the law but they appear to be punishing those who are daring to point out what the law is. We are in touch with the victim and our lawyers are examining options.

What is the law?

Over the last ten days, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has stated in no uncertain terms that he believes that calling for violent Jihad or the eradication of the Jewish state, or projecting antisemitic tropes like “From the River to the Sea” onto Big Ben are unacceptable criminal offences.

It was a categorical rebuke of how the Metropolitan Police has approached the regular anti-Israel protests, making excuses instead of arrests. Yesterday was yet another example.

That is why only 16% of British Jews believe that the police treat antisemitic hate crime like other forms of hate crime.

In response, Sir Mark Rowley, the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, rejected the Prime Minister’s assertions, doubling down on the excuses that he has made for police inaction for almost half a year now. The result is a lack of clarity on the law of the land. The Government says one thing, and the police say another.

Accordingly, we have written to Sir Mark, observing that “You have the distinction of presiding over the worst surge in antisemitic criminality in our capital city since records began,” and calling for clarity: “It is vital that the conflicting publicly stated positions of the British Government and the Metropolitan Police are reconciled.”

Jewish journalists resign from National Union of Journalists

On Tuesday, we broke the news that in recent months six Jewish journalists have resigned from the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), one of the largest trade unions for journalists in Britain, owing to its alleged bias against the Jewish state and the impact that that is having on its Jewish members.

Those who spoke to us have told us that there is a culture in the NUJ that leaves its Jewish members feeling ostracised.

Jewish former NUJ members have told us of rhetoric in official e-mails from the union to its members, the sorts of events being held by the union and comments from other members.

One of the journalists who left told us that they don’t “feel safe being in a union which takes no interest in the concerns of Jewish journalists.”

Another journalist said: “They’ve created a divide. It’s like them versus us.”

When one of the largest trade unions for journalists is endorsing people who have engaged in antisemitism-denial and made comparisons between the Nazis and Israel, what message is this sending its Jewish members?

The NUJ has clearly failed its Jewish members and must urgently explain how it will regain their trust.

We are offering free legal representation to any NUJ members affected by anti-Jewish racism. Anyone affected can contact us at [email protected].

The need for our work is more urgent than ever before

The 7th October massacre changed everything, and it’s clear that the fight against antisemitism is more urgent than ever before.

We have been working tirelessly to combat antisemitism in all its forms, but we can’t do it without you.

If you are one of our supporters who already have a direct debit with us or donate regularly to support our work, thank you.

Here is just a small, varied selection of some of the work that your support has already enabled us to do in recent months:

  • After Jewish audience members were allegedly hounded out of Soho Theatre by comedian Paul Currie, we have been supporting the victims and secured a pledge by the theatre to ban him from returning to the venue. This is just one example of the cases that we are working on and the victims whom we are assisting.
  • The rallies and marches that we have organised or co-sponsored have cast a spotlight on the Met Police and BBC, empowered Jews and allies to march through London, and raised awareness of the hostages being held by Hamas – a goal to which our billboards and digital vans have also contributed.
  • Our expert opinion helped ensure that a solicitor accused of antisemitic conduct has been struck off; our efforts brought about the rapper Wiley’s forfeiture of his MBE; our calls led to a judge being scrutinised over potential bias in a case relating to anti-Israel protesters; we helped bring about a humiliation for Ken Livingstone in court; and more. We continue to process scores of criminal, regulatory and other cases.
  • Our in-depth polling has revealed that nearly 70% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism right now, and that almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel can get away with anything because its supporters “control the media”.
  • Following our ground-breaking exposé of rockstar Roger Waters, Germany-based music rights company BMG reportedly ended its relationship with the former Pink Floyd member.

We can only continue to do this vital work with your support.

By signing up for a direct debit today, you can ensure that we have the reliable funding needed to bring antisemitism to the forefront of British media. Direct debits offer a stable and efficient way for donors to support our cause, allowing more of your donation to directly fund our programmes and initiatives.

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“It’s like them versus us”: Six Jewish members resign from National Union of Journalists citing intimidation and anti-Israel bias

Campaign Against Antisemitism has spoken to Jewish members who have resigned from the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), one of the largest trade unions for journalists in Britain, in recent months owing to its alleged anti-Israel bias.

We are aware of at least six Jewish members who have handed in their NUJ cards since 7th October. Those who spoke to us have told us that there is an anti-Israel bias in the Union, leading to a culture that leaves its Jewish members feeling ostracised. 

Jewish former NUJ members have told us that the environment at the Union is influenced by rhetoric in official e-mails from the Union to its members, the nature of events held by the Union, and comments from other members.

In an e-mail sent to members on 20th November, the Union urged members to donate to a campaign to help journalists in Gaza, fronted by Nasser Abu Bakr, President of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate. This came to the dismay of Rebecca (the names of those who spoke to us have been changed to protect their anonymity), a Jewish former NUJ member, owing to the fact that Mr Abu Bakr was fired by the French press agency Agence France-Presse due to a conflict of interest arising from his work as an activist for the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah Party. The Party has reportedly bragged about taking part in the 7th October terrorist atrocities, but there is no indication that Mr Abu Bakr backed the atrocities.  

Mr Abu Bakr is also reported to have made comparisons between the Nazis to the State of Israel. In an interview, he said: “We asked Arab media people to intensify their effort to expose the Nazi and racist crimes of the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people and to bring back the Palestinian cause to the center [sic] of the Arab media’s attention.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is an example of antisemitism.

Rebecca told us that when she replied to the e-mail enquiring as to what help was being offered to journalists in Israel, the Union replied in a way that she felt was one-sided. 

“I don’t think they care enough to look at the whole picture,” she told us.

Rebecca, who had been a Union member for three decades before resigning in January, said that she felt the NUJ had become “overly political”. She had tried to speak with the NUJ about how concerns were making her feel about her membership, but told us that the Union had not responded to her for two months.

“At best, they don’t respect or consider their Jewish members, whether that’s deliberate antisemitism or ingrained, I don’t know. What I do think is they wouldn’t dare do that if I was perceived to be a minority due to my gender or colour or sex…maybe it’s an unconscious bias,” she said.

Rebecca added that she doesn’t “feel safe being in a Union which takes no interest in the concerns of Jewish journalists.”

A near-unanimous 97% of British Jews feel personally connected to events happening in Israel, according to our polling.

Another Jewish former member, Lucy’s testimony, seemed to echo those of Rebecca’s. 

Lucy told us that the “whole Union became too politicised,” which has made Jewish journalists feel “unwelcome”.

“They’ve created a divide. It’s like them versus us,” she said. Asked who she meant by “us”, she clarified: “The Jewish journalists.”

“There was not one concern for any journalist inside Israel under constant rocket attack with terrorists on the loose,” she said. “They’ve clearly taken a side…they ostracised Jewish journalists.”

Numerous posts from the private NUJ Facebook group, in which only Union members are allowed to post, accuse Israel of committing genocide. The group is supposedly moderated by admins. However, one comment by journalist Tony Gosling which, at the time of writing has been allowed to remain, referred to “the coming WWIII being cooked up between China and the Anglo-Zionist Empire”.  

In 2019, Mr Gosling’s radio programme was reported to Ofcom for antisemitic conspiracy theories, although the complaint was not upheld. Mr Gosling has also appeared as a guest on PressTV, an Iranian state-owned news network whose British broadcasting licence was revoked by Ofcom in 2012.

Concerningly, Mr Gosling reportedly “spent a year on the National Executive of the NUJ and eight years as Secretary, then Vice-Chair of the Bristol branch of the [NUJ] until the 2009 AGM when he resigned from the Bristol executive”. Between 2021 and 2023, he was elected to sit on NUJ’s Appeals Tribunal and Professional Training Committee.

Susanna, another Jewish former member, told us how she had raised concerns to senior officials at the Union about the social media activity of Donnacha DeLong, a former NUJ President. Mr DeLong has made numerous tweets referring to “Zionist scumbags” and “Zionist racists”. 

Upon reporting one of Mr Delong’s posts to the senior official, in which Mr DeLong wrote “F*** Zionism,” the official responded that the Union is unable to take responsibility for the “inevitably conflicting positions taken by our members on a wide range of issues” and that they cannot be expected to monitor the social media activity of its members.

Recent polling revealed that only six percent of British Jews do not consider themselves to be Zionists.

Susanna informed the Union that she felt as though it had taken an unbalanced approach to the war between Israel and Hamas, leading to the Union to allow “a very vocal pro-Palestinian — and often veering into antisemitic — element to dominate”.

Susanna had also raised the fact that in November, the NUJ London Freelance branch branch hosted a webinar arranged by the group Jewish Network for Palestine which comprised three speakers; journalist Tim Llewellyn, outspoken activist Ghada Karmi and Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi, one of the founders of Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL), the antisemitism-denial group and sham Jewish representative organisation.

Mr Llewellyn, who for ten years served as the BBC’s Middle East correspondent, said in 2012 that “pro-Israel Zionists” are “scattered at strategic points throughout the British establishment, throughout British business and among the people whose voices are respected”.

In 2020, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the University of Exeter calling for Dr Karmi to be removed from her position, and to the General Medical Council which regulates doctors, after she published an article in which she suggested that the Israeli embassy played an outsized role in British politics and that the Jewish groups calling out the Labour Party’s anti-Jewish racism at the time were doing Israel’s bidding. 

In 2021, Dr Karmi accused Sir Keir Starmer of using the “label of antisemitism as a weapon”. She further described allegations of antisemitism as a “smear accusation” which was being used as a “weapon” to suspend and expel members of the Labour Party.

Ms Wimborne-Idrissi was expelled from the Labour Party, apparently in relation to her involvement with the far-left “Resist Movement”, “Labour in Exile Network” and antisemitism-denial group “Labour Against the Witchhunt”.

However, in the response she received from the senior NUJ official, Susanna was told that as the event was hosted at the NUJ’s London Freelance branch, no action from senior members could be taken due to the branches’ “high degree of autonomy” under the NUJ rule book, and that any complaints should be directed to the branch itself.

A spokesperson for the NUJ said: “The NUJ has been consistent and robust in its denunciation of the atrocities carried out by Hamas on October 7th, and in our call for the release of all hostages. We have also condemned the targeting of women and appalling sexual violence that it is clear took place during those attacks, and the rise in antisemitic attacks that has happened in its aftermath.

“The NUJ strives to be inclusive and opposes all forms of discrimination, including antisemitism and racism. We take any member’s resignation seriously, and in the cases referenced the most senior officers of the union intervened to address the concerns being raised. In a democratic union, with an established branch and workplace structure, events and activities take place that are outwith [sic] of the union’s central operations. However, all members have a duty to uphold the union’s Code of Conduct and abide by our rulebook, and all members have rights in relation to formalising complaints under those rules.

“We have been vocal during this conflict in our appeals for the Israeli government to allow access to international journalists, and for the rights of journalists to be upheld. For now, it is only via the efforts of journalists in Gaza that reporting and coverage is taking place, and this is work that is being carried out under unimaginable privations. Many journalists have been killed or injured during this conflict. Peer to peer solidarity and support, from journalists to journalists, has always been a cornerstone of the NUJ’s international work. Campaigning for all journalists to be able to work freely, without interference, and in safety will always remain an NUJ priority. That is why the NUJ encourages its members throughout the UK and Ireland to support the Safety Fund established by the International Federation of Journalists, which offers a lifeline to journalists in need around the world. In recent months and years that has included support for journalists in Afghanistan and Ukraine, as it has more recently in Palestine.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “When one of the largest trade unions for journalists is endorsing people who have engaged in antisemitism denial and made comparisons between the Nazis and Israel, what message is this sending its Jewish members? The NUJ is in dereliction of its duty to its Jewish members and must urgently explain how it will regain their trust.

“We are offering free legal representation to all NUJ members affected by anti-Jewish racism. Anyone affected can contact [email protected].”

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Prime Minister tells police to do their job, but that demand needs to be backed by action

On Friday evening, the Prime Minister made a speech responding to the surge in antisemitism and extremism in our country.

His comments were nothing short of a rebuke of the Metropolitan Police Service’s well-honed practice of making excuses for extremism instead of arrests, and putting their frontline officers in impossible situations. He has demanded in no uncertain terms that the weekly anti-Israel marches no longer be merely managed, but actually policed.

In other words: it is time for the police to do their job.

Following this important intervention, we now look to the Prime Minister and Home Secretary to announce concrete solutions to address this dire situation, which leaves the Jewish community in fear for its safety and our democracy in peril.

We welcome the Prime Minister’s call for police to do better when policing protests, and for protesters to think twice about the consequences of their actions, but for months, we have heard protesters and protest organisers tell us that they will continue on their current path and that they feel that they are under no obligation to deviate from it.

The true test of the effectiveness of the Prime Minister’s national address will come when we see what happens at the mass demonstration next Saturday, and in the weeks to come as these marches continue.

While the words were welcome, firm action is long overdue.

Extremists are not simply hijacking protests: they are organising them. The Prime Minister condemned the anti-Jewish genocidal “From the River to the Sea…” slogan projected onto Big Ben, but we have heard march organisers testify to MPs that they actively promote that language.

Yesterday, the statue of Sir Winston Churchill in Parliament Square and the Cenotaph on Whitehall once again required lines of police officers to stand guard over them. This has been necessary countless times since 7th October.

Over the past few weeks we have seen the extremism on our streets penetrate our politics. Now it has entered Parliament. We know, as the Prime Minister does, that nothing is likely to change without firm action from his Government and the authorities.

That action must materialise urgently.

We look forward to learning what measures will be introduced. We have made clear recommendations to the Government and the police.

In recent weeks, our democracy has faced a grave assault by anti-Israel protesters

Anti-Israel protesters have not hesitated in using intimidation to get their message across, brazenly threatening our elected representatives and launching direct attacks on the very foundation of our democratic institutions.

We are offering free legal representation to MPs who have been subjected to antisemitic threats or intimidation, including obtaining court orders to unmask the authors of anonymous comments made online.

Enough is enough.

Inaction against these marches has led to a feeling amongst many extremists and antisemites that they can get away with brazen acts of racism against Jews, and too often they are right.

On Thursday, we reported on an incident that occurred on the London Underground where an identifiably Jewish man noticed a fellow passenger staring aggressively at him. The passenger then proceeded to tell the man: “Your religion kills Muslims.”

British Transport Police is investigating and we are continuing to support the victim.

The incident occurred between Camden Town and Chalk Farm on a Northern Line train to Edgware at approximately 19:45 in carriage number 52585.

If you have information, please contact British Transport Police with crime reference number 2400026154 or e-mail [email protected].

It is shocking to see how this man was treated for daring to be Jewish in public, but perhaps it is not that surprising in these dark times.

Too little too late

On Tuesday, the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee released its report on the policing of protests.

Last year, our Chief Executive, Gideon Falter, gave evidence before the Committee, which was included in the report, as well as our written evidence.

The report ​​fails to address the increasingly urgent need to restore the confidence of the British public and ensure the safety of Britain’s Jews.

Staggeringly, it appears that the only concrete recommendation from the Committee for the protests is that the organisers should give more notice to the police, which would not change the actual nature of these marches and therefore solves nothing other than timesheet planning for our overstretched police forces.

After months of intimidatory marches, the report offers no concrete recommendations for the here and now, just a long-term policy discussion about workforce planning and new laws that will take years to agree.

Read our full statement here.

We need action urgently.

Protest-organisers should be made to follow the March Against Antisemitism as an example of good practice.

The police seem to think so too. In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, one officer told the presenter that the march was a good example of how a protest can be “done well and respectfully”.

Why can the same not be said for the weekly anti-Israel protests on our streets?

Britain’s newest MP

On Thursday, the constituents of Rochdale voted in the by-election. After weeks of turmoil in Rochdale leading up to the parliamentary by-election, George Galloway is once again an MP.

Mr Galloway has an atrocious record of baiting the Jewish community.

He has previously and infamously declared Bradford an “Israel-free zone”. He said of his previous election loss that “the venal, the vile, the racists and the Zionists will all be celebrating”. He described David Baddiel, a Jewish comic who is well-known for not closely associating himself with Israel, as a “vile Israel-fanatic”. He claimed that the institutional antisemitism within the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn was really “a disgraceful campaign of Goebbelsian fiction”, in reference to Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s propagandist. He was sacked by TalkRadio despite his protestations, over an incident in which Tottenham Hotspur accused him of “blatant antisemitism” for a remark about keeping “Israeli flags” off the cup.

More recently, he has described the atrocity carried out by Hamas on 7th October as a “concentration camp breakout” and referred to Hamas terrorists as “fighters”.

Now, Mr Galloway has been chosen by the voters of Rochdale. Given his historic rhetoric and the current situation faced by the Jewish community in this country, we are extremely concerned by how he might use the platform of the House of Commons.

Is Charlotte Church tone deaf?

Earlier this week, we led the media outrage after singer Charlotte Church led a choir, which included children, singing, “From the River to the Sea…”.

The genocidal chant “From the River to the Sea…” refers to the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea, and only makes sense as a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a Palestinian state. It is a call for the annihilation of half the world’s Jews, who live in Israel.

Since 7th October, when Hamas committed their barbaric terrorist acts, we have heard this chant on the streets of Britain during anti-Israel marches, accompanied by all manner of anti-Jewish racism.

Singing “From the River to the Sea…” is not standing up for human rights. At best Charlotte Church has been tone deaf, but at worst she is using the voice for which she is so well known to fan the flames of hatred.

You cannot stoop lower than using your stardom to teach kids to sing extremist lyrics in a village hall.

We are writing to the Charity Commission to ask them to investigate how this was allowed to take place on a charity’s premises.

Five years since Hizballah was banned in the UK

Five years ago this week, following a gruelling effort over several years by Campaign Against Antisemitism and our allies, Hizballah was proscribed as a terrorist group in the United Kingdom.

Hizballah is a violent, genocidal and dangerous antisemitic organisation whose leaders have praised the 7th October Hamas terrorist atrocities as “heroic”.

Hizballah is suspected to have been involved in terrorist attacks targeting Jews from Burgas to Buenas Aires, where they bombed a Jewish community centre in 1994, killing 85 people. They continue to make their violent, murderous intentions towards Jews clear to this day.

As people continue to glorify the axis of violence to which they belong on our streets, their legal designation as a terrorist organisation, like their allies Hamas, has never been more important for the safety of Jews in Britain.

Recent arrests

Earlier this year, three Jews were physically attacked by ten men in Leicester Square, which resulted in serious injuries. No bystanders helped and police only showed up after half an hour, after the perpetrators had fled the scene.

One of the suspects involved in the alleged assault has now been arrested.

We are continuing to assist the victims during this time.

There are still more arrests to be made. If anyone has any further information, they should contact the Metropolitan Police.

On Monday evening, protesters were seen walking down Upper Street in Angel, London, chanting, “from London to Gaza, long live the intifada.”

An arrest was made shortly after a member of the public informed the police. We commend the Met for its swift action in this incident.

An individual believed to be involved with a violent attack in December has also been arrested.

The alleged assault was on a group of Jewish people in North West London on the bridge between Chalk Farm and Primrose Hill.

The group of five were putting up posters showing the faces of people taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. One of the members was an identifiably Jewish woman who wore a Star of David.

If you have any further information, please inform the Metropolitan Police.

Whilst the news of these arrests is welcome, prosecutions are few and far between, and the events of this week show serious weaknesses in our democracy. This is extremely alarming. We will continue to expose where our institutions fail to protect us from anti-Jewish hatred. We must demand better.

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What is happening to our democracy?

On Wednesday, as MPs gathered in Parliament to vote, antisemitic genocidal language was projected onto Big Ben, the symbol of our democracy and often of our nation. Inside Parliament, the Speaker of the House of Commons broke with convention over a ceasefire vote, apparently due to threats against MPs.

Today, the Prime Minister described the intimidation as “toxic for our society and our politics”.

Ben Jamal, Director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign, encouraged thousands of protestors to “ramp up pressure on MPs” and flood into Parliament “so that they would have to lock the doors of Parliament itself”.

Then, on Saturday, they shut down Tower Bridge.

When will this count as sufficient “disruption to the life of the community” for Sir Mark Rowley to invoke his powers to ban this?

These scenes come just after Mike Freer, an MP for one of the most heavily-Jewish constituencies, decided to quit politics due, in no small part, to antisemitism and violence directed at him and his office.

We are offering free legal representation to MPs who have been subjected to antisemitic threats or intimidation, including obtaining court orders to unmask the authors of anonymous comments made online.

If our laws are now being made through the medium of threat and violence, our democracy itself is under attack, and those responsible for safeguarding it are in dereliction of their duty.

We have been raising the issue on television, radio, newspapers and social media, making clear our views on this important national debate. The events of this week must serve as a wake-up call.

Wiley Stripped of MBE

The Honours Forfeiture Committee has announced that is that it has stripped the antisemitic grime rapper Richard Kylea Cowie, known as Wiley, of his MBE, following calls to do so by Campaign Against Antisemitism.

In 2020, we wrote to the Honours Forfeiture Committee, which confirmed that, on our recommendation, it had opened a case against the artist, with a view to stripping Wiley of his honour, which he received in 2018. The case was opened following his antisemitic tirade in 2020.

It has taken nearly four years of perserverance and we have worked tirelessly to ensure that Wiley faces the full consequences of his unhinged antisemitic tirade.

Antisemitism has no place in the arts, and antisemites should not hold honours. We commend the Honours Forfeiture Committee for using its powers to hold Wiley to account. In doing so, it is declaring that anti-Jewish racists cannot be role models in our society.

This decision sets a precedent, which we hope will encourage more stringent scrutiny of individuals who are awarded our nation’s highest honours.

We continue to pursue legal action in relation to Wiley.

Home office contractor defaces Jewish birth certificate

A father received a copy of his six-month-old baby girl’s birth certificate back from the Home Office with his place of birth scribbled out and the paper torn. His place of birth was Israel, the world’s only Jewish state.

James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, swiftly responded to our call for an investigation, confirming that he has directed the Home Office to investigate and apologising on behalf of the Department.

It is understood that a major Home Office contractor, Sopra Steria, has suspended a number of staff members and is conducting an investigation.

This incident represents gross misconduct, and the company must remove the individuals responsible.

Throughout this ordeal, we have been supporting the family. The last thing any parent should have to worry about is their child’s birth certificate being vandalised just because their parent’s place of birth is the Jewish state.

Solicitor struck off and doctor who appeared on The Apprentice suspended

Farrukh Najeeb Husain, an immigration and employment solicitor, has been struck off.

A number of Mr Husain’s tweets were found to be antisemitic and offensive by a tribunal, following a case brought by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA).

The SRA claimed that Mr Husain’s conduct online was “offensive” and, in some cases, antisemitic. Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, gave expert witness testimony to assist the SRA in its case.

Meanwhile, Asif Munaf, a doctor who appeared on the current series of “The Apprentice” on the BBC has been suspended by the General Medical Council, following a complaint by Campaign Against Antisemitism.

His online rhetoric has included “slimy Zionist PR machine”, “odiously ogre-like Zionists”, “weaponising the Holocaust” and more.

These days, it seems that some people need reminding that supporting terrorist groups is a crime

Many of our supporters will be familiar with our digital vans, which we have previously used to raise awareness of the plight of the hostages held by Hamas.

This week, we decided to remind those who needed reminding that expressing support for Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas, which are proscribed terrorist organisations, is illegal under UK law.

After months of seeing expressions of support for these groups at weekly anti-Israel protests, we thought that we should make the message as plain and simple as possible. When we drove past one of these protests outside the Houses of Parliament, our van was attacked. It seems that not everyone was happy to be reminded.

Extreme advice

This week, there have been red faces at both the Met and the Ministry of Justice over taking advice from people with extreme views.

The Met has had to cut ties with Mohammed Kozbar, a member of an advisory body which helps to “shape police policy” over a year after an official extremism report found that he had described the founder of Hamas as “the master of the martyrs of resistance”.

We are enquiring quite how it took the Met so long to act, and what input the individual had on police policy, especially since the surge in antisemitic crime in the UK since 7th October.

Over at the Ministry of Justice, it turns out that for “World Hijab Day”, they invited Shreen Mahmood to speak. Her social media posts included saying that “Jews need to get in the queue behind Muslims” when a Jewish man complained about antisemitism, and reposting another account which had said n the wake of 7th October that Palestinians had “every right to defend” themselves, well before Israel had responded militarily to the mass rapes, murders and hostage-taking.

When exposed, she explained that Palestinians have the right to “struggle…by all available means” and that she would not want to “upset my valued brothers and sisters from the Jewish community”.

The Ministry of Justice plays an integral part of ensuring that the rule of law is maintained in our democracy, so why is it hosting someone who posted such views? We are writing to the Ministry to demand an investigation into how this was allowed to happen.

The events of this week have been extremely concerning for the health of our democracy. They must be a wake up call for us all. We will continue to do everything we can to draw attention to the threats that the Jewish community – and our country – is facing.

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Wiley stripped of Honours following CAA action

The Honours Forfeiture Committee has announced today that it is stripping the antisemitic grime rapper Richard Kylea Cowie, known as Wiley, of his MBE, following calls to do so by Campaign Against Antisemitism.

In July 2020, Wiley went on an antisemitic tirade on social media, in which he compared Jews to the Ku Klux Klan; called on “black people” to go to “war” with Jews; and claimed that Jews had him and were “snakes”.

Consequently, Wiley was banned from X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube after using the platforms to incite racial hatred against Jews, following tireless pressure from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which included projecting antisemitic tweets on X’s London headquarters and joining a 48-hour walkout on the platform. 

Despite our efforts, Wiley evaded immediate legal consequences by being out of the UK. Nonetheless, CAA initiated legal proceedings, filing a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecution Service in the Netherlands, where Wiley was residing.

Campaign Against Antisemitism also wrote to the Ivors Academy calling for Wiley’s 2019 Ivors Inspiration Award to be rescinded.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s advocacy extended to venues scheduled to host Wiley, leading to multiple cancellations of his performances, including Village Underground, which swiftly dropped him from their event.

Following sustained pressure, the Honours Forfeiture Committee, acting on Campaign Against Antisemitism’s recommendation, commenced an investigation into Wiley’s conduct, with a view to stripping Wiley of his honour, which he received in 2018. The case was opened following his antisemitic tirade in 2020.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Today’s decision marks the culmination of nearly four years of dogged perseverance. We have worked tirelessly to ensure that Wiley faces ruinous consequences for his unhinged antisemitic tirade, for which he has shown no remorse.

“Antisemitism has no place in the arts, and is unbecoming of anyone holding an honour. We commend the Honours Forfeiture Committee for using its powers to hold Wiley to account. In doing so, it is declaring that anti-Jewish racists cannot be role models in our society.

“Due to technical reasons, including legal action that we are pursuing against Wiley, the forfeiture was delayed. We are grateful to the Honours Forfeiture Committee for its work on this matter.”

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Solicitor Farrukh Najeeb Husain struck off after tribunal finds his tweets antisemitic and offensive in case where CAA provided expert opinion

The Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) has today struck off solicitor Farrukh Najeeb Husain after finding a number of his social media posts to be antisemitic and offensive.

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) investigated Mr Husain, an immigration and employment solicitor, following complaints regarding his conduct on X, which was reported to the regulator by Bevan Brittan, a law firm that employed him at the time.

The SRA claimed that Mr Hussain’s conduct online was “offensive” and, in some cases, antisemitic. Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, gave expert witness testimony to assist the SRA in its case.

Mr Husain represented himself over the course of the hearings, which began in September last year.

The tweets in question were directed at Simon Myerson KC, a barrister, and Hugo Rifkind, a journalist. Among the tweets were characterisations of Mr Rifkind as a “Zionist pig”, references to Mr Rifkind’s “eastern European kin” and the claim that Mr Myerson “wreaks of white privilege”.

Throughout the case, Mr Husain made several accusations against the SRA and Capsticks, a law firm that was representing the SRA at the tribunal. He claimed that the SRA was “weaponising new antisemitism” and subverting the International Definition of Antisemitism, and even accused the regulator of being “in bed” with Campaign Against Antisemitism. He also claimed that the solicitor acting on behalf of the SRA was an “imperialist” and asserted that she “bang[ed] on about the Holocaust because [she] wants to hide [her] country’s own crimes,” apparently referring to her British heritage.

During her cross-examination of Mr Husain, he said: “Mr Myerson is a fascist.”

Mr Husain extended his accusations also towards Mr Silverman during cross-examination and said: “It is you who are engaging in the antisemitic trope that there is a collection of Jews who are self-haters, who have turned against their nation and who are spouting conspiracy theories.”

Mr Silverman then asked the defendant if he was calling him an antisemite, to which Mr Husain responded: “Yes.”

Mr Husain also baselessly and conspiratorially accused Campaign Against Antisemitism of being set up and funded by a former Israeli diplomat.

Throughout the proceedings, Mr Husain was repeatedly reminded by the chairperson to conduct himself in an appropriate manner. In one instance, the tribunal panel addressed the defendant directly and accused him of “bordering on being abusive to Mr Silverman at times.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This is the right sanction. Farrukh Najeeb Husain’s rhetoric online was vile, and there was no evidence of any regard or remorse for the hurt and disgust that he caused. The SRA was right to bring this case to restore confidence in the legal profession, and we were pleased to be able to contribute expert opinion at the hearing in order to inform the panel and bring about this week’s decision and today’s sanction. The SDT has shown that there is no place for antisemitism in English law.”

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Solicitor’s tweets found to be antisemitic by tribunal in case where CAA provided expert opinion

A solicitor’s tweets were found to be antisemitic and offensive today by a tribunal.

The Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) has found a number of social media posts by the solicitor Farrukh Najeeb Husain to be antisemitic and offensive.

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) investigated Mr Husain, an immigration and employment solicitor, following complaints regarding his conduct on X, which was reported to the regulator by Bevan Brittan, a law firm that employed him at the time.

The SRA claimed that Mr Hussain’s conduct online was “offensive” and, in some cases, antisemitic. Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, gave expert witness testimony to assist the SRA in its case.

Mr Husain represented himself over the course of the hearings, which began in September last year.

The tweets in question were directed at Simon Myerson KC, a barrister, and Hugo Rifkind, a journalist. Among the tweets were characterisations of Mr Rifkind as a “Zionist pig”, references to Mr Rifkind’s “eastern European kin” and the claim that Mr Myerson “wreaks of white privilege”.

Throughout the case, Mr Husain made several accusations against the SRA and Capsticks, a law firm that was representing the SRA at the tribunal. He claimed that the SRA was “weaponising new antisemitism” and subverting the International Definition of Antisemitism, and even accused the regulator of being “in bed” with Campaign Against Antisemitism. He also claimed that the barrister acting on behalf of the SRA was an “imperialist” and asserted that she “bang[ed] on about the Holocaust because [she] wants to hide [her] country’s own crimes,” apparently referring to her British heritage.

During her cross-examination of Mr Husain, he said: “Mr Myerson is a fascist.”

Mr Husain extended his accusations also towards Mr Silverman during cross-examination and said: “It is you who are engaging in the antisemitic trope that there is a collection of Jews who are self-haters, who have turned against their nation and who are spouting conspiracy theories.”

Mr Silverman then asked the defendant if he was calling him an antisemite, to which Mr Husain responded: “Yes.”

Mr Husain also baselessly and conspiratorially accused Campaign Against Antisemitism of being set up and funded by a former Israeli diplomat.

Throughout the proceedings, Mr Husain was repeatedly reminded by the chairperson to conduct himself in an appropriate manner. In one instance, the tribunal panel addressed the defendant directly and accused him of “bordering on being abusive to Mr Silverman at times.”

The SDT is expected to issue a more substantial judgment in due course, with any sanctions or penalties expected to be announced by the tribunal on Friday.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We welcome this judgment. Farrukh Najeeb Husain’s rhetoric online was vile, and there was no evidence of any regard or remorse for the hurt and disgust that he caused. The SRA was right to bring this case to restore confidence in the legal profession, and we were pleased to be able to contribute expert opinion at the hearing in order to inform the panel and bring about today’s decision. We expect the SDT to apply the appropriate penalties on Mr Husain to show that there is no place for antisemitism in English law.”

To contact Campaign Against Antisemitism in relation to providing expert opinion or training, please e-mail [email protected].

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Discrimination against Jews is no laughing matter

Since last weekend, we have been assisting Jewish guests who were reportedly hounded out of the Soho Theatre in London after comedian Paul Currie allegedly led his audience in targeted chanting.

According to a statement provided to us by one Jewish attendee, who wished to remain anonymous, the incident occurred last Saturday during the one-hour “Shtoom” show, attended by over 100 people.

Towards the end of the performance, Mr Currie introduced two props – a Ukrainian flag and a Palestinian Authority flag – and urged everyone to stand and applaud, apparently in support of the causes with which those flags have become associated, creating discomfort among some attendees in relation to the Palestinian Authority flag.

“When we all sat down again, [Mr Currie] looked towards a young man sitting in the second row and said ‘You didn’t stand, why? Didn’t you enjoy my show?’,” recounted the attendee. “The young man, who we discovered soon after was Israeli, replied ‘I enjoyed your show until you brought out the Palestinian Authority flag.’”

According to the attendee, the comedian then yelled at the young man: “Get out of my show. Get the f*** out of here. F*** off, get the f*** out of here.” This instantaneously escalated into the audience shouting “Get out” and “Free Palestine” until the young man left.

We publicised the story and worked with the victims to secure national media coverage of the incident. We are also dealing with the theatre, which has engaged with us positively and swiftly and issued an apology. It has banned Mr Currie, who has also reportedly been dropped by two Australian venues so far as well.

Comedians are rightly given broad latitude, but hounding Jews out of theatres is reminiscent of humanity’s darkest days, and must have no place in central London in 2024. We are working with the victims and our lawyers to ensure that those who instigated and enabled it are held to account.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or has any further information is asked to contact us in confidence on +44 (0)330 822 0321 (option 2) or at [email protected].

In Rochdale, Labour gets it wrong before getting it right

The Labour Party’s candidate in the Rochdale by-election, Azhar Ali, was revealed to have suggested that Israel may have enabled the 7th October Hamas massacre in order to justify an incursion into Gaza. He was recorded making the remarks in a meeting in late October 2023.

But even as it became clear that this man, who had effectively propagated a blood libel, does not belong in a major political party, let alone in Parliament, the Labour Party, incredibly, continued to back his candidacy after a quick apology, wheeling out numerous figures to defend him.

It was then revealed that, at the same meeting, he blamed Labour’s suspension of Andy McDonald MP on “people in the media from certain Jewish quarters”. Labour then dropped its support for him.

It then emerged that Graham Jones, a former Labour MP who is also seeking a return to the Commons, was also recorded at the same meeting apparently making reference to “f***ing Israel” and saying (wrongly) that it is illegal for British Jews to join fighting against Hamas terrorists and that those who do so “should be locked up”. Labour immediately suspended him.

Sir Keir Starmer blotted an otherwise fairly admirable copy book by delaying the withdrawal of support from Mr Ali. Rather than appearing as a principled decision, it ended up looking as expedient as the failed attempt to defend him in the first place. However, in the case of Mr Jones, Labour did the right thing, and did it swiftly.

Now, Labour must reveal which other MPs, candidates and councillors were at that same October meeting and why they said nothing about the remarks that were made, and indeed if more such remarks were made. Labour must continue to put a line in the sand and declare that it will not tolerate extremist views. It is the least that we should be able to expect from all our political parties.

Throughout the week, as more and more revelations emerged, we led the media commentary, appearing in every major newspaper and on all the major radio and television broadcasters.

The Conservatives this week expelled the Mayor of Salisbury following reportedly “offensive and inappropriate comments” about Jewish people.

It is disappointing to see so many of these cases in our politics, but we commend parties for acting swiftly when they arise.

Police ask man hide Jewishness in Edinburgh

In Edinburgh, we are working with a Jewish man who was urged by police to hide his Star of David due to the proximity of an anti-Israel protest, to avoid “triggering” the protesters. The police officer was clearly worried that he and his colleagues were heavily outnumbered and that these protesters could pose a threat to Jews, but his response was effectively to stop a passing Jewish man and ask him to hide his identity before continuing on his way.

Watch the video, and ask yourself whose rights are actually being protected here, those of law-abiding people or those of mobs of extremists who might be “triggered” by people being Jewish in public?

The police have apologised to the individual, but an apology somewhat misses the point. If the officer believed that there was a potential threat to this Jewish individual, he should have focused on the threat.

What if arrests are made, but the courts fail us?

Our Demonstration and Events Monitoring Unit collected evidence from a protest outside Downing Street this week, in which antisemitic signs were on display.

The police acted in response to one of the pictures that we posted, announcing that they had arrested a woman on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.

However, an arrest is only the first stage in the criminal justice system. There must also be prosecutions and then trials in court, with appropriate sentences for those who are convicted.

On that score, the system has failed us this week.

You may recall that, in one of the first major anti-Israel protests in the wake of 7th October, three women were seen displaying images of a paraglider, a symbol that had come to be associated with the Hamas attack. They were identified and arrested, and have been convicted of terrorism offences.

However, Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram “decided not to punish” the trio. The court thereby sent the worst possible signal to the Jewish community at a time of surging antisemitism.

We then shared fresh evidence with the media that may suggest possible bias on the Judge’s part. We shared this with the media, and have written to the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office. A full and proper investigation must follow. The Jewish community deserves to be able to trust our legal system to act impartially and with zero-tolerance enforcement of the law.

This weekend’s anti-Israel march

We are continuing to monitor the weekly anti-Israel protests. This week, we publicised concerns from local Jewish community leaders in central London about the route and persistence of these marches. The Met Police tried to ensure that the marches would start at 13:30 on Saturday after synagogue services had finished, but the protesters gathered at midday anyway. The police bolstered security outside synagogues in the area and we have heard from parents who were afraid to walk home with their children.

Not only are the organisers of these marches refusing to respect local communities and the police, but neither are the protesters. Met Police officers who, rightly, were arresting a woman holding a sign that read “Long Live the Intifada” were confronted by angry demonstrators chanting “Shame on you”. The reason that these protests are so hard to police is because it is not just the overt criminals who cause disruption, but it is the criminals who walk alongside them and attack the police when they move in. This means dozens of police — who are considerably outnumbered to begin with — are required to effect one arrest.

Sir Mark Rowley has accepted that there is a threat to synagogues and Jewish people but has still not banned the marches or placed meaningful restrictions on them. He has sent 1,500 officers to police tens of thousands of people and they are getting beaten up doing their jobs.

For shame.

The above is just a sample of our work over the past week. We have also written to the University of Leeds over a spate of incidents in and around its campus; we have called out the BBC over a contestant on “The Apprentice” with a history of inflammatory rhetoric about Jews and offered assistance to BBC employees who are reportedly frightened at work; we are referring the General Medical Council to the Professional Standards Authority over a pitiful sanction for a doctor who has been found to be “quite comfortable with using discriminatory language” about Jews; we are assisting a Jewish nightclub owner in East London who has been forced to step down as a director following threats against him and his family; and more.

We are fighting antisemitism on every front – on the streets and on campuses, on television and in politics, in business and online, in our regulated professions and in our cultural institutions – and we are fighting it nationwide. We are only able to do so with your continued support.

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New report shows alarming surge in antisemitic incidents

A new report shows an alarming surge in antisemitic incidents in the UK, particularly since the Hamas attack of 7th October 2023.

According to the report by CST, more than 4,000 antisemitic incidents were recorded in 2023, marking a significant increase from previous years. This spike in hatred has been attributed to the sheer volume of antisemitism following the Hamas attack of 7th October 2023.

Mark Gardner, Chief Executive of CST, described the situation as “an absolute disgrace”, emphasising the resilience of British Jews in the face of this surge in hatred. He stated: “British Jews are strong and resilient, but the explosion in hatred against our community is deeply concerning. It occurs in schools, universities, workplaces, on the streets, and all over social media.”

The report outlined a range of disturbing incidents, including 3,328 cases of abusive behaviour, 266 incidents of assault, 305 threats and 182 instances of damage and desecration. Alarmingly, almost a fifth of the recorded incidents involved perpetrators under the age of eighteen, highlighting the urgent need for education and intervention.

Furthermore, the report observed that, for the first time, at least one antisemitic incident was recorded in every single police region in the UK in the course of one year, demonstrating how widespread the problem has become.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “The CST’s figures reveal the explosion in antisemitic hate crime that the Jewish community has experienced in the past several months. It is particularly notable that the surge in anti-Jewish racism began in the immediate wake of 7th October, indisputably demonstrating that antisemites in the UK were emboldened by Hamas’s massacre of Jews, and that is why we are seeing what we are seeing on our streets and campuses, in workplaces and cultural institutions and online. There is a sickness in our country, and the sclerotic and overly-generous reaction of our criminal justice system shows that our institutions have utterly failed to grasp the gravity of the threat that our society faces right now.”

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Social media activity of Judge in paraglider case suggests possible bias

The social media activity of the judge in case of three women who displayed images of a paraglider in an anti-Israel protest may suggests possible bias.

Heba Alhayek, 29, Pauline Ankunda, 26, and Noimutu Olayinka Taiwo, 27, were given twelve-month conditional discharges at Westminster Magistrates’ Court yesterday after being convicted of terrorism offences.

Ms Alhayek and Ms Ankunda attached images of paragliders to their backs; Ms Olayinka attached such an image to the handle of a placard.

They were arrested and charged with carrying or displaying an article to arouse reasonable suspicion that they are supporters of the proscribed antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation, Hamas.

Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram reportedly said that there was nothing to suggest the group were supporters of Hamas, but, he added, “seven days earlier, Hamas went into Israel with what was described by the media as paragliders. A reasonable person would have seen and read that. I do not find a reasonable person would interpret the image merely as a symbol of freedom. You’ve not hidden the fact you were carrying these images. You crossed the line, but it would have been fair to say that emotions ran very high on this issue. Your lesson has been well learnt. I do not find you were seeking to show any support for Hamas.” He concluded that he had “decided not to punish” the trio.

Campaign Against Antisemitism can reveal that Judge Ikram’s social media activity may suggest bias (see picture below), and we are exploring legal options.

We are also looking at submitting a complaint to the Bar Standards Board in relation to barrister and political candidate Sham Uddin, over his social media output.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram’s social media activity suggests to us that there may be grounds to set aside his ruling in the case in which he decided ‘not to punish’ three women found guilty of terrorism offences, on the basis of actual or apparent bias. We are sharing our findings with the Crown Prosecution Service, which may wish to appeal the verdict, and we are considering various legal options. We are also submitting a complaint to the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office.”

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Three women who displayed paraglider images at anti-Israel protest have been convicted of terrorism offences

Heba Alhayek, 29, Pauline Ankunda, 26, and Noimutu Olayinka Taiwo, 27, have been given twelve-month conditional discharges at Westminster Magistrates’ Court today after being convicted of terrorism offences.

Ms Alhayek and Ms Ankunda attached images of paragliders to their backs; Ms Olayinka attached such an image to the handle of a placard.

They were arrested and charged with carrying or displaying an article to arouse reasonable suspicion that they are supporters of the proscribed antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation, Hamas.

Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram reportedly said that there was nothing to suggest the group were supporters of Hamas, but, he added, “seven days earlier, Hamas went into Israel with what was described by the media as paragliders. A reasonable person would have seen and read that. I do not find a reasonable person would interpret the image merely as a symbol of freedom. You’ve not hidden the fact you were carrying these images. You crossed the line, but it would have been fair to say that emotions ran very high on this issue. Your lesson has been well learnt. I do not find you were seeking to show any support for Hamas.” He concluded that he had “decided not to punish” the trio.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “It is right that these three women, who displayed an image of a paraglider – a symbol that immediately came to be associated with the Hamas attack of 7th October – at an anti-Israel protest, have been convicted of terrorism offences. What is inexplicable is that Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram has seen fit ‘not to punish’ them. The court has thereby sent the worst possible signal to the Jewish community at a time of surging antisemitism and glorification of terror, and we fully expect the CPS to now bring an appeal against this unduly lenient sentence.”

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Jewish guests hounded out of Soho Theatre as comedian Paul Currie allegedly leads audience in discriminatory chanting

Campaign Against Antisemitism is assisting Jewish guests who were reportedly hounded out of the Soho Theatre in London. 

We are reviewing legal options after comedian Paul Currie allegedly led his audience in discriminatory chanting.

According to a statement provided to Campaign Against Antisemitism by one Jewish attendee, who wished to remain anonymous, the incident occurred on Saturday during the one-hour “Shtoom” show, attended by approximately 200 people.

Towards the end of the performance, Mr Currie introduced two props – a Ukrainian flag and a Palestinian Authority flag – and urged everyone to stand and applaud, apparently in support of the causes with which those flags have become associated, creating discomfort among some attendees in relation to the Palestinian Authority flag.

The Palestinian Authority pays salaries to terrorists and the families of terrorists who succeed in killing Jews, distributes antisemitic teaching materials, and was widely involved in celebration of the 7th October atrocity, which was the worst antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust.

“When we all sat down again, [Mr Currie] looked towards a young man sitting in the second row and said ‘You didn’t stand, why? Didn’t you enjoy my show?’,” recounted the attendee.

“The young man, who we discovered soon after was Israeli, replied ‘I enjoyed your show until you brought out the Palestinian Authority flag’’,” they continued.

According to the attendee, the comedian then yelled at the young man: “Get out of my show. Get the f*** out of here. F*** off, get the f*** out of here.” 

This instantaneously escalated into the audience shouting “Get out” and “Free Palestine” until the young man left.

The attendee described feeling a sense of considerable discomfort as the situation unfolded, particularly as Mr Currie’s interactions with the Israeli audience member became increasingly confrontational. The attendee decided to leave the theatre too, along with their friends.

Shaken, they approached a front-of-house manager to report what had happened. However, the staff member was said to be unhelpful and distracted with her other tasks. She allegedly told them to “back off and stand further away from her” and that they “support free speech at Soho Theatre” and urged them to send the theatre an e-mail.

As they exited the theatre, they encountered a tense atmosphere among some audience members, further reinforcing their sense of marginalisation and ostracisation.

“Our friends later received a message from someone they knew who had also been at the show, saying that after we left, the situation became even more inflamed,” they reported. “The chanting carried on for quite some time. Currie turned to the audience and said: ‘I may get into trouble for this. Can you ensure you write some positive stuff about me on social media?’”

The attendee told us: “Leaving the theatre, I felt threatened. I didn’t know if I was going to get physically assaulted. We were all shaken. We were extremely upset and anxious.” 

He also said that his initial reaction after the alleged incident was: “I don’t want to go into central London anymore.

“It felt like we were welcome in the theatre as long as our identities of Jews weren’t known, and the minute our identities were known, we felt threatened.”

The Soho Theatre released a statement today on Twitter in which they said: “We are sorry and saddened by an incident that took place at our venue at the end of a performance of Paul Currie: Shtoom on Saturday 10 February which has caused upset and hurt to members of audience attending and others.

“We take this very seriously and are looking into the detail of what happened as thoroughly, as sensitively, and as quickly as we can. It is important to us that Soho Theatre is a welcoming and inclusive place for all.”

We have contacted Paul Currie for comment.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “What the Jewish audience-members have recounted is atrocious, and we are working with them and our lawyers to ensure that those who instigated and enabled it are held to account. These allegations are of deeply disturbing discriminatory abuse against Jews. Comedians are rightly given broad latitude, but hounding Jews out of theatres is reminiscent of humanity’s darkest days, and must have no place in central London in 2024.”

Anyone who witnessed the incident or has any further information is asked to contact us in confidence on +44 (0)330 822 0321 (option 2) or at [email protected].

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UK government rebuked anti-Israel protesters with new laws

This week, James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, announced several proposed amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill, in a clear and targeted rebuke to anti-Israel marchers deliberately causing disruption in London and around the country and outraging the public over behaviour at war memorials and launching fireworks at police.

Mr Cleverly has proposed the following changes to the Criminal Justice Bill:

  • Creating a new offence of desecrating a war memorial punishable by up to three months’ imprisonment and a fine of up to £1,000;
  • Creating a new offence which would make it illegal for someone to have a pyrotechnic article in their possession during a procession or assembly. Offenders could receive a fine of up to £1,000;
  • Providing the police with new powers to arrest protesters wearing face coverings to conceal their identity. Offenders could receive a fine of up to £1,000 and a month in prison;
  • Modifying the reasonable excuse defence that is currently available concerning certain public order offences to prevent a minority of protesters from deliberately causing serious disruption while exploiting defences relating to the right to protest. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit has for months observed protesters causing severe disruption to the public during their weekly anti-Israel demonstrations, including launching fireworks at police officers; desecrating war memorials; and preventing members of the public from travelling.

A further effect of these weekly protests is that a staggering 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid travelling to a city centre if a major anti-Israel demonstration was taking place there.

With protesters using rhetoric like, “Zionists are like Nazis, and if that’s antisemitic then f*** it. I don’t care” in last week’s protests, that sentiment is not surprising.

You can watch interviews, captured by our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit and Communications team, here.

For months now, we have been asking for tougher restrictions to be placed on these protests, which have made our urban centres no-go zones for Jews. While the police have failed the Jewish community and law-abiding Londoners, the Government, to its credit, is listening.

These new laws will help address the mob mentality that we have observed in these protests. There is no justification for such scenes, and now, there will be no legal defence.

The people of this country expect the lawlessness on our streets to be brought firmly under control, and with these changes there are now even fewer excuses for police inaction.

The Prime Minister recently explained how the weekly protests prompted the Government to act.

What is happening on British campuses?

In the past week, Jewish students at Birmingham had to face signs reading “Zionists off our campus”.

Our most recent polling shows that only 6% of Jews do not consider themselves to be Zionists. The University of Birmingham claims that it offers a “welcoming and supportive environment”. It doesn’t look that way.

At the University of Leeds, the synagogue and Hillel Jewish student centre was vandalised with graffiti reading “IDF off campus” and “Free Palestine”, and there are reports that the Jewish chaplain has received death threats.

Less than a day later, students on the same campus voiced support for the Houthi rebels in Yemen at an anti-Israel protest. The motto of the Houthis is: “Allah is the greatest, death to America, death to Israel, a curse upon the Jews, victory to Islam.”

When support for an organisation that openly parades its antisemitism goes unchallenged on a university campus, what message is this sending to its Jewish students? What message does it send when they chant “There are many, many more of us than you”?

This is not some sort of social justice movement. It is an attempt by thugs to intimidate Jews and drive them out of our universities. The reaction of the universities must be swift and severe.

What does the David Miller judgment mean?

The Bristol Employment Tribunal has published its judgment in the case of the University of Bristol’s termination of Prof. David Miller.

David Miller, a disgraced academic obsessed with anti-Jewish conspiracy theories, was fired by the University of Bristol in 2021 following a Jewish communal outcry and one month after Campaign Against Antisemitism commenced a lawsuit on behalf of students against the institution.

Prof. Miller has a long record of inflammatory statements about the Jewish community. He now regularly appears on the Iranian state propaganda channel, Press TV.

Prof. Miller later sued the University, and the Bristol Employment Tribunal has now handed down its judgment.

Until this case, the exact reasons for Prof. Miller’s sacking by the University of Bristol were kept from the public. It is now clear that, despite its adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism, Bristol’s failure to recognise that Prof. Miller’s comments constituted antisemitism, as well as its failure to consider some of his most egregious comments, opened the way for this judgment.

But even so, the tribunal found that Prof. Miller’s misconduct was “extraordinary and ill-judged” and deserving of disciplinary action, albeit that it did not warrant dismissal. He was found to be “culpable and blameworthy”, and, if he had been fired for the right reasons, the result at the tribunal may have been different.

Importantly, the tribunal drastically slashed Prof. Miller’s compensation, including due to his behaviour since being dismissed, which the tribunal found led to a ‘realistic chance that the claimant would have been dismissed’ anyway.

Campaign Against Antisemitism is deeply concerned by the way in which the University of Bristol has handled this matter over the course of years. We hope and expect that Bristol will appeal this decision. We are considering the matter with our lawyers.

To understand better what this judgment does and does not mean, watch this explainer here.

In the wake of the judgment, Kemi Badenoch, the Trade Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities, told the House of Commons: “It is important to underline that this ruling does not change the fact that, while academics have the right to express views, they cannot behave in a way that amounts to harassment of Jewish students. Disguising this as discourse about Israel would be no more lawful than any other form of antisemitism.”

British universities cannot become places where students or academics attempt to intimidate Jews and drive them off campus. We will continue to do whatever it takes to stop that from happening and hold the thugs accountable.

If you are a student, academic, member of staff or chaplain at a university — or you know somebody who is and needs assistance — please contact us at [email protected].

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In rebuke to anti-Israel marchers, Home Secretary proposes criminalising desecration of war memorials and taking pyrotechnics to protests

Today, James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, has announced several proposed amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill, in a clear and targeted rebuke to anti-Israel marchers deliberately causing disruption in London and outraging the public over behaviour at war memorials and launching fireworks at police.

Mr Cleverly has proposed the following changes to the Criminal Justice Bill:

  • Creating a new offence of desecrating a war memorial punishable by up to three months’ imprisonment and a fine of up to £1,000;
  • Creating a new offence which would make it illegal for someone to have a pyrotechnic article in their possession during a procession or assembly. Offenders could receive a fine of up to £1,000;
  • Providing the police with new powers to arrest protesters wearing face coverings to conceal their identity. Offenders could receive a fine of up to £1,000 and a month in prison;
  • Modifying the reasonable excuse defence that is currently available concerning certain public order offences to prevent a minority of protesters from deliberately causing serious disruption while exploiting defences relating to the right to protest. 

Our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit has for months observed protesters causing severe disruption to the public during their weekly anti-Israel demonstrations, including launching fireworks at police officers; desecrating war memorials; and preventing members of the public from travelling.

A further effect of these weekly protests is that a staggering 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid travelling to a city centre if a major anti-Israel demonstration was taking place there. Our urban centres have become no-go zones for Jews.

In December, Campaign Against Antisemitism gave evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee regarding the policing of protests. During the hearing, Chief Executive Gideon Falter pointed out that there is no freedom to intimidate others, glorify terrorism or commit acts of hatred under the law, and contrasted how police at the March Against Antisemitism in November were there to protect marchers from criminality, whereas at the weekly anti-Israel marches they are there to protect the public from criminals among the marchers.

James Cleverly, the Home Secretary, said: “Recent protests have seen a small minority dedicated to causing damage and intimidating the law-abiding majority. The right to protest is paramount in our county, but taking flares to marches to cause damage and disruption is not protest, it is dangerous. That is why we are giving police the powers to prevent any of this criminality on our streets.”

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Public Order, Chief Constable BJ Harrington, said: “We welcome the proposal to create new offences relating to war memorials and flares, as well as making it clear that covering your face at a protest to conceal identity is not acceptable.

“These changes are in-line with conversations that we have had with the Home Office to ensure that we have the powers that we need to get balance right between the rights of those who wish to protest, and those impacted by them.

“Thankfully, the use of flares and pyrotechnics at public order events is rare, but they are still extremely dangerous. Safety is our number one concern when policing these events, and the effective banning of these items during protests can only help in our mission to ensure that they take place without anyone coming to any harm.

“As with all policing powers, these new powers will be used when appropriate, proportionate, and necessary to achieve policing objectives. Policing is not anti-protest, but there is a difference between protest and criminal activism, and we are committed to responding quickly and effectively to activists who deliberately disrupt people’s lives with reckless and criminal acts.”

Andy Marsch, Chief Constable at the College of Policing, said: “I welcome the new offences this legislation will provide the officers who are policing protests and working hard, in complex environments, to keep people safe.

“The safety of both those protesting and others nearby trying to go about their business is the top priority and our training and guidance focuses on balancing the rights of those protesting with the rights of those affected. The new legislation is now clear that protest is not an excuse for serious disruption.

“As with previous changes the College of Policing will work quickly to provide practical advice, training and support for policing to utilise these new powers.”

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “For months now, we have been asking for tougher restrictions to be placed on these protests, which have made our urban centres no-go zones for Jews. While the police have failed the Jewish community and law-abiding Londoners, the Government, to its credit, is listening. These new laws will help address the mob mentality that we have observed in these protests, including the use of fireworks against police officers, desecration of war memorials and severe disruption to travel. There is no justification for such scenes, and now, there will be no legal defence. The people of this country expect the lawlessness on our streets to be brought firmly under control, and with these changes there are now even fewer excuses for police inaction.”

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CAA reacts to judgment of Employment Tribunal in David Miller case

Today, the Bristol Employment Tribunal has published its judgment in the case of the University of Bristol’s termination of Prof. David Miller.

David Miller, an academic obsessed with anti-Jewish conspiracy theories, was fired by the University of Bristol in 2021 one month after Campaign Against Antisemitism commenced a lawsuit on behalf of students against the institution.

Prof. Miller later sued the University, and the Bristol Employment Tribunal has today handed down its judgment.

Our lawsuit related to Prof. Miller’s speech on a Zoom webinar in which he said that the “Zionist Movement” is “the enemy” that must be engaged, that it is “the enemy of world peace,” and that those associated with Zionism, including Jewish students on Bristol campus, “must be directly targeted”.

Taken together, the implication of Prof. Miller’s remarks is that all decent people who support “world peace” should view Bristol Jewish Society and the Union of Jewish Students, and Jewish people, including those who identify with those bodies, and the vast majority of Jewish students as an “enemy” that must be “directly targeted”.

He also said that interfaith work between Jewish and Muslim groups is “a trojan horse for normalising Zionism in the Muslim community”. He also claimed that Jewish students, by virtue of being Zionist, “encourage Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism”.

Prof. Miller has a long record of inflammatory statements about the Jewish community.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Until this case, the exact reasons for Prof. David Miller’s sacking by the University of Bristol were kept from the public. It is now clear that, despite its adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism, Bristol’s failure to recognise that Prof. Miller’s comments constituted antisemitism, as well as its failure to consider some of his most egregious comments, opened the way for today’s judgment. But even so, the tribunal found that Prof. Miller’s misconduct was ‘extraordinary and ill-judged’ and deserving of disciplinary action, albeit that it did not warrant dismissal. He was found to be ‘culpable and blameworthy’, and, if he had been fired for the right reasons, the result today may have been different.

“Importantly, the tribunal drastically slashed Prof. Miller’s compensation , including due to his behaviour since being dismissed, which the tribunal found led to a ‘realistic chance that the claimant would have been dismissed’ anyway.

“We are deeply concerned by the way in which the University of Bristol has handled this matter over the course of years. We hope and expect that Bristol will appeal this decision. We are considering the matter with our lawyers.”


If any students are concerned about antisemitism on campus or need assistance, they can call us on 0330 822 0321, or e-mail [email protected]. 

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Enough, it turns out, is not in fact enough

After weeks of resisting calls to impose restrictions on the weekly anti-Israel marches coursing through London, this week the Metropolitan Police Service finally agreed that enough is enough, and ordered protesters not to pass through Whitehall.

Then, under pressure, the Met reversed its decision, deciding that enough is not, in fact, enough, and that the protesters could march down Whitehall after all.

So, among the other rhetoric and signage, a flag, popular with Islamists, once again passed through the UK’s seat of government.

This is a humiliation for the Met and its Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, and serves as a reminder to the rest of us just how far our top police officers are willing to go to appease the mob.

To understand better the powers available to the Commissioner of the Met, the Mayor of London and the Home Secretary, watch this video here.

For one MP, enough is enough

The news this week that a senior MP and Government Minister is stepping down out of fear marks a dark time for democracy and the rule of law in Britain.

While the motivation behind the recent arson attack on Mike Freer’s constituency office is not yet clear, what is known is that the MP, who represents one of the country’s largest Jewish communities, has long been violently targeted by Islamist radicals and other extremists over his views on matters of Jewish interest, so much so that he has now announced his retirement, observing that “there is an underlying antisemitic part of the attacks.”

Regardless of political views, it should be deeply alarming to all people who care about our democracy that such fears are not only valid but can reach the point of driving elected MPs like Mr Freer out of public service.

We wish to thank Mr Freer for his longstanding and continuing support for the Jewish community, the fight against antisemitism, and Campaign Against Antisemitism, of which he has served as an Honorary Patron.

Alleged knife attack in Golders Green

Mike Freer’s announcement came just days after an alleged knife attack in his constituency.

On Monday, brave staff members of a kosher supermarket in Golders Green defended themselves against a man said to be wielding a knife in an alleged antisemitic incident.

We spoke with a member of staff involved, who told us that the suspect – appearing from footage to be a male dressed in a grey hoodie and grey tracksuit bottoms – entered the shop demanding to know the staff’s feelings on what was happening “in Palestine”.

One staff member refused to engage, explaining that he did not wish to discuss politics. He and another staff member then escorted the suspect out of the shop.

The suspect, shortly after, allegedly attempted to grab at one of the staff members’ neck. Defending himself with Krav Maga moves he remembered learning as a youth, the staff member tried to restrain him before hearing people around him yell “knife, knife”.

At this point, the staff member quickly backed away, and the suspect began moving towards him.

Thinking quickly, he grabbed a nearby shopping trolley, pushing it into the body of the suspect in order to create distance.

The staff member told us that he retreated into the shop, where the suspect then followed, before leaving and making his way across the road into a building.

He is alleged to have then left that building approximately five minutes later in a change of clothes, apparently wearing traditional Muslim garb, and began walking up the road.

One of the staff members then ran ahead of him so that he could view his face to confirm that this was the same man from minutes earlier.

Shortly thereafter, the suspect was apprehended by Shomrim North West London and the Metropolitan Police, and arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, criminal damage and racially-aggravated affray.

He was then taken into custody, and has been charged.

We are continuing to support the victims and follow the matter closely.

Roger Waters dropped by record label following CAA exposé

It has been revealed that the music rights company BMG dropped the controversial rockstar Roger Waters shortly after we published our exposé on the musician, where we revealed that Mr Waters wanted to put “Dirty k***” on an inflatable pig and impersonated a Holocaust victim, among other allegations.

The decision, taken by BMG in the closing months of last year, was not accompanied by an explanation at the time.

The company, which is based in Germany, signed a publishing agreement with Mr Waters in 2016 and was scheduled to release a newly recorded version of Pink Floyd’s 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon last year, but withdrew and the re-recording was instead released by the UK-based record label Cooking Vinyl.

The split is reported to be unusual for a major publishing deal, and comes as Mr Waters’ reputation is in tatters following the release of our documentary. You can watch the film here.

The full documentary can be viewed at antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

Vincent Reynouard to be extradited to France after action by CAA

Vincent Reynouard, a French Holocaust-denier, will be extradited from the UK after his application for leave to appeal was rejected.

Mr Reynouard, 54, a convicted Holocaust-denier, was awaiting a decision on his appeal after a court in Scotland granted an extradition request from France. Mr Reynouard was a fugitive in the UK who was caught following appeals from Campaign Against Antisemitism and our Honorary Patron, Lord Austin.

Mr Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust-denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement.

We are delighted that those efforts have borne fruit, with the court granting the request to extradite Mr Reynouard and refusing his application for permission to appeal, so that he can face justice in France. This is not only the right judgement for the Jewish community, but also for the justice system. The UK cannot become a haven for those seeking to evade justice elsewhere. For antisemites in particular, the message is clear: you are not welcome in Britain.

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Music label BMG drops Roger Waters following CAA exposé and controversial comments

Germany-based music rights company BMG has reportedly ended its relationship with the former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters. The move comes shortly after an exposé published by Campaign Against Antisemitism went viral in the autumn.

It is understood that the contract between BMG and Mr Waters was originally signed in 2016. The musician was due to re-record and release a newer version of Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon in 2023. The contract, however, was cancelled and Mr Waters subsequently released the album with Cooking Vinyl, a UK-based label.

According to Mr Waters, the contract was cancelled due to alleged ‘pro-Israel pressures’ on BMG’s parent company, Bertelsmann. 

In September last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism published The Dark Side of Roger Waters, a documentary which reveals disturbing e-mails that were gathered during an investigation into allegations of antisemitism against the rockstar, as well as interviews with his former associates. 

Mr Waters’ views on Jews have long been of concern to the Jewish community, with a number of well-documented controversies.

Mr Waters has always insisted that he is not an antisemite, but our investigation revealed e-mails from Mr Waters in which he proposed writing “Dirty k***” on the inflatable pig habitually floated above his concerts and suggested “bombing” audiences with confetti in the shape of swastikas, Stars of David, dollar signs and other symbols.

The documentary also includes interviews with Norbert Statchel, Mr Waters’ former saxophonist, and legendary music producer Bob Ezrin, who produced The Wall, as well as hits for talent from U2 to Kiss to Taylor Swift.

Among various incidents, Mr Stachel says that Mr Waters lost his temper over vegetarian food at a restaurant and demanded that waiters “Take away the Jew food”, that Mr Waters mocked Mr Stachel’s grandmother who was murdered in the Holocaust, and that a colleague warned him not to react if he wanted to keep his job.

Mr Ezrin recounts an incident in which Mr Waters sung him an impromptu ditty about then agent Bryan Morrison, the last couplet of which ended with words to the effect of “Cos Morri is a f***ing Jew”.

Following the initial release of the documentary, we heard from Marc Brickman, a lighting director and former associate of Mr Waters. 

We interviewed Mr Brickman, in which explained the conversations around the “dirty k*ke” e-mail and how he demanded to know why, if the purpose was to confront hateful phrases, it was only a racist epithet that targets Jews that was due to be included on the pig and no other offensive terms.

In the interview, he also reveals that the reason that the swastika confetti idea never materialised was only because nobody would make it, and that he was called out by Mr Waters for expressing his reservations.

These incidents and others that he recounts – including the proposed inclusion of an image of “a menacing Hasidic Jewish boy” alongside “an angelic Palestinian girl” – drew Mr Brickman to the conclusion that Mr Waters’ “definition of antisemitism is totally different than anyone else’s”.

Mr Waters was due to perform at the London Palladium on 8th and 9th October last year. Leading up to the performances, we orchestrated a number of activities to protest these performances, including delivering thousands of letters from members of the public to the theatre, parking an advertisement outside the theatre to raise awareness of Mr Waters’ record, driving a van around London drawing attention to the controversy, and picketing the venue.

The documentary’s investigation was led by John Ware, the BBC Panorama veteran and one of the UK’s foremost television investigative journalists, who has worked on exposés whose focus has ranged from IRA terrorism to antisemitism under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party.

The full documentary, and the follow-up film, can be viewed at antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

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What Holocaust Memorial Day Is, And What It Is Not

Around the world, International Holocaust Memorial Day was marked with dignity and respect. But not everywhere.

Some, like Labour MP Kate Osamor, used the occasion to imply in a message to constituents that what is happening in Gaza is comparable to the Holocaust and, by strong implication, that Israel acts like the Nazis, a breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism.

Her apology rang hollow, as if she was unaware of the meaning of her own remarks. Clearly, her understanding of antisemitism is deficient and not in accordance with that of her Party, which has adopted the Definition.

We have called on the Labour Party to suspend her, and she must be required to undertake antisemitism training by a reputable provider.

Meanwhile, at anti-Israel demonstrations in the UK, protesters desecrated the solemnity of the day, not only by equating Israel to Nazis as well, but also in providing a masterclass in how a phenomenon like Holocaust-denial begins, as they cast doubt on, played down or outright denied the Hamas atrocities of 7th October.

Leicester Square attack

Not only are the police failing to police the weekly anti-Israel demonstrations adequately, but they are also failing individual Jews under attack.

Last weekend, in the early hours of the morning, three Jews were physically assaulted by ten men in Leicester Square, resulting in serious injuries. Incredibly, not a single bystanders assisted.

Although the victims called the police while the attack was underway, and notwithstanding that it was taking place in the heart of London, police officers only showed up after half an hour, by which time the perpetrators had fled the scene.

The Metropolitan Police must identify and arrest the attackers. The victims are also calling on the police to apologise for failing them when they needed them most.

Watch the victims speak out here.

“Generation hate”: frightening new polling published

Campaign Against Antisemitism commissioned King’s College London to survey British adults’ attitudes towards Jews, using YouGov.

The polling has revealed worrying levels of anti-Jewish prejudice among the British public, with particularly frightening rates among young people aged between 18 and 24.

Published in the week of Holocaust Memorial Day, the polling raises serious questions about whether lessons about the antisemitism that motivated the Nazis have really been learned by British young adults.

  • A quarter of British people over 64 believe that Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews. Among 18-24 year olds, it is over a third.
  • Almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel can get away with anything because its supporters control the media. Among 18-24 year olds, it is more than a quarter.
  • Compared to the general population (one in twenty), double the proportion of 18-24s (almost one in ten) do not believe that Jewish people are just as loyal to Britain as other British people.
  • Compared to the general population, more than double the proportion of 18-24 year olds are not as open to having Jewish friends as they are to having friends from other sections of British society.
  • While almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel and its supporters are a bad influence on our democracy, that rises to over one quarter of 18-24 year olds.
  • 7% of Britons do not believe that Israel is right to defend itself against those who want to destroy it. That figure doubles to 14% of 18-24 year olds.
  • 14% of British people are not comfortable spending time with people who openly support Israel. Among 18-24 year olds, that figure rises to 21% – more than one fifth of the young population.
  • More than one in ten young Britons do not believe that Israel has a right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people.
  • More than one in ten 18-24 year olds believe that Jewish people talk about the Holocaust just to further their political agenda.

Other findings from the survey:

  • More than one in ten British people believe that Jewish people chase money more than other people do.
  • Only three quarters of British people believe that Jewish people can be trusted just as much as other British people in business.
  • More than one in ten Britons believe that, compared to other groups, Jewish people have too much power in the media.

The rhetoric that we are seeing online, on television and on our streets is radicalising the British public, but it is the rates of antisemitism that we have discovered among 18-24 year olds that are most frightening. This is generation hate.

On the occasion of Holocaust Memorial Day, our country needs an urgent rethink about how we teach about antisemitism. If young people cannot see the relationship between the genocidal antisemitism of the Nazis and the genocidal antisemitism of Hamas, and, as a society, we refuse to talk about how our attitudes towards Israel and its supporters are influenced by antisemitic prejudice, then we are clearly not talking about antisemitism properly.

Our education is failing the next generation, and our society is suffering as a result. It is British Jews who are paying the price.

The YouGov survey was designed and analysed by experts at KCL on behalf of Campaign Against Antisemitism. Total sample size was 2,084 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 8th-11th December 2023 by YouGov plc. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+). The full results, background information and methodology can be found here.

This weekend saw the memory of the Holocaust appropriated to abuse the Jewish community. What would the British soldiers who liberated the Nazi death camps make of Britain today?

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Success for CAA as Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard loses extradition appeal

Vincent Reynouard, a French Holocaust-denier, will be extradited from the UK after his application for leave to appeal was rejected on Friday.

Mr Reynouard, 54, a convicted Holocaust-denier, was awaiting a decision from the court on the appeal after a court in Scotland granted an extradition request from France. Mr Reynouard was a fugitive in the UK who was caught following appeals from Campaign Against Antisemitism.

His extradition hearing followed several preliminary hearings and false starts to allow time for the content of videos, which were alleged to have been made by Mr Reynouard, to be translated into English, as well as other delays due to ill health on his legal team.

Mr Reynouard continued to post updates on his far-right blog, Sans Concession, despite being incarcerated as he awaited his extradition hearing.

The extradition request was granted after the court considered that the postings for which Mr Reynouard was found guilty in France would also be crimes in the UK under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003.

In a different case in 2018, Campaign Against Antisemitism secured a legal precedent that Holocaust-denial is “grossly offensive” and therefore illegal when used as a means by which to hound Jews. When it is delivered via a medium of communication, it can fall within the purview of the Communications Act. That English precedent has effectively been replicated in Scottish law in this case now as well.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced  to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

In November 2022, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice.

Scottish police arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused to consent to his extradition to France.

Early last year, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where he was served with a second arrest warrant, as the French authorities had allegedly made an error in their application for the initial arrest warrant. Paul Dunne, Mr Reynouard’s lawyer, said of Mr Reynouard: “He does not consent to his extradition to France.”

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings. It is possible that his time in prison in the UK may reduce the length of his custodial sentence in France.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust-denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement.

“We are delighted that those efforts have borne fruit, with the court granting the request to extradite Mr Reynouard, and refusing his application for permission to appeal, so that he can face justice in France. This is not only the right judgement for the Jewish community, but also for the justice system. The UK cannot become a haven for those seeking to evade justice elsewhere. For antisemites in particular, the message is clear: you are not welcome in Britain. Good riddance, Mr Reynouard.”

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Hundred Handers far-right leader found guilty of racial hatred

The leader of a far-right group behind numerous stickering campaigns had been found guilty of racial hatred.

Sam Melia, 34, of Pudsey in West Yorkshire, was convicted at Leeds Crown Court of intending to stir up racial hatred through the distribution of the stickers and encouraging racially aggravated criminal damage.

Mr Melia, a professional sign-maker, was unmasked in 2020 as the leader of Hundred Handers, an anonymous network of activists who have carried out far-right stickering campaigns across the country and worldwide.

The stickers, which feature far-right slogans and imagery and antisemitic tropes, were seen in cities in Britain, Europe, the United States and Australia. 

It was discovered that Mr Melia set up a Telegram group, which had over 3,500 subscribers, for Hundred Handers, where members could download stickers for printing.

The stickers featured text such as “there is a war on whites,” “they seek conquest, not asylum” and “intolerance is a virtue” alongside the group’s logo.

Police arrested Mr Melia in Farsley, Leeds in April 2021. Upon his arrest, stickers bearing nationalist text were discovered in his wallet.

At his home, police found a poster of Adolf Hitler, an emblem of an eagle with a swastika and a copy of a book by Sir Oswald Mosley, who was the founder of the British Union of Fascists. 

Police also discovered digital archives of over 200 Hundred Handers stickers and evidence of the stickers being posted around the UK. They also found evidence that he encouraged members of the Telegram group to place stickers in public areas and proof that he carried out similar activities.

Mr Melia was also found to have told others to use anonymous e-mail providers and a VPN for any communication relating to Hundred Handers’ activities. 

After police searched his home, the defendant and his wife discussed the raid online, which attracted almost 3,000 viewers and raised nearly £1,500 in one hour. 

During the hearing, Mr Melia argued that, while his stickers could be offensive to some, any offence caused would be a “subjective reaction”.

When Mr Melia raised the issue of free speech, prosecutor Tom Storey dismissed the notion and stated that the case against the defendant was not to “punish someone for their political views.”

Mr Storey reminded the court that the charges brought against Mr Melia were based on his actions stirring up racial hatred.

In court, Mr Melia was joined by his wife, Laura Tyrie, who also goes by “Laura Towler” and is reportedly the Deputy Leader of Patriotic Alternative (PA). Ms Tyrie, who was in the public gallery, sat with Mark Collett, the leader of PA.

Mr Melia is also a regional organiser for PA, a UK-based group headed by the former leader of the youth wing of the BNP, Mr Collett. Mr Collett is reported to have dabbled in Holocaust denial, is regularly heard as a guest on the radio show of the former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard, David Duke, and has described the Holocaust as “an instrument of white guilt”.

PA is known for its efforts to recruit youth to its white nationalist ideology. Previously, the far-right group published an online “alternative” homeschool curriculum condemned as “poison” and “hateful” and attempted to recruit children as young as twelve through live-streaming events on YouTube, according to The Times.

Mr Melia is due to be sentenced in March later this year. 

This is the second conviction of a PA member. Last year, Kristofer Thomas Kearney, who said that Adolf Hitler did “nothing wrong” was jailed.

Nick Price, head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “Melia was perfectly aware that the stickers he published on his Telegram channel were being downloaded and then stuck up in public places around the country. He also knew full well the impact these racially inflammatory stickers were having, and by attempting to remain anonymous, sought to protect himself and others from investigation.

“He was very deliberate in the manner he wanted to spread his messages of racial hatred, and online messages recovered made it clear that he knew these stickers were being displayed in public and causing damage to public property. It is illegal to publish such material intending to stir up racial hatred towards others, and the CPS will not hesitate to bring prosecutions against those who break the law in this way.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

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“Generation hate”: new polling commissioned by CAA shows frightening rates of antisemitism among young people

Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) commissioned King’s College London to survey British adults’ attitudes towards Jews, using YouGov.

The polling has revealed worrying levels of anti-Jewish prejudice among the British public, with particularly frightening rates among young people aged between 18 and 24.

Coming on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day, the polling raises serious questions about whether lessons about the antisemitism that motivated the Nazis have really been learned by British young adults.

  • A quarter of British people over 64 believe that Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews. Among 18-24 year olds, it is over a third.
  • Almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel can get away with anything because its supporters control the media. Among 18-24 year olds, it is more than a quarter.
  • Compared to the general population (one in twenty), double the proportion of 18-24s (almost one in ten) do not believe that Jewish people are just as loyal to Britain as other British people.
  • Compared to the general population, more than double the proportion of 18-24 year olds are not as open to having Jewish friends as they are to having friends from other sections of British society.
  • While almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel and its supporters are a bad influence on our democracy, that rises to over one quarter of 18-24 year olds.
  • 7% of Britons do not believe that Israel is right to defend itself against those who want to destroy it. That figure doubles to 14% of 18-24 year olds.
  • 14% of British people are not comfortable spending time with people who openly support Israel. Among 18-24 year olds, that figure rises to 21% – more than one fifth of the young population.
  • More than one in ten young Britons do not believe that Israel has a right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people.
  • More than one in ten 18-24 year olds believe that Jewish people talk about the Holocaust just to further their political agenda.

Other findings from the survey:

  • More than one in ten British people believe that Jewish people chase money more than other people do.
  • Only three quarters of British people believe that Jewish people can be trusted just as much as other British people in business.
  • More than one in ten Britons believe that, compared to other groups, Jewish people have too much power in the media.

The YouGov survey was designed and analysed by experts at KCL on behalf of CAA.

Total sample size was 2,084 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 8th-11th December 2023 by YouGov plc. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “The rhetoric that we are seeing online, on television and on our streets is radicalising the British public, but it is the rates of antisemitism that we have discovered among 18-24 year olds that are most frightening. This is generation hate.

“On the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day, our country needs an urgent rethink about how we teach about antisemitism. If young people cannot see the relationship between the genocidal antisemitism of the Nazis and the genocidal antisemitism of Hamas, and, worse still, refuse to talk about how our attitudes towards Israel and its supporters are influenced by antisemitic prejudice, then we are clearly not talking about antisemitism properly.

“Our education is failing the next generation, and our society is suffering as a result. It is British Jews who are paying the price.”

Full results

Jewish people can be trusted just as much as other British people in business.

  • Strongly agree 42
  • Agree 33
  • Neither agree nor disagree 21
  • Disagree 3
  • Strongly disagree 2
  • TOTAL AGREE 75
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 5

Only three quarters of British people believe that Jewish people can be trusted just as much as other British people in business.

Jewish people are just as loyal to Britain as other British people.    

  • Strongly agree 34
  • Agree 32
  • Neither agree nor disagree 29
  • Disagree 3
  • Strongly disagree 2
  • TOTAL AGREE 66
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 5 (rises to 9% among young people, i.e. 18-24)

Compared to the general population (one in twenty), double the proportion of 18-24s (almost one in ten) do not believe that Jewish people are just as loyal to Britain as other British people.

I am just as open to having Jewish friends as I am to having friends from other sections of British society.    

  • Strongly agree 56
  • Agree 28
  • Neither agree nor disagree 13
  • Disagree 1
  • Strongly disagree 1
  • TOTAL AGREE 84
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 2 (rises to 5% among young people)

Compared to the general population (2%), more than double the proportion of 18-24 year olds (5%) are not as open to having Jewish friends as they are to having friends from other sections of British society.

Compared to other groups, Jewish people have too much power in the media.

  • Strongly agree 4
  • Agree 8
  • Neither agree nor disagree 42
  • Disagree 24
  • Strongly disagree 22
  • TOTAL AGREE 12 (rises to 16% among young people)
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 46

More than one in ten Britons believe that, compared to other groups, Jewish people have too much power in the media.

Jewish people talk about the Holocaust just to further their political agenda.

  • Strongly agree 2
  • Agree 6
  • Neither agree nor disagree 30
  • Disagree 29
  • Strongly disagree 33
  • TOTAL AGREE 8 (rises to 11% among young people)
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 62

More than one in ten 18-24 year olds believe that Jewish people talk about the Holocaust just to further their political agenda.

Jewish people chase money more than other people do.    

  • Strongly agree 3
  • Agree 8
  • Neither agree nor disagree 43
  • Disagree 21
  • Strongly disagree 25
  • TOTAL AGREE 11
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 46

More than one in ten British people believe that Jewish people chase money more than other people do.

I am comfortable spending time with people who openly support Israel    

  • Strongly agree 14
  • Agree 24
  • Neither agree nor disagree 48
  • Disagree 9
  • Strongly disagree 5
  • TOTAL AGREE 38
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 14 (rises to 21% among young people)

14% of British people are not comfortable spending time with people who openly support Israel. Among 18-24 year olds, that figure rises to 21% – more than one fifth of the young population.

Israel has a right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people    

  • Strongly agree 21
  • Agree 35
  • Neither agree nor disagree 37
  • Disagree 4
  • Strongly disagree 3
  • TOTAL AGREE 56
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 7 (rises to 11% among young people)

More than one in ten young Britons do not believe that Israel has a right to exist as a homeland for the Jewish people.

Israel is right to defend itself against those who want to destroy it    

  • Strongly agree 20
  • Agree 38
  • Neither agree nor disagree     34
  • Disagree 4
  • Strongly disagree 3
  • TOTAL AGREE 58
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 7 (rises to 14% among young people)

Seven percent of Britons, and fourteen percent of young Britons, do not believe that Israel is right to defend itself against those who want to destroy it.

Israel and its supporters are a bad influence on our democracy    

  • Strongly agree 7
  • Agree 10
  • Neither agree nor disagree 51
  • Disagree 21
  • Strongly disagree 12
  • TOTAL AGREE 17 (rises to 28% among young people)
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 33

Over one quarter of young people believe that Israel and its supporters are a bad influence on our democracy, compared to almost one fifth of the wider British public.

Israel can get away with anything because its supporters control the media    

  • Strongly agree 6
  • Agree 12
  • Neither agree nor disagree 45
  • Disagree 23
  • Strongly disagree 15
  • TOTAL AGREE 18 (rises to 26% among young people)
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 38

Almost one fifth of the British public believes that Israel can get away with anything because its supporters control the media. Among young people, it is more than a quarter.

Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews    

  • Strongly agree 12
  • Agree 18
  • Neither agree nor disagree 43
  • Disagree 15
  • Strongly disagree 12
  • TOTAL AGREE 30 (rises to 34% of young people)
  • TOTAL DISAGREE 27

A quarter of British people over 64 believe that Israel treats the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews. Among 18-24 year olds, it is over a third.

Background and Methodology

The twelve statements – which include six relating to Judeophobic antisemitism and six relating to anti-Zionist antisemitism – together comprise the Generalised Antisemitism Scale.

The Generalised Antisemitism Scale was devised by Dr Daniel Allington of King’s College London, Dr David Hirsh of Goldsmiths, and Dr Louise Katz (then) of the University of Derby. The research behind the Generalised Antisemitism Scale has been peer reviewed.

In particular, in developing the Generalised Antisemitism Scale, they were guided by the International Definition of Antisemitism, which Campaign Against Antisemitism, together with other Jewish communal institutions from around the world, has long campaigned to be widely adopted. Further background on the Generalised Antisemitism Scale can be found here.

Our survey of British adults were conducted by YouGov Plc. The surveys were administered online to members of YouGov’s panel of over 1,000,000 British adults who have agreed to take part in surveys. E-mails were sent to adult panellists who fulfilled the requirements of the sample, inviting them to take part in the surveys, and providing a link to the survey. YouGov normally achieves a response rate of between 35% and 50% to surveys however this does vary depending on the subject matter, complexity and length of the questionnaire.

Total sample size was 2,084 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 8th-11th December 2023 by YouGov plc. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

YouGov ensured that there were no duplicate responses and that all respondents were adults living in Great Britain.

The responding sample was weighted according to age and gender, social grade, political attention level, education, and region, in addition to past voting behaviour, to provide a representative reporting sample. The profile is derived from the Census as well as the mid-year population estimates and Annual Population Survey published by the Office for National Statistics.

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How do we remember the Holocaust?

This week we approach Holocaust Memorial Day, which marks the Allied liberation of Auschwitz and commemorates the six million Jewish men, women and children murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators. But how should we remember the Holocaust – the event for which the term “genocide” was coined?

From graffiti in Glasgow to a library in Tower Hamlets, we are all seeing comparisons of Israel to Nazis everywhere, in a clear breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. At yesterday’s weekly anti-Israel protest, leaflets were distributed in London purporting to explain the “Zionist Holocaust, backed by the West, aping Hitler.” Across the channel in the Hague, the Jewish state is being accused of implementing a genocide.

The brutality of the antisemitic genocidal terror group Hamas has quickly been forgotten, and reminders of its barbarism – such as pictures of baby Kfir, who this past week turned one year old in Hamas’s clutches – are torn from walls.

Evidently, the enemies of the Jewish people view the Holocaust and its legacy very differently from the rest of us. This week will be an opportunity to ask ourselves why we continue to remember the Holocaust, and what lessons it is supposed to teach.

If you are organising or attending a Holocaust Memorial Day event, make sure that the right lessons are being taught. If they are not, please let us know.

Manchester marches against antisemitism

Weekly anti-Israel rallies featuring antisemitic rhetoric and genocidal chanting have made our urban centres no-go zones for Jews. It is intolerable.

Today, Campaign Against Antisemitism was proud to join Jews and allies in Manchester to march against antisemitism!

“Filthy animals and Zionist control”

Our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit, together with our communications team, went out to a recent anti-Israel rally and asked protesters why they were demonstrating.

​Their repugnant responses were so voluminous that we couldn’t fit them all into one video. Here is Part One:

You can also watch Part Two and Part Three.

Are the police doing enough?

Sir Mark Rowley, the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, appeared on LBC to defend policing of the weekly anti-Israel protests. Challenged by a caller, he claimed: “We’re determined to do everything we can do within the law to create the frameworks around protest to make sure that we balance the rights of protesters with not having the centre of London as a place where people such as yourself are afraid to come into.”

Given that our polling shows that 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid travelling to a city centre if a major anti-Israel demonstration was taking place there, we question Sir Mark’s satisfaction that the right “balance” has been struck.

Pressed on whether his officers are being robust enough with demonstrators who hold antisemitic signs and presented with the claim that, when protestors shout the genocidal chant “From the River to the Sea”, his officers just stand and watch, he insisted: “That’s not true.”

​You can judge for yourself here.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has been at the forefront of holding the Met to account, and we will continue to do so in the weeks to come.

Proscription of Hizb ut-Tahrir

While the Met Police may not be listening, the Government showed that it is. This week, Home Secretary James Cleverly announced that the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir is to be proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000.

When we discovered that Hizb ut-Tahrir had appeared to praise the Hamas attack of 7th October, we wrote to the Met to prevent the group from holding its demonstrations on the streets of London. The Met took no action and the rallies went ahead, in which there were calls for the armies of Muhammed to wage Jihad. Still, the Met refused to take action, making excuses to defend this rhetoric instead.

We therefore wrote to the Home Secretary calling for the controversial Islamist group to be proscribed.

​We commend the Home Secretary for this significant announcement. for which we have called over the past few weeks and with which, according to our polling, 90% of British Jews agree.

It is absolutely the right step, and shows that the Government is listening. The Met should take note.

This week, as we approach Holocaust Memorial Day, we must ensure that the right lessons are being learned. We owe it to the past, and we owe it to the present and the future.

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Home Secretary announces Hizb ut-Tahrir to be proscribed

The Home Secretary, James Cleverly, has announced that the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir is to be proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000, following calls to do so by Campaign Against Antisemitism.

Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Islamist party which is actively operating in over 40 countries worldwide. It has been banned in a number of countries and is particularly active in the UK.

There have previously been considerations as to whether Hizb ut-Tahrir should be proscribed. Concerns were raised on those occasions in light of the fact that Hizb ut-Tahrir presents itself as a non-violent party (although members have been linked to violent acts in multiple countries).

On 17th October 2023 Hizb ut-Tahrir published on its website a call to the public to attend a national demonstration on 21st October 2023 at both the Egyptian Embassy and the Turkish Embassy.

The call-to-demonstrate post specified that the demonstrations were “in light of the heroic feats carried out by the heroic Mujahideen in the Blessed Land – Palestine under the slogan Al-Aqsa Flood against the usurping Jewish entity…” a reference to the Hamas attack of 7th October.

The post went on to clarify that the demonstration was organised “to call on the Muslim armies to break the shackles that the Ruwaibidah rulers have placed on them in their barracks and move immediately to trample the traitorous rulers and give victory to the Mujahideen in the Blessed Land – Palestine and liberate the blessed Masjid Al-Aqsa from the clutches of the occupying Jews”.

These published statements were explicit calls for serious violence.

Although Campaign Against Antisemitism immediately brought this information to the attention of the Metropolitan Police Service, no action was taken and the demonstrations proceeded. In view of this failure by the Met to act, we wrote to the then-Home Secretary calling for a proscription.

We also polled the Jewish community, 90% of which believes that the British Government should proscribe Hizb ut-Tahrir.

We are pleased that the Government has listened and is proscribing the organisation.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “When we discovered that Hizb ut-Tahrir had appeared to praise the Hamas attack of 7th October, we wrote to the Metropolitan Police Service to prevent the group from holding its demonstrations on the streets of London. The Met took no action and the rallies went ahead, in which there were calls for the armies of Muhammed to wage Jihad. Still, the Met refused to take action, making excuses to defend this rhetoric instead.

“We therefore wrote to the Home Secretary calling for the controversial Islamist group to be proscribed. Our polling of the Jewish community showed overwhelming support for this policy change.

“We commend James Cleverly for this significant announcement. It is absolutely the right step, and shows that the Government is listening. The Met should take note.”

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New year, same old hate – and where is the Mayor of London?

It may be a new year, but sadly what we are seeing on our streets is still the same old hate.

Last week, there was an illegal anti-Israel protest, which our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit captured on film, and during the week there were genocidal calls outside the Houses of Parliament. Yesterday, there was another large protest, which our volunteers also monitored.

But even as these demonstrations take place week after week, the Mayor of London has failed to speak out and take action. Perhaps Sadiq Khan did not want to provoke the ire of antisemites, as the Mayor of Bristol did when he expressed solidarity with the victims of Hamas terror.

But Mr Khan is also London’s equivalent of a police and crime commissioner. He is the elected official in charge of policing in our capital city at a time when 90% of British Jews say that they are feeling intimidated and bullied into staying out of city centres, according to our representative polling of the Jewish community.

This weekend, Campaign Against Antisemitism called on the Mayor finally to speak out against the marches on our streets that regularly feature antisemitism, glorification of terrorism and incitement to intifada.

The Mayor is not above criticism. After all, why is it that it is okay to criticise the Mayor over, say, knife crime but not okay to criticise him over antisemitic hate crime? Why do some people seem to think Jewish Londoners do not have a right to expect solidarity and action from their city’s mayor at a time of record antisemitism?

There seems to be a cynical double standard, which we do not accept. We will continue to hold politicians and police chiefs to account, without fear or favour.

100 days in captivity

Today, British Jews have gathered at Trafalgar Square to mark 100 days since the brutal Hamas terror attack.

Contrary to the claims of antisemites, Zionism and a strong connection to Israel are core to the identity of most British Jews. Over the winter break, we published polling that shows that a near-unanimous 97% of British Jews feel personally connected to events happening in Israel, and eight in ten British Jews consider themselves to be a Zionist. Only six percent do not. That is why so many turned out today.

For 100 days, the hostages taken by Hamas have been held in captivity by the terrorist organisation, in unimaginable conditions.

Among them is Kfir Bibas, who turns one year old this month.

Campaign Against Antisemitism is proud to join the call of the Jewish community and its allies to Bring Them Home!

Parliament acts

This week has seen a variety of welcome developments in the House of Commons:

  • The Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill passed its third reading. Once it becomes law, it will ban public bodies from imposing their boycotts, divestment, or sanctions campaigns against foreign countries. Year after year, our polling has shown that an overwhelming majority of British Jews consider the tactics of the BDS campaign to be intimidatory.
  • MPs debated a proposal by Nickie Aiken MP relating to the contribution of British Jews to our country. Campaign Against Antisemitism provided a submission to all MPs in advance of the debate.
  • Andrew Percy MP raised the critical issue of antisemitism in schools. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak agreed that “there is no place for antisemitism or the glorification of terrorism in Britain, especially not in our classrooms.”

Our volunteers also met with MPs this week, and our Policy Unit continues to engage with parliamentarians and the Government on a regular basis as part of our policy advocacy.

Wiley performance cancelled

You may recall that, in 2020, the rapper Richard Cowie, known as Wiley, published antisemitic and potentially criminal posts on social media. Numerous platforms suspended his accounts in response to the scandal.

Campaign Against Antisemitism continues to seek criminal prosecution against Mr Cowie in relation to these posts, which he published from abroad.

In the meantime, we have made every effort to prevent his hate from being normalised. This week, for example, we wrote to a venue that was due to feature him in a gig. Following our correspondence, he has been dropped from the lineup.

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Are these peace marches? We want to hear from you

This past week, all eyes were on the Home Affairs Select Committee, where the organisers of the weekly anti-Israel marches were grilled by MPs and antisemitism experts gave evidence before parliamentarians.

Notwithstanding the evidence gathered week after week by our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit, the organisers of the marches, including leaders of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the Stop The War Coalition, insisted that these were peace marches, and that they not only “tolerate” the genocidal “From the River to the Sea” chant but actively chant it.

Are they really peace marches? Watch our video and decide for yourself.

After the organisers had their say, antisemitism experts had their turn answering the Committee’s questions.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Chief Executive, Gideon Falter, pointed out that there is no freedom to intimidate others, glorify terrorism or commit acts of hatred, and contrasted how police at the March Against Antisemitism were there to protect marchers from criminality, whereas at the anti-Israel marches they are there to protect the public from the criminals among the marchers.

This hearing was an opportunity to bring our polling results – your responses to our recent survey – to the attention of lawmakers. Thank you to the thousands of you who participated.

He also did not leave unchallenged Diane Abbott’s claim not to have seen any glorification of terrorism at these anti-Israel protests and her insistence that her Jewish constituents are unafraid to enter Central London during the demonstrations. (After we publicised her comments, members of the Stamford Hill Jewish community contacted us angrily to reject her assertions.)

Watch the exchange in the video.

Have you experienced or witnessed an antisemitic incident?

We are looking to collect filmed testimonials from the Jewish community to capture how British Jews are coping at a time of surging antisemitism.

Please contact us so that we can get in touch about arranging filming.

Solidarity during Chanukah

During Chanukah, it is traditional to display the Chanukah lamp at the window, in order to publicise the miracles that were bestowed on the Jews of antiquity who successfully overcame their oppressors.

This year, particularly after last week’s march, that feeling of defiance is stronger than it has been in a while, and we anticipate that many of the Jewish community’s friends and allies will be looking for ways to continue to show solidarity against antisemitism.

We have created an image of a Chanukah lamp which you can print and place in your window during the eight-day festival, which begins this Thursday evening. We have also included a version that can be coloured in, in case you have children who would like to get involved!

We would love you to send us pictures of images of your Chanukah lamp or the picture of the lamp in your window, which we can share on social media.

“Acheinu” – “Our Brothers”

Campaign Against Antisemitism, in conjunction with the Office of the Chief Rabbi, is delighted to present Jonny Turgel’s “Acheinu”, an anthem for the National Solidarity March Against Antisemitism that took place in Central London on Sunday 26th November 2023.

We were thrilled to have the Chief Rabbi among the speakers at the National Solidarity March Against Antisemitism and to have such an accomplished chazan in Jonny Turgel to express the feelings of the crowd that day.

We are honoured to have worked with him and the Office of the Chief Rabbi to create this music video to immortalise that most extraordinary day and to be able to present it to the Jewish community and our many friends.

Please share the video widely. May it bring light to us all in this particularly dark period for the Jewish people and our wonderful allies.

Wishing our Jewish supporters a Happy Chanukah!

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As we approach Chanukah, this is how we fight antisemitism

As the dust settles following the 105,000-strong March Against Antisemitism of last week, the contrast could not be clearer between us, seeking to uphold our right to walk the streets proudly as Jews and allies in safety, and those whose fight makes our city centres no-go zones for Jews on a weekly basis.

During this season, as we approach Chanukah, we are particularly attuned to the fight against antisemitism, and how we can wage it in twenty-first-century Britain in accordance with our values. Last Sunday, we showed the country and the world how we do it: peaceably, with dignity and in good humour. We showed British values at their best – by being proud Jews and allies.

We have now uploaded a picture gallery of the march, as well as a video of all of the speeches in full.

We were privileged to speak to many of you who attended to ask why you felt it was so important to participate and the impact that being there had on you.

The march was peaceful. The march was unthreatening. The march was different from all other marches that London has hosted in recent weeks.

The contrast could not be clearer between those who fight against antisemitism and those whose fight makes our cities no-go zones for Jews.

Solidarity during Chanukah

During Chanukah, it is traditional to display the Chanukah lamp at the window, in order to publicise the miracles that were bestowed on the Jews of antiquity who successfully overcame their oppressors.

This year, particularly after last week’s march, that feeling of defiance is stronger than it has been in a while, and we anticipate that many of the Jewish community’s friends and allies will be looking for ways to continue to show solidarity against antisemitism.

For those interested, we have created an image of a Chanukah lamp which you can print and place in your window ahead of the eight-day festival, which begins this Thursday evening. We have also included a version that can be coloured in, in case you have children who would like to get involved!

We would love you to send us pictures of images of your Chanukah lamp or the picture of the lamp in your window, which we can share on social media. You can e-mail or Direct Message us on social media at the handle @antisemitism.

A solemn commemoration

140,000, 75,000, 135,000, 5,000, 38,000, 265,000, 30,000, 105,000, 63,000.

These are estimates of the number of Jews living, respectively, in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia and Yemen in 1948.

Their numbers are now depleted to single digits in all but two of those countries, where they are a fraction of what they were. A similar pattern prevailed in other Muslim countries in the wider region as well.

This past week saw the annual Day to Mark the Departure and Expulsion of Jews from the Arab Countries and Iran. We remember the persecution and expulsion of these communities, and celebrate their immense contributions to the Jewish world and the countries that welcomed them.

The BBC

There were reports prior to the march that the BBC had either instructed employees not to attend or had referred those who asked whether they could attend to guidelines that seemed to discouraged attendance. Either way, it was very disappointing to see our national broadcaster not readily permit its staff to attend a march against racism. These reports served only to fuel suspicions among the community and much of the wider public about the Corporation’s impartiality.

We have offered free assistance to any BBC employee who is reprimanded or faces any consequences for having made a stand against racism by joining the march, including arranging legal support free of charge.

This is, of course, just the latest controversy relating to the BBC. Another has been its reticence to call Hamas “terrorists”.

If you have not yet signed our Parliamentary Petition, you can still do so. It calls for terrorism legislation to be amended to require all broadcasters regulated by Ofcom to describe all terrorist organisations proscribed in the UK and their operatives as “terrorists” and not by any other descriptor, which does not make their terrorist nature clear.

Unlike other petitions, if 10,000 people sign a Parliamentary Petition, the Government will issue a response, and if 100,000 people sign it, the topic will be considered for debate in Parliament. Please help us to right this wrong and urge lawmakers to act to ensure that television and radio audiences get the real facts in the news that they consume.

This year, Chanukah will carry more meaning than usual for many Jews. We wish our Jewish supporters a safe, joyous and defiant Chanukah. May it bring light in this particularly dark period for the Jewish people and our wonderful allies.

Image credit: Campaign Against Antisemitism/Stuart Mitchell

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The biggest gathering against antisemitism in a century

Week after week, London has become a no-go zone for Jews. Until Sunday, when 105,000 of you – British Jews and our allies from across the country – assembled to #MarchAgainstAntisemitism. It was the largest gathering against antisemitism in a century.

Even with the full page ads in all of the major national newspapers, extensive publicity in the Jewish press, a one-hour call in programme with our Chief Executive on LBC last Thursday, and significant additional coverage in newspapers and on television and radio, the turnout still exceeded all expectations.

We were honoured to be joined by the Chief Rabbi Sir Efraim Mirvis and rabbinical leaders from across the movements; former Prime Minister Boris Johnson; Ministers Robert Jenrick, Tom Tugendhat, Robert Halfon, Shadow Cabinet Minister Peter Kyle and numerous other MPs; peers including Lord Austin; actors Eddie Marsan, Dame Maureen Lipman, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Felicity Kendall; broadcasters Robert Rinder, Julia Hartley-Brewer, Vanessa Feltz and Trevor Phillips; historian Simon Sebag Montefiore; journalists Dan Hodges and Toby Young; the photographer and activist Laura Dodsworth; ambassadors and many more. Legions of public figures and social media influencers also attended and helped get the message out to millions, while our speakers expressed the demands of the moment and Israeli singer Rita and renowned cantor Jonny Turgel provided beautiful renditions of the national anthems and performed other songs.

The march was peaceful. The march was unthreatening. The march was different from all other marches that London has hosted in recent weeks.

So many of you have sent kind feedback and messages of thanks. But above all, your testimonials, some of which we shall be posting on our social media channels this week, have powerfully expressed the impact on you of weeks of surging antisemitism. There were a number of powerful testimonies from Jewish people on the march. Some revealed that they have not entered central London in almost two months, until Sunday, and felt relieved to be able to walk the streets of their capital city again. Others said how reassuring it was to finally be able to walk alongside so many other Jews and friends in safety. Others still related to us just how empowering it was to be a Jew, in open, once again, and how important it was to them to participate.

We wish to give particular thanks to those of you who travelled from far afield, some of you on coaches organised locally and others by public transport, sometimes leaving very early in the morning or staying overnight in hotels, because you rightly wanted your voice heard. Without you, this would not have been the truly national march that it had to be.

In addition, we are enormously grateful to those Jewish organisations and the non-Jewish groups that supported the march, which so many participants have told us was one of the most important Jewish events of their lifetimes. We could not have done it without that powerful coalition of organisations that stepped up when the Jewish community and its allies needed them.

We particularly wish to thank the Metropolitan Police Service for guarding the march, the CST for protecting us all with one of the largest ever deployments, and our many stewards who helped the march run so smoothly. Thank you for keeping us safe.

You can watch the full video of speeches here.

New Polling

We all felt that this march was essential. But now we can show empirically why it was so necessary. We can reveal to you the results of our survey of British Jews, which yielded the following alarming insights:

  • 69% of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism right now.
  • Almost half of British Jews have considered leaving the UK due to antisemitism, since 7th October.
  • More than six in ten British Jews have either personally experienced or witnessed an antisemitic incident since 7th October or know somebody who has.
  • Only 16% of British Jews believe that the police treat antisemitic hate crime like other forms of hate crime, with two thirds believing that the police apply a double standard.
  • A staggering 90% of British Jews say that they would avoid travelling to a city centre if a major anti-Israel demonstration was taking place there. Our urban centres have become no-go zones for Jews.
  • A full 95% of British Jews believe that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) should report statistics on prosecutions of antisemitic hate crimes.
  • 90% of the Jewish community believes that the British Government should proscribe Hizb ut-Tahrir.

We will be discussing these extraordinary findings with relevant authorities.

Of our supporters more generally, 85% believe that the police do not treat antisemitic crime like other forms of hate crime, 97% agree that the CPS should report statistics on prosecutions of antisemitic hate crimes, and 92% believe that the British Government should proscribe Hizb ut-Tahrir. (Unlike the survey of the Jewish community above, this supporters’ survey was not a representative poll.)

Thank you to everyone who participated in the surveys.

Last Saturday

Last Saturday may seem like an age ago, but it saw a very different type of march – the sort we have been seeing week after week. As ever, our Demonstration and Monitoring Unit was there. To see what they found, please watch the video.

Sunday’s march will not, on its own, stop the surge of antisemitism in its tracks. But because of you the voice of British Jews and our friends has been heard, and the march will amplify the impact of all of our work in the coming weeks, as we continue to do everything we can to hold the authorities to account and defend the Jewish community.

Image credit: Campaign Against Antisemitism/Stuart Mitchell

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Former barrister Ian Millard found guilty of five communications offences after seven years of action by CAA

Following action from Campaign Against Antisemitism, the former barrister Ian Millard was convicted on Friday at Southampton Magistrates’ Court of five offences contrary to section 127(1)(a) Communications Act 2003 in relation to the posting of grossly offensive material relating to his assertions regarding the Jewish race on his blog.

However, Mr Millard was only prosecuted following seven years of work by Campaign Against Antisemitism, due to a reluctance to prosecute from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

The charges relate to five blog entries dated between May 2021 and April 2022. Mr Millard posted the entries to his website.

In one post on 10th May 2021, Mr Millard wrote: “Where Jews exist in any but very small numbers, non-Jews will always be exploited, and can never be free. That is as true in Europe (and including the UK) as it is in the Middle East.”

On 15th May 2021, Mr Millard wrote: “I lived on and off in the USA, mostly in the early 1990s though I did also spend time there in 1999, 2001 and 2002. Many Americans are fine people, but the mass media there is almost, not quite, 100% owned and operated by Jews. TV, radio, film, newspapers, magazines, book publishing. Americans have little choice but to see the world largely through the Jewish, Zionist, and Israeli lens. Fact. They are also brainwashed from childhood with ‘holocaust’ propaganda and fake history.”

In another, dated 20th November 2021, Mr Millard posted an image of an arm — which had a Star of David emblazoned on the sleeve — holding a hammer above a computer with the words “free speech” on it. Above the image, text read: “Wherever Jews have power, non-Jews eventually become victims or slaves. Look at history. The ridiculous thing is that, in the UK, many of those who oppose Jewish supremacism in Israel or occupied Palestine, effectively support the Jewish lobby in Europe, eg in the UK itself; they pay lip-service to the ‘holocaust farrago’, in particular, and applaud the Zionist efforts to destroy free speech.” 

Defending himself in court, Mr Millard admitted to ownership and editorial control of the blog, but did not admit to posting the offending posts. He did, however, state that he agreed with all the sentiments expressed in the posts. 

During the course of his time on the stand, Mr Millard attempted to portray himself as the victim of a Jewish plot to crush free speech, telling the court that the CPS had been able to highlight only five blog posts out of more than 1,600 that he had published. A cursory glance at his blog reveals that it is strewn throughout with antisemitic conspiracy theories and imagery glorifying Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime. 

He went on to brag about how he had visitors to his blog from all over the world. 

When confronted with the opinions expressed in his posts, he maintained that they were “perfectly acceptable”.

Attempting to defend his Holocaust-denial, he said: “There’s history and there are views of history and people are entitled to adopt whichever view they want.”

He further professed that there were “a great number of hoaxes” around the Holocaust, going on to lament: “It’s the only history that’s acceptable and I disagree with that.”

Mr Millard told the court that “Jewish control of media is pervasive.” 

He also made the claim that British politics is controlled by Zionists, citing as evidence of this the fact that the Star of David — the flag of Israel — had been projected onto 10 Downing Street as a display of solidarity with the Israeli public following the 7th October Hamas terror attacks.

Parroting the far-right antisemitic Great Replacement conspiracy theory, he asserted during his cross-examination that “They [Jews] are trying to get more immigrants into the country and the truth is coming out.” 

While insisting that he could not recall if he had written any of the posts, owing to the fact that he allegedly blogs daily, he also said: “It’s not about whether I’m right or wrong. It’s about freedom of expression.”

He maintained that he had never set out with an intent to offend and that while some of the posts were “shocking”, they were not against the law and in fact merely satirical. 

CPS Prosecutor Philip Allman noted that the offending was “at the high end of culpability”, while Judge Peter Greenfield condemned the posts as “Grossly offensive to Jews and a multiracial society.”

“This is antisemitic…it’s Holocaust-denial, and therefore it is grossly offensive,” Judge Greenfield said. 

While Campaign Against Antisemitism is pleased that justice has finally been delivered, the road to it was made less easy resulting from repeated setbacks by the CPS.

In October 2016, the Bar Standards Board found Mr Millard to be guilty of professional misconduct due to his extensive use of Twitter as a vehicle to publicise his antisemitic and extreme right-wing views, leading to him being banned from the profession. Following the hearing, Campaign Against Antisemitism carried out a detailed investigation of Millard’s Twitter account. It was found that over a lengthy period he had tweeted a large quantity of opinions and images that were virulently antisemitic and promoted Nazi ideology.

In November of that year, Campaign Against Antisemitism reported Mr Millard to Essex Police, providing a substantial dossier of evidence in support of the complaint and by the following May, the police sent a file to the CPS, recommending that Mr Millard be charged with inciting racial hatred. 

Seventeen months later, in October 2018, the CPS instructed the police to obtain Mr Millard’s Twitter account in its entirety, rather than just the antisemitic tweets that were included in the complaint. By this time, his account had been terminated by Twitter, and he had transferred his social media activities to Gab — a US-based platform used heavily by the far-right and which has a policy of non-cooperation with requests for information about its users. Given that it was now impossible for the police to provide the evidence requested by the CPS, the investigation was closed. 

By this point, Mr Millard had subsequently turned his attention to his personal blog. In April 2021, based on the content of the blog, Campaign Against Antisemitism, for the second time, handed a dossier of evidence collected from Mr Millard’s blog to Hampshire Police.

However, nine months later, we were informed that the CPS would be taking no further action, citing “evidential difficulties which have arisen which present a conflict of evidence.” 

In January 2022, we challenged this decision via the Victims’ Right to Review (VRR) scheme. Six months later, Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, wrote to the Director of Public Prosecutions about the matter and subsequently received a reply stating that our VRR submission was being taken seriously and had been handed to counter-terrorism police, which had requested further evidence from the police.

In April of this year, fifteen months after the VRR submission, we were informed that the CPS intended to prosecute Mr Millard.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “We are pleased that, after seven years, Ian Millard has finally been found guilty of these crimes. Holocaust-denial and antisemitic conspiracy theories have no place in decent British society. British Jews are under assault from antisemites in real life and online, and the fact that a former barrister could commit acts of anti-Jewish racism is utterly abhorrent. 

“It is lamentable that, not for the first time, the CPS initially tried to avoid prosecuting and then dragged its feet after we brought criminal antisemitic behaviour to its attention. What hope are Jewish people in this country supposed to have if the CPS refuses to prosecute individuals spewing antisemitic bile? Justice has been served, albeit much later than it should have been. The reluctance of the CPS in prosecuting individuals like Mr Millard sadly just reinforces the importance of our work.”

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It Is Time For Our Voice To Be Heard. Please Join Us.

It is time for our voice to be heard. Please join us.

Week after week, London has become a no-go zone for Jews. But not only London. Rallies featuring antisemitic rhetoric have been held throughout the country over the past weeks, and this weekend the demonstrators doubled down on that strategy, launching micro rallies across the UK.

As you know, the police have refused to heed our calls to impose conditions on these weekly marches or ban them altogether, notwithstanding their obvious inability to police demonstrations that feature criminality on such a scale.

Our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit has helped to document and expose, week after the week, the hatred and glorification of terrorism at these rallies, including among the rank and file protesters.

Still, we believe that much of our country is with us, and next weekend it is time for us — the Jewish community and its allies — to finally have our voice heard.

That is why we are marching together in solidarity against antisemitism on Sunday 26th November, at 13:30 in central London.

Thousands of you have signed up already for updates about the route. If you have not yet done so, please register.

Among those friends backing the march are the stalwart allies of the Jewish community behind the October Declaration. We are proud to have friends like these, who are not afraid to call out antisemitism, speak up for the truth and love our country. You can read more about them, and sign the October Declaration on their website.

Meanwhile, this week has seen protests in London that target the MPs who make our laws. On Wednesday, Parliament was surrounded. Yesterday, they took the fight to MPs’ offices. Rule of law or mob rule? Watch and decide.

The hostages

Antisemitism in the UK is of course bound up with Hamas’ war on Israel, and we have been at the forefront of raising awareness in the UK about the plight of the Hamas’ hostages since the start of the war. You may recall that, last month, while failing to take action against demonstrators, the police nonetheless insisted on shutting down our van displaying the images of child hostages. Since then, we struggled to find other billboard van companies willing to work with us, for fear of police action.

So we bought our own van.

Thanks to generous donors, the images of the children are now back on our streets.

Although the police, along with demonstrators who hate to be reminded of the antisemitic evil of Hamas, have again attempted to shut the van down, this time we refused to acquiesce in the trampling of our rights, and we continued on our way. We will remember the hostages, and we will not be silenced. #BringThemHome

Broadcasters must call Hamas terrorists

We have all been appalled by the BBC’s refusal to call Hamas “terrorists”. And the BBC is not alone among broadcasters in, deliberately or otherwise, sanitising the terror group by having described Hamas’ murderous members by other descriptors, such as “militants”.

This weekend we are, therefore, launching a Parliamentary Petition calling for terrorism legislation to be amended to require all broadcasters regulated by Ofcom to describe all terrorist organisations proscribed in the UK and their operatives as “terrorists” and not by any other descriptor, which does not make their terrorist nature clear.

Unlike other petitions, if 10,000 people sign a Parliamentary Petition, the Government will issue a response, and if 100,000 people sign it, the topic will be considered for debate in Parliament. Please help us to right this wrong and urge lawmakers to act to ensure that television and radio audiences get the real facts in the news that they consume.

After suffering through weeks of hateful demonstrations that have taken over our capital and other cites across the country, it is time for our voice to be heard. Next weekend, please join us.



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Islamist extremists, the far-left and the far-right all at once: What a day to be a Jew in London

This weekend, some people in London honoured those who fought murderous antisemites in the past to protect our freedoms. Others paraded to glorify murderous antisemites in the present who want to kill all Jews and destroy the Jewish state.

Once again, the marches featured genocidal chants, Hamas headbands, antisemitic signs comparing Israel to Nazis and others caricaturing prominent minority politicians as coconuts, and the marchers who may not have engaged in these activities knowingly and readily marched alongside those who did. They are just as complicit.

We are also aware of Jewish families being targeted on their way out of synagogue and have received multiple reports of police having to escort congregants away in groups for their own safety.

Islamist extremists, the far-left, and the far-right were out on the streets, all on one day. What a day to be a Jew in London.

While we welcome the more significant number of arrests this week, the overall policing policy in relation to these demonstrations is woeful. This march should never have been allowed to go ahead, and the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service, Sir Mark Rowley, yet again, has serious questions to answer.

The refusal of the Met to ban this march was not only a failing of its duty to law-abiding Londoners, including the Jewish community, but it was a disgrace to the heroes that we paused to remember.

The Met’s refusal was in spite of our calls, including on Newsnight and ITV, on the Met Commissioner and the Mayor of London, to ban the march under section 13 of the Public Order Act, and our urging of the Home Secretary to direct the Mayor of London to remedy the Met’s failures under section 40 of the Police Act. It also came despite evidence that we collected from last week’s march of open support for Hamas.

We need to hear from you

This weekend’s march – and the failure of the authorities to stand by the Jewish community – opens a new chapter in our campaign to defend British Jews. But now we need to hear from you.

We are running two surveys – one for Jewish people living in Britain, and another for all of our other supporters – which will help us in our dealings with Government, the police and media and will enable us to craft the right policies moving forward.

You can also tell us how these marches have impacted your life or routine by completing an Impact Statement.

We may contact you about the information that you give us and use it to make legal representations to the police in support of limiting or banning further demonstrations of this nature.

First-of-its-kind event with the BBC

Last Wednesday, courtesy of Campaign Against Antisemitism, two senior BBC executives addressed the Jewish community for the first time.

We are grateful to Rhodri Talfan Davies and David Jordan from the BBC’s executive team for joining us for this unprecedented event. It was the first time that BBC executives have spoken directly to the Jewish community.

The participation of over 300 of you ensured that the strong feelings of British Jewry regarding the BBC’s coverage were expressed, and that the BBC’s representatives were left in no doubt about the strength of that feeling.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has been at the forefront of holding the BBC to account, not only over recent weeks but for the past several years since our inception, including rallies, projections and an ongoing legal complaint.

We believe that criticism and pressure are vital, and that they are complemented by a collaborative relationship. This event, in which senior BBC figures spoke with and heard directly from the community for the first time, was one of the fruits of that relationship.

This is a long process and faces many challenges, but it is essential if we are to pivot our national broadcaster to a fairer and more accurate representative of the issues that our community cares about.

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It is time for a ban, before the intifada comes here

Another weekend in which central London was turned into a no-go zone for Jews, with marchers happy to tell our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit that they support Hamas and with calls for a violent intifada ringing throughout the capital.

Past intifadas were campaigns of violence, including suicide bombings. We do not want one in London.

As we approach Remembrance weekend, where we remember the heroes who defended our freedoms and fought against antisemitic hatred, we must honour their memory by banning demonstrations that abuse those freedoms to call for violence against Jews.

We are therefore calling on Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, to use his powers under section 13 of the Public Order Act 1986 to ban next week’s march.

Section 13 powers allow the police to prohibit processions if other powers under the Act do no suffice to prevent serious public disorder. As we have seen over the past month, that threshold is now met.

Please take a moment to write to your MP in a few clicks to ask them to write to the Met Commissioner. Since these marches are billed as “national” marches, please write regardless of whether you live in a London constituency.

While some arrests are being made, the police are so outnumbered that they cannot ensure the safety of Londoners, in particular the Jewish community.

If you or your routine have been adversely affected by these marches, please let us know by completing this short form. It will help us to make legal representations to the police in support of limiting or banning further demonstrations of this nature.

Our legal team is processing hundreds of cases and making reports to the police, and our Online Monitoring and Investigations Unit is assisting in identifying suspects when the Met cannot. We will continue to do so, but this alone cannot stem the tide of criminality on our streets: it is time for a ban.

We continue to engage with the police, public bodies and political parties in a variety of ways:

  • More than 20,000 people have signed our petition calling on the police to reclaim our streets. You can join them by signing here: Sir Mark Rowley, give London back to Londoners. 
  • Leading lawyers, including 15 King’s Counsel, signed our open letter calling on the Met to impose restrictions on the weekly marchers.
  • We signed a letter to the Charity Commission calling for an immediate investigation into mosques with charitable status that have allowed sermons glorifying terrorism, inciting violence and propagating antisemitic tropes. We are also submitting specific complaints to the Commission.
  • Our Demonstrations and Monitoring Unit continues to capture evidence from anti-Israel protests across the country, including genocidal chanting outside Downing Street when the Prime Minister met with the US Vice President.
  • We have called for the proscription of Hizb ut-Tahrir, and made reports of serious alleged offences to the police.
  • We have convened a letter from prominent figures to Sir Keir Starmer, urging him to direct unions affiliated to the Labour Party to end their association with the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which has organised many of these hate marches.
  • We have called out the double standards of football clubs prohibiting open support for Israel.
  • We continue to work with victims of antisemitism, including families at a North London school where “Kill the Jews” graffiti and a swastika were drawn in a toilet.
  • We spoke at a rally of thousands gathered in Parliament Square in support of the families of the hostages taken by Hamas, demanding with one voice: #BringThemHome.
  • We are making final preparations for a renewed campaign to raise awareness of the plight of the hostages, after the police shut down our vans two weeks ago.

The intifada was a campaign of horrific violence that saw suicide bombings and brutal murder on a national scale. We cannot allow it to come here. The police must ban these marches now.

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Jews over six times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than other faith group, CAA analysis of home office stats shows

An analysis by Campaign Against Antisemitism of new Home Office statistics released this week shows that Jews are more than six times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group, as figures reach record numbers.

Police forces across the country record hate crimes against Jews as religious hate crimes, and these records show that in the year 2022/23, 1,510 hate crimes were committed against Jews, making Jews the target in 19% – almost one in five – of the total number of religious hate crimes.

These figures, which exclude Devon and Cornwall, mean that there is an average of over four hate crimes directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales. Hate crimes against Jews are also still widely believed to be under-reported, and also do not reflect the extent of antisemitic material and abuse on social media.

However, when one accounts for the miniscule size of the Jewish population, it emerges that Jews are statistically more than six times more likely to be the targets of hate crimes than any other religious group, with some 557 hate crimes per 100,000 of the Jewish population in 2022/23.

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Enough is enough: The police must act

Yesterday, for the third week in a row, central London was turned into a no-go zone. 100,000 people coursed through the centre of our capital. Last week they called for jihad, this week they called for a violent intifada, shouting “From London to Gaza we’ll have an intifada.”

Past intifadas were campaigns of violence, including suicide bombings. We do not want one in London. The law cannot be enforced in crowds as huge as the ones we are seeing. There is mass criminality on the streets of London.

That is why we are demanding that Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, uses his powers under section 12 of the Public Order Act 1986 to bring this situation under control.

Section 12 powers allow the police to limit the size and duration of marches if they pose a serious risk. So far, Sir Mark has only opted to limit the route and the wearing of masks, but even that has not been enforced.

Londoners, including British Jews, are afraid to enter central London during these marches because there are people on the marches openly engaging in support for terrorism, extremist chanting, and incitement to religious hatred.

Police officers are outnumbered 100 to 1, and have even been hospitalised.

Sir Mark must use his section 12 powers to limit these marches to instead be static protests of no more than 20,000 people in a location such as Trafalgar Square, with sufficient police numbers to enforce the conditions without putting brave officers and Londoners in danger.

Enough is enough. Together we are calling on Sir Mark to make this the last week that masked extremists control our streets. Sign the petition now.

The situation is particularly severe because over the past three weeks, the Met has documented an unprecedented 1,350% surge in antisemitic hate crimes, and greeted it with lax policing, too few arrests, and excuses on social media — all to the incredulity of the Jewish community, the mainstream media and the Government.

As Jews, we are enormously grateful to the police for protecting our Jewish community and for keeping our cities safe. But over this recent period, our cities have felt less and less safe for Jews – and for many of our fellow citizens.

It adds insult to injury when the police take so little action against offenders spewing racist hate but still find the time to stop our digital vans from displaying the faces of children taken captive by Hamas, to raise awareness of their plight, from driving around London.

We therefore gathered on Wednesday outside New Scotland Yard to show the depth of feeling and call for the police to take action. Along with speakers including Lord Ian Austin, an Honorary Patron of CAA, the leader of Christian Action Against Antisemitism, and the Israeli author and activist Hen Mazzig, so many of you joined us and had your voice heard. We came as friends of the police, to ask the police to uphold the law. We need to see arrests, not excuses.

The next day, the Home Secretary chaired a meeting with us and other representatives of the Jewish community. Whilst we cannot reveal what was discussed, we can confirm that our focus remained on ensuring that arrests and prosecutions materialise, and that the Met use their section 12 powers.

Londoners cannot and will not tolerate a situation in which every weekend the streets become an exhibition of such extremism. The Met is creating the conditions in which not only London’s Jews but all Londoners could be placed in serious danger. Extremists rarely limit themselves to extreme language. We need action by the authorities responsible for keeping Britain safe.

The media

We continue to call out media outlets for their incorrect and inflammatory coverage, and we are among those at the forefront of the campaign to pressure the BBC to report accurately and impartially, including by calling Hamas what they are: terrorists. If you wish to join the tens of thousands who have signed the petition, please add your name.

It is time for the BBC to hear the strength of feeling directly from the Jewish community and to justify its appalling coverage. Courtesy of CAA, for the first time, a member of the BBC’s Executive Committee will be speaking at an open event for the Jewish community, and you are invited. To reserve tickets, please visit antisemitism.org/bbc.

Enough is enough: The police must act to defend the Jewish community against those who want to harm us, before it is too late.

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CAA rally tonight outside Scotland Yard calls on police to “Enforce the law” and “Make arrests, not excuses” as another “National March for Palestine” called for this weekend

The Metropolitan Police Service, like police forces across the country, has a responsibility to defend every community, including the Jewish community, which is all too familiar with the threats that face it.

What we have seen over the past two-and-a-half weeks, however, is an unprecedented 1,350% surge in antisemitic hate crimes met with relative inaction on the part of the police.

Too few arrests, lax policing, and excuses posted on social media for why certain chants and signs and phrases are not hate crimes — all to the incredulity of the Jewish community, the mainstream media and the Government.

As Jews, we are enormously grateful to the police for protecting our Jewish community and for keeping our cities safe. But over the past two weeks, our cities have felt less and less safe for Jews. It has hardly been reassuring to see such lax policing of demonstrations featuring genocidal chants, antisemitic signs, calls for Jihad against the Jewish state, and more. Given that a “March for Palestine” and other demonstrations are planned for this weekend and are likely to continue week after week, the Met must be seen to make urgent changes to its policing policy.

It adds insult to injury when the police take so little action against offenders on these marches but still find the time to stop our digital vans from displaying the faces of children taken captive by Hamas, to raise awareness of their plight, from driving around London.

Hundreds of Londoners of all faiths demonstrated this evening to show the depth of feeling.

Campaign Against Antisemitism Chief Executive, Gideon Falter, told the crowd: “Last Saturday saw an exhibition of Jew-hate as rarely seen before on the streets of London. Britain’s capital was effectively closed to Jewish people.” He further warned: “We cannot and will not endure weekly processions featuring terrorist sympathisers and antisemites through our streets. We are fortunate to live in a country with the freedom to demonstrate, but there are limits set by law and those laws must be enforced. The demands of an unlawful mob must not supersede the rights of law-abiding citizens.”

Lord Ian Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, demanded that the forthcoming King’s speech be used to introduce new policing powers to strengthen the police response

The leader of Christian Action Against Antisemitism, Tim Gutmann, described his treatment by police as they repeatedly told him that he and his supporters would be in danger if they proceeded with two solidarity rallies for British Jews, leading to their cancellation

Israeli author and activist Hen Mazzig told the crowd: “My Israeli family asked if they should come to London for respite and safety after the terrorist atrocity, and I told them that I am not so sure that’s what they would find here.”

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “The volume of phone calls and messages coming into our service in the last two and a half weeks is unprecedented.”

In their speeches, the speakers covered:

• The sad fact that the Jewish community is in such need of police protection;

• What went wrong on Saturday and why we cannot tolerate a repeat of it at the march this coming Saturday;

• The need for ‘section 12 conditions’ to be imposed on the march this Saturday, which our lawyers requested from the Metropolitan Police today;

• The existing legislation that the police should avail themselves of and the need to use the forthcoming King’s speech to grant the police additional powers;

• The dangers of this moment becoming a conflict between politicians and the police;

• The failures of police to protect two major solidarity marches by Christian groups, which led to those marches being cancelled on police advice;

• The predicament faced by officers policing large protests, and the need to ensure that the desires of mobs do not supersede the rights of law-abiding citizens.

Thanks to this demonstration and the lead-up to it, the Met has increased its sensitivity to the concerns of the Jewish community. It is enhancing the already existing cooperation between the force and Campaign Against Antisemitism on a number of fronts.

Placards read “Make arrests, not excuses”, “Enforce the law”, “Zero tolerance for antisemites” and “Act against hate before it’s too late”.

Police had to intervene in a number of instances when passersby shouted at the rally, with two people arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated public order offences. A prominent far-right figure was spotted in the crowd by our stewarding team and hounded out to calls of “racist scum, off our streets”, as we have done in the past when the far-right have attended.

Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Last Saturday saw an exhibition of Jew-hate as rarely seen before on the streets of London. Britain’s capital was effectively closed to Jewish people and anyone else not prepared to brave Islamist flags, supporters of terrorist organisations. calls for Jihad, genocidal chanting, and signs comparing Israelis to Nazis.

“The police were practically invisible, as they have been throughout the past two-and-a-half weeks. Almost the sole exception was when they swooped on our digital vans displaying the faces of children abducted by Hamas. Apparently that, in contrast to almost everything that we saw this weekend, was the real risk to a breach of the peace.

“The Jewish community is grateful to the many ordinary police officers who work tirelessly throughout the year to protect our community, but the Met’s leadership must adapt policing policy to the scale of the present threat and use the powers already available to make arrests.

“Since we started calling out the force and advertised this demonstration, the Met has already begun indicating that it recognises that policing to date has been inadequate, but it must go further. Firm law enforcement is the only way to deter offenders and reassure all law-abiding citizens that they are safe in our nation’s capital.”

Photo credit: Nathan Lilienfeld

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The police must uphold the law, but they need to hear it from you

Since last weekend, we have been leading a campaign to raise awareness of the plight of the hostages held by Hamas, including through billboards and digital vans that travel around London displaying the images of some of the child captives. We have also taken action against those who tear down or deface the leaflets and posters that have been put up around the city.

We expected that there may be pockets of opposition to the vans from terrorist-sympathisers and their fellow travellers in London. What we did not anticipate was opposition from the Metropolitan Police Service.

For the full story of this outrageous incident, join the millions who have watched our Chief Executive recount the episode, which was also covered across the national media.

Since the incident, we have engaged with the Metropolitan Police — in addition to our work with the Government — but the outcomes with the police have been unsatisfactory. This adds to our disappointment with current policing policy. It is time to take action.

The volunteers of our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit continue to gather evidence from the demonstrations around the country, bearing witness to the Metropolitan Police’s own findings that antisemitic hate crime in London is up by a scandalous 1,350%.

Instead of arrests, however, the Met has been making excuses for hate. The force permitted a rally by Hizb ut-Tahrir to go ahead; it announced, contrary to the view of the Home Secretary, that the chant “From the River to the Sea Palestine will be free” is not hate speech unless it expressly targets a Jewish institution; and it ignores calls for “Jihad” and “Intifada” by demonstrators; among other shortcomings.

While failing to take action against those expressing sympathy for terrorists or calling for violence, as shown here, the Met did find the time to order that our vans shut down their display of the faces of children taken hostage by a proscribed terrorist group. The protesters hurling abuse at our volunteers, just feet from watching police officers, were not apprehended.

In 2014, Campaign Against Antisemitism was founded when the community witnessed that the authorities barely lifted a finger to combat antisemitism on our streets. We made our voices heard then outside the Royal Courts of Justice, but only towards the end of that surge in antisemitic incidents. This time, we must make our voices heard earlier, to shape how the Met polices our streets over the coming weeks.

We will be rallying outside New Scotland Yard this Wednesday at 18:30. The rally will be held at New Scotland Yard, London SW1A 2JL, and the nearest Underground stations are Westminster and Embankment.

The BBC

We have been among those at the forefront of the campaign to pressure the BBC to report accurately and impartially, including by calling Hamas what they are: terrorists.

The BBC must be made to understand that not only is it doing a disservice to viewers, listeners and readers by not reporting in accordance with its guidelines, but its coverage has a real-life, adverse impact on British Jews.

We co-sponsored a rally outside Broadcasting House, which was covered by all the major broadcasters and press, backed a petition signed by tens of thousands (please do sign if you haven’t already), physically projected a powerful message onto Broadcasting House itself to shame the BBC, and recorded a special episode of our podcast with Noah Abrahams, a courageous and principled young sports journalist who has quit the BBC in protest at its failure to describe Hamas as a terrorist organisation (listen now).

We also called out the BBC for referring to the recent Brussels attack as terrorism while refusing to do the same for Hamas. After its hypocrisy was exposed, rather than accept that it must finally describe Hamas as a terror group, the Corporation quietly and disgracefully changed its Brussels coverage instead.

The BBC is not the only media outlet that we have held to account in recent days. Among the most egregious was the satirical magazine Private Eye. Perhaps appropriately, our response to its appalling front cover involved satirising their unfunny attempt at satire.

We have also reviewed material and submitted complaints relating to other broadcasters and newspapers, and continue to do so.

It is time for the BBC to hear the strength of feeling directly from the Jewish community and to justify its appalling coverage. Courtesy of Campaign Against Antisemitism, for the first time, a member of the BBC’s Executive Committee will be speaking at an open event for the Jewish community, and you are invited. To book tickets, visit antisemitism.org/bbc.

We are fighting back. Now it is the turn of the police to rise to the occasion in these challenging times and uphold the law against those who want to harm the Jewish community.

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CAA is mobilising, and the fightback has begun

As we continue to process the news in Israel and pray for the swift rescue of the hostages, antisemitism is surging in the UK.

On our streets, on campuses and online, in our workplaces, schools and even in the playground, we are seeing the glorification of terrorism and antisemitic hate, and on our television screens our national broadcaster cannot bring itself to call terror by its name.

At Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have been mobilising. The fightback has begun.

The volunteers of our Demonstration and Event Monitoring Unit have gathered evidence from the demonstrations this weekend and over the past week. We have also heard from you in unprecedented numbers, receiving a constant flow of messages and tips. Our staff and volunteers have worked around the clock to monitor, document and process evidence, and we have referred a multitude of individuals and organisations to the police and regulatory authorities, and we continue to do so at a rapid pace. If they fail to act, we will hold them to account.

If you have information that you would like to share with us, please e-mail [email protected].

We have written to the BBC about its refusal to describe Hamas as “terrorists”, called for Ofcom to intervene, and led the national media campaign to pressure the broadcaster to call terror by its name. We have also requested that the Culture, Media and Sport Committee hold an urgent hearing, are promoting a petition and are co-sponsoring a rally on Monday evening outside the BBC’s Broadcasting House in London. To join the tens of thousands who have already signed the petition, please sign here.

We have also written to the FA and Premier League to express our disgust at the decision not to illuminate Wembley Stadium and to prohibit the waving of Israeli flags at matches this weekend.

We have launched a billboard campaign around London featuring the faces of infants and children taken hostage by Hamas, as part of a campaign to ensure that the public does not so quickly forget not only those murdered by the terrorists but also those still in their clutches.

It is a frightening prospect, but the same ideology that brought about the horrors in the south of Israel is present in the UK. Our fight here is part of the same war that our brethren are fighting in Israel: it is simply another front. We need the resources to fight back.

On top of it all, our regular work continues. In the past few days, for example, we secured the extradition of a fugitive French Holocaust-denier back to France, where he will now face the justice that he has evaded for too long.

As a volunteer-led organisation, our priority is manpower. This week, we have mobilised a huge number of new volunteers, to ensure that everybody who can play a part has the opportunity to do so. Thank you to the many of you who have stepped forward. To join them, please visit antisemitism.org/mobilise.

Still, we are a charity, and the surge in demand for our services means that we must raise funds to meet it. We must also prepare for what may come next: while the support from the Government and the authorities and the support that we are seeing for Israel and the Jewish community is welcome, history shows that it may be transient. We must have the resources in place now to ensure that their words translate into action over the weeks and months ahead.

To that end, we are launching an urgent crowdfunding appeal this week. We recognise that we are not the only worthy cause asking for your help at this time, and any support that you can contribute will go directly to the fight against those who mean harm to our people. To make a donation now, please visit antisemitism.org/donate.

This is the worst situation faced by Jews worldwide since 2014, when we were founded. As an organisation and as a community, we are incomparably better placed to wage it. But we need your help to do so.

Those who glorify terrorism and delight in the massacre of Jews, and those who use the events still unfolding as cover for antisemitic acts should be under no misapprehension: we will pursue justice against you.

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Success for CAA as Scottish court grants extradition for Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard

A court in Scotland has granted an extradition request for the convicted Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard, a French fugitive in the UK who was caught following appeals from Campaign Against Antisemitism.

Mr Reynouard, 54, appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today for his extradition hearing, which followed several preliminary hearings and false starts over the past year, to allow time for the content of videos, alleged to have been made by Mr Reynouard, to be translated into English, as well as other delays due to ill health on his legal team.

Mr Reynouard continued to post updates on his far-right blog, Sans Concession, despite being incarcerated as he awaited his extradition hearing.

Today, the extradition request has been granted, as the court considered that the postings for which Mr Reynouard was found guilty in France would also be crimes in the UK under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003.

In a different case in 2018, Campaign Against Antisemitism secured a legal precedent that Holocaust-denial is “grossly offensive” and therefore illegal when used as a means by which to hound Jews. When it is delivered via a medium of communication, it can fall within the purview of the Communications Act. That English precedent has now been replicated in Scottish law today as well.

He will be extradited within ten days of the seven-day period in which he can appeal.

Mr Reynouard was sentenced to jail for four months on 25th November 2020 by a court in Paris and again in January 2021 for six months, in addition to fines. His latest conviction is in relation to a series of antisemitic postings on Facebook and Twitter and a 2018 YouTube video for which fellow French Holocaust denier, Hervé Ryssen (also known as Hervé Lalin), received a seventeen-month-jail term earlier that year.

However, Mr Reynouard fled the country before serving his sentence and settled in the UK, where he reportedly worked as a private tutor teaching children mathematics, physics and chemistry. Private tutors are not required to undergo background checks.

In November last year, he was finally arrested near Edinburgh. In the intervening months, Campaign Against Antisemitism has been cooperating with French Jewish groups seeking Mr Reynouard’s extradition to France. Along with Lord Austin, an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism, we have corresponded with police forces and prosecutors in the UK and Interpol in an effort to locate Mr Reynouard and bring him to justice.

Scottish police arrested him at an address near the Scottish capital, where he was apparently living under a false identity. He was brought before a judge on the same day and refused extradition to France.

Earlier this year, Mr Reynouard appeared in court where he was served with a second arrest warrant, as the French authorities had allegedly made an error in their application for the initial arrest warrant. Paul Dunne, Mr Reynouard’s lawyer, said of Mr Reynouard: “He does not consent to his extradition to France.”

Mr Reynouard faces a sentence of almost two years in a French prison, in addition to any further sentence in relation to other ongoing proceedings.

The Office Central de Lutte Contre les Crimes Contre l’Humanité, les Génocides et les Crimes de Guerre (OCLCH) — the arm of the French gendarmerie that specialises in hate crime and war crimes — has been leading the investigation.

Mr Reynouard’s first Holocaust denial conviction was in 1991 for distributing leaflets denying the existence of the gas chambers at concentration camps. Holocaust denial has been a criminal offence in France since 1990. He has been convicted on numerous occasions and his subsequent sentences include multiple prison terms and a €10,000 fine.

Mr Reynouard is alleged to have ties to Catholic fundamentalist groups that deny the Holocaust. In a recent analysis of the French far-right, the newspaper Liberation claimed that Mr Reynouard and Mr Ryssen are key members of a network of propagandists dedicated to the denial and distortion of the Holocaust.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Vincent Reynouard is a despicable Holocaust-denier who has repeatedly been convicted by French courts. For him to have evaded justice, only to settle in the UK as a private tutor teaching children, is intolerable, which is why we worked with French Jewish organisations to secure his extradition so that he faces the consequences of his abhorrent incitement.

“We are delighted that those efforts have borne fruit today, with the court granting the request to extradite Mr Reynouard so that he can face justice in France. This is not only the right judgement for the Jewish community, but also for the justice system. The UK cannot become a haven for those seeking to evade justice elsewhere. For antisemites in particular, the message is clear: you are not welcome in Britain. Good riddance, Mr Reynouard.”

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Another former Roger Waters associate speaks to CAA, as we prepare for rally outside Palladium concert

Following the release of Campaign Against Antisemitism’s documentary last week showcasing disturbing e-mails and allegations relating to the musician Roger Waters, another former associate, appalled by the testimony in the documentary, has now come forward to cast further light on Mr Waters’ conduct.

The new interview can be viewed at antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

In this new interview, lighting director Marc Brickman, who has worked with music legends from Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen to Carol King and Duke Ellington, speaks out.

He explains the conversations around the “dirty k*ke” e-mail and how he demanded to know why, if the purpose was to confront hateful phrases, it was only a racist epithet that targets Jews that was due to be included on the pig and no other offensive terms.

He also reveals that the reason that the swastika confetti idea never materialised was only because nobody would make it, and that he was called out by Mr Waters for expressing his reservations.

These incidents and others that he recounts – including the proposed inclusion of an image of “a menacing Hasidic Jewish boy” alongside “an angelic Palestinian girl” – drew Mr Brickman to the conclusion that Mr Waters’ “definition of antisemitism is totally different than anyone else’s”.

Regarding venues, such as the London Palladium, that host Mr Waters, Mr Brickman says: “They don’t care; all they care about is their bottom line.”

Mr Waters’ views on Jews have long been of concern to the Jewish community, with a number of well-documented controversies.

Mr Waters is playing at the London Palladium on Sunday 8th and Monday 9th October.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has orchestrated a number of activities to protest these performances, including delivering thousands of letters from members of the public to the theatre, parking an advertisement outside the theatre to raise awareness of Mr Waters’ record, driving a van around London drawing attention to the controversy, and picketing the venue.

We will be holding a demonstration outside the London palladium at 18:00 on Monday 9th October. Please register attendance at eventbrite.co.uk/e/protest-against-roger-waters-at-the-london-palladium-tickets.

Mr Waters has always insisted that he is not an antisemite, but our investigation has revealed e-mails from Mr Waters in which he proposed writing “Dirty k***” on the inflatable pig habitually floated above his concerts and suggested “bombing” audiences with confetti in the shape of swastikas, Stars of David, dollar signs and other symbols, among other incidents and revelations. The full documentary can be viewed at antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s investigation has been led by John Ware, the BBC Panorama veteran and one of the UK’s foremost television investigative journalists, who has worked on exposés whose focus has ranged from IRA terrorism to antisemitism under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party.

Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Following the release of The Dark Side of Roger Waters, this latest interview corroborates the account of Waters’s views given by the people who worked with him over many years.

“It took more than a decade for Marc Brickman to speak out, and now that he has, it is hard to look at Waters in the same light. Waters comes across as a cold-hearted bully who picks on Jews. You can’t help but flinch listening to a person as gentle as Brickman recount how he had to stand alone against Waters’ repulsive interventions in the artistry of the show.

“Taking this new interview together with the revelations in last week’s documentary, it is all the more astounding and disturbing that one of London’s most iconic venues will roll out the red carpet to Waters this weekend, having so far stayed resolutely deaf and silent in the face of thousands of letters of complaint. Brickman suggests it’s because the Palladium’s owner only cares about the bottom line, and so far it seems that might be true.”

If you wish to add your name to our petition calling on venues to stop hosting Mr Waters owing to his long history of baiting Jews, or learn about other ways to get involved in this campaign, please visit antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

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CAA releases Roger Waters’ “Dirty k***” e-mail and interviews with former associates in new exposé documentary

Campaign Against Antisemitism has today released a documentary which showcases disturbing e-mails that were gathered during an investigation into allegations of antisemitism by rockstar Roger Waters, as well as interviews with former associates of the Pink Floyd frontman.

Mr Waters’ views on Jews have long been of concern to the Jewish community, with a number of well-documented controversies.

Mr Waters has always insisted that he is not an antisemite, but our investigation has revealed e-mails from Mr Waters in which he proposed writing “Dirty k***” on the inflatable pig habitually floated above his concerts and suggested “bombing” audiences with confetti in the shape of swastikas, Stars of David, dollar signs and other symbols.

The documentary also includes interviews with Norbert Stachel, Mr Waters’ former saxophonist, and legendary music producer Bob Ezrin, who produced The Wall, as well as hits for talent from U2 to Kiss to Taylor Swift.

Among various incidents, Mr Stachel says that Mr Waters lost his temper over vegetarian food at a restaurant and demanded that waiters “Take away the Jew food”, that Mr Waters mocked Mr Stachel’s grandmother who was murdered in the Holocaust, and that a colleague warned him not to react if he wanted to keep his job.

Mr Ezrin recounts an incident in which Mr Waters sung him an impromptu ditty about then agent Bryan Morrison, the last couplet of which ended with words to the effect of “Cos Morri is a f***ing Jew”.

The full documentary can be viewed at antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Roger Waters has repeatedly used his enormous platform to bait Jews, but he always claims that he is not antisemitic. We believed that there was further evidence out there to the contrary, and the release of The Dark Side of Roger Waters now puts the evidence we obtained in the hands of the public.

“It is hard to imagine a rockstar emblazoning the N-word above their concerts, but Mr Waters demanded that his crew do exactly that with the K-word. Not only that, but he seems to have spent time humiliating and harassing his Jewish staff.

“One cannot help but watch this film and wonder what kind of person uses their power to this effect. Is Roger Waters an antisemite? Now people can make up their own minds.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s investigation has been led by John Ware, the BBC Panorama veteran and one of the UK’s foremost television investigative journalists, who has worked on exposés whose focus has ranged from IRA terrorism to antisemitism under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party.

Mr Waters is due to play the London Palladium on 8th and 9th October. Campaign Against Antisemitism has contacted the Palladium’s owner, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Live Nation Events, the organiser.

If you wish to add your name to our petition calling on venues to stop hosting Mr Waters owing to his long history of baiting Jews, or learn about other ways to get involved in this campaign, please visit antisemitism.org/rogerwaters.

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“Yids” graffitied on pub ahead of Tottenham Hotspur match

Graffiti that read “yids” was discovered on Saturday ahead of a match between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. 

The graffiti, which consisted of the words “yids” and “THFC”, was found on the Two Brewers pub in Holloway, a pub that is located near Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium.

Both phrases were written twice on the windows and doors of the pub. “THFC” likely refers to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. 

The graffiti, which was photographed and reported by users on social media, was removed ahead of the scheduled London derby match between the two clubs the following day. 

Tottenham Hotspur has long been associated with the Jewish community, and its fans are consequently often targeted by antisemitic abuse.

Last month, the Chairman of Tottenham Hotspur, Daniel Levy, faced antisemitic abuse online, including being called a “fat bald Jew”, over the impending transfer of player Harry Kane. 

In March, an Everton fan was sentenced over antisemitic insults at a football match against Tottenham Hotspur. One of the phrases that the defendant used was “dirty Jews, dirty Yids”.

In 2022, Tottenham Hotspur announced that it was to reassess the use of the word “Yid” after holding focus groups on the matter. After conducting the first stage of its consultation with supporters in 2019, the Club found that 94% of the 23,000 respondents acknowledged that the word could be considered a racist term against a Jewish person.

In 2020, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the Oxford English Dictionary to have the word “Yiddo” edited to include the controversy over the use of the term and its pejorative connotation when used by supporters of football clubs.

Campaign Against Antisemitism continues to report on and act against instances of anti-Jewish racism in all sports.

Image credit: Jewish News

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Former RAF cadet and “Hitler’s strongest soldier” sentenced

A former Royal Air Force cadet, who was responsible for far-right graffiti, was sentenced in court on Thursday.

Aristedes Haynes, 17, of Cwmavon in Wales, was sentenced at the Old Bailey to one year and 220 days’ imprisonment in youth custody with a further one year on licence.

Mr Haynes previously pleaded guilty to two charges of possessing a terrorist document, three charges of distributing a terrorist document and three charges of criminal damage in June. Earlier this month, the teenager admitted to two separate acts of vandalism in 2022 on a Windrush memorial in Port Talbot. The graffiti consisted of a swastika, text that read “Nazi zone” and “1488”, and a racial slur. 

1488 is often used as a coded reference to the neo-Nazi fourteen-word oath, “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children,” a slogan initially devised by David Lane, a member of the white supremacist terrorist group “The Order”, which was responsible for the murder of Jewish radio host Alan Berg. The number 88 refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is intended as a code for “Heil Hitler.”

My Haynes was previously revealed to have a troubling history of engagement with far-right ideology, which included being banned from Instagram for posting Nazi content; owning a copy of Mein Kampf, which was bought for him by his mother; and having an online search history of extreme far-right material. 

A video had also been shown to the court in which the teenager posed with an air rifle and called himself, “Hitler’s strongest soldier”. 

Mr Haynes was referred to the Government’s Prevent programme last year by his RAF cadet group. He was later expelled from the group when he shared an image of himself with a swastika on his chest with other cadets.

Following his arrest, police found knives, a gasmask, a KKK flag, a swastika flag and an air rifle among Mr Haynes’ possessions. Police also found a diary belonging to Mr Haynes in which he expressed his desire for a “race war” as well as a to-do list with items such as “burn a building down, maybe bomb it”, “kill someone”, “join a Nazi militia”, “get a gun or make one” and “get buff as hell”.

Mr Haynes had previously remained anonymous to the public; it was determined, however, by Mr Justice Jeremy Baker, that it was within the public interest to identify the defendant. 

Mr Justice Baker also remarked that the defendant’s “parents and others were naive in their approach to the views they had witnessed”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

Image credit: South Wales Police

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Success for CAA at High Court as Ken Livingstone surrenders challenge to EHRC report, leaving its findings unimpeachable in self-inflicted humiliation

The disgraced former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, and former Labour councillor Pamela Bromley, have now withdrawn their legal proceedings against the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) at the High Court.

Mr Livingstone and Ms Bromley were both named in the EHRC’s report into antisemitism in the Labour Party. The report came about following the EHRC’s years-long investigation in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the originating complainant, having made the original referral to the EHRC.

Mr Livingstone and Ms Bromley brought a claim for judicial review against the EHRC in order to overturn the EHRC’s landmark 2020 report which concluded that the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership had engaged in unlawful antisemitic harassment of its Jewish members. These proceedings were a final attempt by the far-left supposedly to undermine the report, and much was pinned on this case, with those supporting the claimants having said that this judicial review could lead to the report’s worst allegations being entirely discredited. 

Had they been successful, they would have set back the fight against antisemitism and antisemitism-denial by years. To prevent such an eventuality, Campaign Against Antisemitism sought to intervene in the case, and defeated Mr Livingstone’s and Ms Bromley’s opposition, with the High Court granting our application to do so earlier this year.

At the time, Mrs Justice Lang ruled: “In my judgment, the Court is likely to be assisted by CAA’s intervention…It made the complaint to [EHRC], and requested that an investigation took place. It provided substantial evidence, conceptual framework analysis and legal submissions to support the investigation. It has been particularly concerned with antisemitism denial as a form of harassment. As a Jewish community charity, it is rooted in the Jewish community and it has built up a longstanding expertise on the nature of modern antisemitism. Because of its expertise, it is likely to be able to contribute information, analysis and context more effectively than the other parties [the EHRC and the Labour Party].”

The EHRC supported Campaign Against Antisemitism’s application to intervene, while the Labour Party neither supported nor opposed it, remaining neutral.

Mr Livingstone and Ms Bromley have now withdrawn the claim, surrendering and withdrawing the judicial review proceedings without testing the EHRC’s report at all, thereby giving up the chance to have their much-vaunted day in court, for which they had crowdfunded large sums of money from their trusting supporters.

The EHRC’s report cannot now be subject to further review, and its critical findings about the Labour Party and the nature of antisemitism – including about the so-called ‘Livingstone Formulation’, whereby allegations of antisemitism are dismissed as attempts to silence criticism of Israel or as motivated by some other ulterior motive – are no longer at any risk of being overturned.

The EHRC report is now unimpeachable and every finding in it stands, final and binding, including those about Mr Livingstone’s and Ms Bromley’s conduct. The Labour Party, through their conduct as its agents, was found to have created an intimidating or hostile environment for Party members and prospective members, particularly those who were Jewish. Their statements were unwanted conduct related to Jewish ethnicity, which had the effect of harassing Labour Party members. In other words, their conduct amounted to harassment of Jewish members of the Labour Party on the basis of their Jewishness.

The EHRC found that, in addition to use of antisemitic tropes, antisemitism-denial – that is, dismissing complaints as ‘smears’ and ‘fake’ – can be a form of antisemitic conduct that amounts to unlawful harassment, and that it was in the cases of both of these individuals. The EHRC described these examples of antisemitic conduct as the tip of the iceberg of the issues that it identified in the Labour antisemitism investigation. That finding is now unimpeachable.

In a bizarre display of Humpty Dumpty’s Theory of Meaning, Mr Livingstone and Ms Bromley have sought to portray as a brilliant victory their withdrawal of the case, which cost their supporters so much yet achieved not one of their objectives in court. Nobody will be persuaded by this laughable attempt at rationalising their capitulation. Meanwhile, their claim that these proceedings cost Campaign Against Antisemitism some astronomical figure is comically lacking in foundation, thanks to the generosity of our legal team.

Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “This is a significant victory for the Jewish community, as it means that the EHRC’s groundbreaking report into antisemitism in the Labour Party stands. Ken Livingstone has been at the heart of Labour’s antisemitism scandal for years, so it is apt that he is also at the centre of this final failure of the antisemitism-denying far-left to overturn the EHRC’s findings.

“Recognising that Campaign Against Antisemitism originally referred the Labour Party to the EHRC and is an expert body in combating antisemitism, the High Court granted us intervener status in the case. We were keen to defend in court the EHRC’s findings of antisemitism in the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn. Our only disappointment at the dropping of this specious claim is that we will not have the opportunity to demolish the claims made by apologists for Mr Corbyn and his acolytes.

“This is a humiliating end for Mr Livingstone and his co-complainant, and one that their supporters, whose funds were squandered, will surely question. They are now reduced to crowing that they cost the EHRC hundreds of thousands in taxpayers’ money and delighting in their amusingly false assumption that they cost us vast charitable funds. Having seen off Mr Livingstone, we will continue our work to advocate for zero tolerance of antisemitism in all political parties, without fear or favour.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism was represented by Derek Spitz and Adam Wagner, of counsel, instructed by Asserson solicitors Shimon Goldwater and Joshua Battat. We are extremely grateful to our highly-capable legal team, which has been working on this matter with us since we first referred the Labour Party to the EHRC five years ago.

Shimon Goldwater, partner at Asserson, said: “Mr Livingstone has acted sensibly for the first time in these proceedings and abandoned his judicial review application. The EHRC’s findings are now final and not subject to further challenge, which is materially due to the strong stand taken in this case by Campaign Against Antisemitism.”

A spokesperson for the EHRC said: “We firmly stand by our robust and fair investigation, the findings of which were accepted in full by the Labour Party. We welcome the decision to withdraw this judicial review claim, with disappointment at the valuable time and resources that we have had to expend on defending it.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Outrage after group attends Norfolk festival dressed as Nazis

A group sparked backlash after attending a local festival dressed as Nazis.  

The festival, where attendees are encouraged to wear period dress, is an annual 1940s-themed event, held in Sheringham, Norfolk.

Attendees of the event confronted the group, which reportedly met at a local pub before beginning their march, by shouting to them that they were not welcome. Some members of the group were seen to be wearing swastikas, whilst others wore clothing that indicated an affiliation with the SS. 

Marshalls at the event reportedly attempted to get the group to leave before local police stepped in and escorted the group away from the festival. 

An anonymous group member said: “There was no offence intended… and we left when asked to do so.” He also claimed that the men in the group were from a history group. 

Of the costumes, Guy Walters, a historian and author of books relating to the Second World War, said on X, the social media platform formally known as Twitter: “People who dress like comedy SS clowns from ‘Allo Allo’ teach us nothing, absolutely nothing, about the Second World War. They’re just flabby Nazi wannabes, who deserve the utmost ridicule.”

Mike Keller, a witness to the event, said: “It was a lovely family atmosphere and very friendly, when suddenly from nowhere there were ten-fifteen men dressed in authentic SS uniform literally marching in unison. It was deeply offensive.

“These men were not milling about and blending in among people. They were marching and making a demonstration. It was frightening. My father was from a Jewish family who lost his parents and brothers and sisters in death camps. He was fortunate to escape with my uncle via Kindertransport, so having to see this with my son was mortally offensive and a disgraceful act.”

A spokesperson for Sheringham Town Council said: “Sheringham Town Council has been made aware that on the Saturday there was an incident in the town that was managed by the police. Sheringham Town Council will consult with the police, North Norfolk Railway and others to determine what happened and what action may be taken to prevent a recurrence.”

A spokesperson for Norfolk Police said: “A police officer on patrol in Sheringham came across a confrontation in the high street on Saturday at about 5.30pm, involving a man and a group of people who had been attending an event. The officer intervened and quickly resolved the incident. One man reported being assaulted and this is being investigated further. No one was injured during the incident.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

Image credit: Guy Walters

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BBC Arabic article links “fanatical Jews” of ancient Israel to 9/11 terrorists while playing down Islamism

A BBC Arabic article has linked “fanatical Jews” to the 9/11 terrorists while appearing to play down Islamism.

The Arabic-language article on the Corporation’s website purports to recount the “story of suicide attackers throughout history”, claiming that the tactic originated with a Jewish group fighting the Roman occupation of ancient Israel, and tracing the history through the Middle Ages, Japanese Kamikaze pilots and into the current era of Islamist terrorism and 9/11.

The article reads: “It is believed that the first suicide attacks…were by a group of Jewish fanatics who spread fear…during the Roman occupation.”

It goes on to suggest that, since the end of WWII, suicide attacks were “almost” non-existent until Israel’s incursion into southern Lebanon in 1982, for which no context is provided.

While ancient Jews are described as “fanatics”, the word “terrorist” appears nowhere in relation to modern Islamist and Arab terror organisations. Indeed, other than the ancient Jews who targeted the Roman military, no other faction is censured in the article at all, even though some limited their attacks to combatants while others specifically target civilians.

The history is also dubious, with the mass Jewish suicide at Masada somehow presented as an example of the use of suicide attacks.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Of all the suicide attackers over the past two millennia, the only ones described by BBC Arabic as ‘fanatics’ are the Jewish assassins of ancient Judea who attacked the occupying Roman military. All others appear to escape any form of censure, including the modern Islamist terror groups. Moreover, this latest incarnation of Middle Eastern suicide attack is still blamed on the Jews, with the article alleging that the suicide strategy was only adopted because of Israel’s incursion into Lebanon.”

According to the JC, BBC Arabic has issued more than 130 corrections following complaints of bias and inaccuracy in reports about Israel and Jewish affairs since the beginning of 2021 — an average of more than one every week.

A spokesperson for BBC Arabic said that it “offers independent and impartial news and information. As with all content produced by the BBC, their output is subject to the BBC’s rigorous Editorial Guidelines. We reject any notion that there are wider issues with the service’s 24-hour, multi-platform output.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors traditional media and regularly holds outlets to account. If members of the public are concerned about reportage in the media, they should contact us at [email protected].

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In efforts to combat antisemitism and celebrate Jewish identity, Chelsea creates Jewish supporters group

Chelsea Football Club has created a supporters group for its Jewish members.

According to a statement on the Club’s website, “the creation of the group builds on the work Chelsea FC and Chelsea Foundation have delivered over the last five years,” going on to state: “In January 2018, the club and Foundation launched Say No To Antisemitism – a consolidated campaign and programme focusing on education, support and awareness with the message that antisemitism, or any form of discrimination, has no place in our club or society.”

Stephen Nelken, founder of the Jewish Supporters Group, said: “As a life-long Chelsea fan, I have been impressed and proud of the work the club has done to combat antisemitism and discrimination.” 

He added: “The intention in founding this group is to celebrate Jewish identity, support the excellent work the club is doing and encourage like-minded fans to come together to support Chelsea.”

Hollie Varney, Kick It Out COO, said of the group: “We’re delighted to see Chelsea FC and their community of Jewish supporters working together to create a space for Jewish fans to express and celebrate their culture and identity. ‘Chelsea FC has been at the forefront of the drive to combat antisemitism in football and this announcement is a fantastic step to creating an inclusive and welcome environment for the club’s Jewish fanbase.”

Earlier this year, Arsenal Football Club announced the launch of a new affiliate called “Jewish Gooners”, partly in response to antisemitism among supporters.

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Foreign secretary tells Mahmoud Abbas to stop spouting “disgusting antisemitic tropes”

James Cleverly, the UK Foreign Secretary, has said that Mahmoud Abbas must stop spreading antisemitic tropes. 

The comments came during an address to the World Summit on Counter-Terrorism in Herzliya, Israel, ahead of Mr Cleverly’s meeting with officials from the Palestinian Authority, which Mr Abbas heads.

Referring to Mr Abbas’ recent speech, which contained a tirade of antisemitic tropes, Mr Cleverly said: “When I meet with the leadership of the Palestinian Authority, I will make it clear that rather than spreading disgusting antisemitic tropes and outrageous distortions of history, they should be clear in their denouncement of violence.”

He continued: “The PA [Palestinian Authority] should be clear that there is no acceptance for brutality and terrorism. It should be clear that there is no excuse to target Israelis, particularly Israeli civilians, because that is the only way that peace is possible.”

Mr Cleverly also said during his speech that Israel’s “right to self-defence belongs exclusively to Israel’s security forces who operate within the line of international law”.

Referring to Iran’s involvement in attacks on the Jewish state, Mr Cleverly said: “Iran refuses to take responsibility for their complicity in these attacks, but we in the UK are under no illusion about Iran’s maligned role.”

Mr Abbas’ speech was given on 24th August to the Revolutionary Council of Fatah. In the speech, Mr Abbas claimed that Jews were not “Semites” and were actually descendants of the Khazars. The Khazar myth is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that claims that Jews are descended from a Central Asian people and have no connection to the Land of Israel. He did, however, make the distinction that, in his view, Sephardi Jews are Semites “because they originated in the Arabian Peninsula”.

Mr Abbas also said in his speech: “They say that Hitler killed the Jews for being Jews and that Europe hated the Jews because they were Jews.”

He added, “It was clearly explained that [the Europeans] fought [the Jews] because of their social role, and not their religion. Several authors wrote about this. Even Karl Marx said this was not true. He said that the enmity was not directed at Judaism as a religion, but to Judaism for its social role.” 

Referring to Hitler, Mr Abbas continued: “He said he fought the Jews because they were dealing with usury and money. In his view, they were engaged in sabotage, and this is why he hated them. We just want to make this point clear. This was not about semitism and antisemitism.”

Following Mr Abbas’ speech, Paris revoked his Medal of the City of Paris. The medal was awarded to Mr Abbas in 2015 in “recognition of his actions towards finding peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis”.

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism worldwide.

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Teenager who promoted antisemitic views convicted of terror offences 

A teenager from Swindon who promoted antisemitic and racist views has been convicted of terror offences. 

Yesterday, after a two-week trial, Malakai Wheeler, 18, was found guilty at Winchester Crown Court of six offences relating to the possession and dissemination of terrorist material.

Mr Wheeler was arrested in 2021 following an investigation, which was conducted by Counter Terrorism Policing North East, into users in a Telegram group whom police suspected to be sharing extreme far-right content. 

Following his arrest, police found the Terrorist Handbook in Mr Wheeler’s bedroom. The Terrorist Handbook is a publication which instructs readers on how to make bombs and other explosives. 

Mr Wheeler was found to be frequently sharing material in the chat, including antisemitic content and instructions on how to make explosives. 

The defendant said in court that he had downloaded the explosives instructions as they would be useful should there be a case of “social disorder”. 

He added: “Weapons could be useful if there was a serious emergency. Covid showed things could come out of the blue. It could be an economic problem or a foreign invasion, things can just pop out of nowhere.”

Mr Wheeler told the court that he downloaded material with the intent to make an archive if the documents were deleted from Telegram. He also said that he had obtained videos, which show people being murdered, from ISIS out of “morbid curiosity”. 

The court heard that the defendant was interested in Nazism and anti-Zionism. Mr Wheeler also told the court that he had a swastika as part of his profile picture on Telegram and admitted to being in a photograph whilst doing a Nazi salute in a skull mask. 

Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said: “Although only sixteen at the time of his arrest, Wheeler was deeply entrenched in a Telegram chat group committed to extreme right-wing ideology. He was not simply curious, or a passive observer within the group. He clearly shared the same mindset as other members and was very active when it came to promoting racist and antisemitic views and propaganda. It is important young people recognise the potential impact of their online activity, before they cross a line into criminality, or engage in harmful or dangerous behaviours.”

Mr Wheeler remains in custody until his sentencing in November.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Contrary to his assertions, Mr Wheeler’s obsession with violence went far beyond ‘morbid curiosity’. His anticipation of ‘social chaos’ is indicative of the very real threat that is posed by the far-right. Cases such as these shed light on the kind of rhetoric that is utilised to recruit young people and mobilise them against the Jewish community. We hope that Mr Wheeler’s sentencing will reflect the serious danger that he poses to society.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

Image credit: Wiltshire Police

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Labour Party reaches settlement with antisemitism whistleblowers

The Labour Party has reportedly reached a settlement with nine whistleblowers who had brought legal proceedings against the Party after their names appeared in a leaked report about antisemitism.

The nine individuals sued the Party after their names were included in a leaked 850-page report produced in the waning days of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, titled ‘The work of the Labour Party’s Governance and Legal Unit in relation to antisemitism, 2014 – 2019’.

The report, which was a last ditch attempt to discredit antisemitism allegations in the Party, was intended to be sent to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which the new leadership of the Party declined to do, but it was leaked.

That leak is at the centre of another, ongoing lawsuit. It is understood that this settlement does not affect that case.

Campaign Against Antisemitism called at the time for the report to be sent to the EHRC as part of the evidence of antisemitism-denial and diminishment within the Party.

It is understood that the nine whistleblowers and the Labour Party have reached a settlement out of court, with a notice of discontinuance having been filed with the High Court.

The whistleblowers claimed that the Party had breached their rights to data privacy and exposed them to attacks online.

In a separate case, 21 claimants are suing Labour over alleged breaches of their data privacy rights and defamation.

There are estimates that the various cases could cost the Labour Party several million pounds.

A spokesperson for the Labour Party said: “We are pleased to be able to move forward in a positive manner. The Labour party is committed to continuing its work on combating antisemitism.”

The Labour Party was found by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to have engaged in unlawful discrimination and harassment of Jews. The report followed the EHRC’s investigation of the Labour Party in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the complainant, submitting hundreds of pages of evidence and legal argument. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the report a “day of shame” for the Labour Party.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Rory Stewart defends claim it was “disgusting” that antisemite Jeremy Corbyn had Labour whip withdrawn, before apologising

Rory Stewart, the former Conservative MP and candidate for the Party’s leadership, has defended his view that it was “disgusting” that Sir Keir Starmer withdrew the Labour whip from Jeremy Corbyn, before apologising today.

In an interview last week with the controversial far-left activist-journalist Ash Sarker on the far-left Novara Media blog, Mr Stewart said: “I think it’s disgusting he was thrown out of the Labour Party. I mean, it’s mad. Jeremy Corbyn, whatever you think of him, is a major figure who represents a very significant part of Labour history and heritage. He was the leader of the party.”

Mr Corbyn had the whip removed from the Parliamentary Labour Party and was suspended from the Labour Party but was subsequently readmitted to the latter, which means that he is a Labour member but sits as an independent MP.

Mr Stewart, who previously served as International Development Secretary, was asked about his comments by the JC, in view of Mr Corbyn’s record on antisemitism, and said: “I’m making a narrow point but I may have been over influenced by my own experience. There was horrifying antisemitism in Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party, I had friends who witnessed it directly and they expressed to me how disgusting it was. I absolutely believe it and it was a very good reason why people turned against Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party. However, I am concerned about the trend of MPs being expelled from political parties. Parties with serving MPs in Parliament should have broad coalitions.”

However, in an opinion editorial in the Jewish News today, Mr Stewart clarified: “My point was not to exonerate Corbyn but to oppose the principle of leaders  barring fellow members from standing as candidates as happened here. In a first past the post system like the US or the UK this operates – as I discovered personally – as a de facto expulsion from Parliament.”

He added: “None of this is to excuse the horrifying antisemitism that existed and was not addressed in Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party. I heard about it directly from many friends who I trust. Corbyn has a great deal to answer for. I also feel very uncomfortable trying to maintain a constitutional point over an issue which was so deeply hurtful and offensive and disturbing to so many. And I realise Corbyn is not the constitutional hill I would have wanted to choose to die on.

“Seeing the passionate responses to my original comments, I wanted to express many many apologies for stepping into this so insensitively. I don’t believe Starmer was right to expel Corbyn from Parliament, but Starmer has done the right thing in demonstrating that antisemitism will not be tolerated in his party.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism has lodged a complaint against Jeremy Corbyn, holding him responsible for conduct that is prejudicial or grossly detrimental to the Labour Party, as the Leader during the period of the EHRC’s shameful findings. Given the serious detriment that this conduct has caused, we are seeking Mr Corbyn’s immediate resuspension and, if the complaint is upheld, we will be requesting his expulsion. On the day of the publication of the EHRC’s report, we also submitted a major complaint against Mr Corbyn and other sitting MPs. These complaints are yet to be acknowledged by the Party, and they must be investigated by an independent disciplinary process that the EHRC has demanded and Sir Keir has promised but has yet to introduce.

The Labour Party was found by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to have engaged in unlawful discrimination and harassment of Jews. The report followed the EHRC’s investigation of the Labour Party in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the complainant, submitting hundreds of pages of evidence and legal argument. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the report a “day of shame” for the Labour Party.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Matt le Tissier reportedly shares content claiming Osama Bin Laden was Mossad agent

Matt le Tissier, a retired footballer, has reportedly shared content which claims that Osama Bin Laden was a Mossad agent.

The post, which was published by a different user on X, the social media platform formally known as Twitter, was accompanied by an inflammatory thread that said: “Who is Osama Bin Laden, well it may come to shock you that his actual name is Tim Osman, or Colonel Tim Osman, a CIA asset and Mossad agent who worked with the Justice Department.”

It continued: “The establishment media complex wants you to believe that the highest ranking terrorist known in America was simply assassinated after decades of failure to find him, then put on board an old Vietnam-era chopper only to be thrown into the sea thus eliminating all evidence.”

Alongside the post published the other user, Mr le Tissier wrote, “what a thread”.

Included in the thread of the post was a video featuring James Fetzer, an American academic who is known to promote Holocaust-denial and conspiracy theories. Mr Fetzer previously wrote: “My research on the Holocaust narrative suggests that it is not only untrue but provably false and not remotely scientifically sustainable.”

In the video, Mr Fetzer reportedly appears to describe accounts of the 9/11 attacks as “not just false but provably false”. He also allegedly claimed: “This whole project emanated in the fertile imagination of [Israeli Prime Ministers] Bibi Netanyahu and Ehud Olmert…to promote the Israeli agenda by drawing American forces into the Middle East.”

One of the posts in the thread appeared to reference the ‘dancing Israelis’ conspiracy theory: “Even though being suspects in the largest terror attack in our nation’s history, they were released.”

‘Dancing Israelis’ is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that alleges that five Israeli Mossad agents were witnessed by police to be dancing and celebrating the 9/11 attacks on a rooftop when they took place. It also alleges that the Israelis were involved in the attacks and that Jewish people were pre-warned to stay away from the buildings that day. 

It is understood that other comments in the thread denied the plausibility of the attacks entirely. 

In 2020, Mr le Tissier apologised for comparing rules on mask-wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic to the Holocaust in a highly controversial and ill-considered social media post.

Campaign Against Antisemitism continues to report on and act against instances of anti-Jewish racism in all sports.

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Patriotic Alternative speakers honour Sir Oswald Mosley at far-right gathering in Lancashire

Members of the far-right met for an event in Samlesbury, Lancashire on Saturday which hosted Patriotic Alternative speakers and honoured fascist Sir Oswald Mosley.

The event was organised by Heritage and Destiny, which meets annually. According to the group’s website, Heritage and Destiny “reflects a cross-section of 21st century racial nationalist opinion”. 

According to Heritage and Destiny, a total of eighty people attended the event and was chaired by Keith Axon, a former National Front and British National Party (BNP) organiser.

Several individuals were due to be commemorated at the event, including: Sir Oswald, who founded the British Union of Fascists; Ian Stuart Donaldson, a musician for the band, “White Power”; Derek Beackon, a former councillor for the British National Party; and Andrew Brons, a former Chairman of the National Front who was also a British National Party Member of European Parliament. 

Speaking at the event were Mark Collett and Laura Towler, who are respectively the Leader and Deputy Leader of the far-right group, Patriotic Alternative. Patriotic Alternative is a UK-based group headed by Mr Collett, the former leader of the youth wing of the BNP. Mr Collett is reported to have dabbled in Holocaust-denial, is regularly heard as a guest on the radio show of the former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard, David Duke, and has described the Holocaust as “an instrument of white guilt”.

Patriotic Alternative is known for its efforts to recruit youth to its white nationalist ideology. Previously, the far-right group published an online “alternative” homeschool curriculum condemned as “poison” and “hateful” and attempted to recruit children as young as twelve through live-streaming events on YouTube, according to The Times.

Other speakers at the event included Isabel Peralta, Ken Schmidt, Benny Bullman, Ian Stuart, John Kersey, Stephen Frost, Mark Cotterill and Peter Rushton.

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

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As Rosh Hashanah approaches, we reflect on a year of achievements and rededicate ourselves to the fight for justice for British Jews

In the coming days, Jews around the world will celebrate the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, a festival that has the theme of justice at its core. At this time of the year, we reflect on the achievements of the past year and rededicate ourselves to our mission of fighting for justice for British Jews.

In just the past few weeks, Abdullah Qureshi has been sentenced for violent antisemitic assaults against religious Jews in North London. This was only possible after we exposed a plea deal that he had agreed with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), as part of which the antisemitic element of the hate crimes was dropped. Only after we and other groups made representatives to the CPS did the court agree to reinstate the charges, and, two years after the attacks, he has finally been sentenced for the full horror of his crimes.

He is not the only illustration of a system that tries to downplay antisemitism. After six years of action by Campaign Against Antisemitism – including a private prosecution, a judicial review and a complaint to his regulator – the pharmacist Nazim Ali has finally been found to have made antisemitic comments at the pro-Hizballah ‘Al Quds Day’ march in London in 2017. An earlier hearing determined that the comments had not been antisemitic, and only after we and others appealed the matter, ultimately to the High Court, was that decision quashed and a new hearing held which made an opposite finding.

We have also been involved in the prosecution of a Tik Tok influencer who was invading the homes of the Jewish families in London, the antisemite Alison Chabloz lost an appeal in her latest case following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, and, in Scotland, the French far-right fugitive and Holocaust-denier Vincent Reynouard was finally arrested following appeals by Campaign Against Antisemitism, aided by our Honorary Patron Lord Austin. He now faces an extradition hearing, and, if he is extradited, he faces immediate imprisonment in France.

Campaign Against Antisemitism has also been granted intervener status in a High Court case brought by the disgraced former mayor Ken Livingstone against the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) over the EHRC’s investigation into Labour antisemitism, in which we were the complainant.

In the workplace, we continue to help victims in cases that do not make the headlines but make a big difference in the lives of ordinary Jews facing discrimination, for example in the case of a young Jewish employee whose employer we helped to sue for unfair dismissal, and a teacher, who, with our help, reached a settlement following multiple instances of antisemitism at their school.

On campuses, we continue to work with students, staff, administrators and other stakeholders to challenge antisemitism when it arises at universities around the country. For example, at Birkbeck, a professor is no longer working at the institution following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, and we have also made a detailed submission to the independent inquiry into antisemitism at Goldsmiths.

Meanwhile, a major independent report into antisemitism at the National Union of Students (NUS), to which Campaign Against Antisemitism contributed and which leaned on our research, found that NUS allowed the development of a “hostile environment” for Jewish students, with instances in which Jewish students were “subjected to harassment” likely to be in breach of the Equality Act 2010, in addition to NUS’s own code of conduct. The report rightly recognised that there has been a “poor relationship” between NUS and Jewish students for a long time. During the investigation, NUS took the unprecedented step of removing its President, Shaima Dallali.

Our communications work has also yielded tremendous successes over the past year. Retail giant Adidas ended its partnership with the rapper Kanye West after almost 200,000 people signed Campaign Against Antisemitism’s petition, which was backed by celebrities David Schwimmer, Chelsea Handler and others. We have also sustained international pressure on the musician Roger Waters, secured the cancellation of an antisemitism-denial propaganda film at Glastonbury Festival and many other venues around the country, and made videos exposing individuals and activist groups such as Just Stop Oil.

We also launched the first ever national antisemitism billboard campaign, highlighting the fact that Jews are 500% more likely to be the victims of a hate crime than any other faith group. These billboards were in dozens of locations across multiple cities including London, Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, Birmingham and Edinburgh. The campaign was featured in major locations such as Leicester Square, Heathrow airport, Westfield Shopping Centre and Manchester One. Among the models was a Holocaust survivor who has been left sickened by modern antisemitism, and, it is believed for the first time ever on a British billboard, a member of the Charedi Jewish community, which bears so much of the brunt of violent antisemitic crime.

Our work holding traditional media organisations to account has also borne fruit. For example, Ofcom finally rebuked the BBC over its coverage of the antisemitic Oxford Street incident, which followed action by Campaign Against Antisemitism and many others in the Jewish community. We have also been at the forefront of action against The Guardian, the BBC over other issues, and others.

We continue to be active in policy-making as well. We ensured that the new draft online safety bill would retain a key legal provision to enable the fight against antisemitism on the internet, and we have called on the British Government to proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation, providing a dossier of research to the Home Secretary, Security Minister and all MPs.

We also launched a first-of-its-kind study surveying in real-time the adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism by local authorities across the UK. It is the only such resource, and complements our existing similar database for universities. We made a submission to a Parliamentary committee calling for tougher punishments against racist local councillors, and we recently revealed that over 40 British universities have yet to adopt the Definition, despite calls from the Government and the Jewish community to do so. We have also urged the United Nations finally to adopt the Definition.

The only way to inoculate against the virus of antisemitism is through education. That is why we continue to offer educational classes in Jewish and non-Jewish schools and synagogues, a curriculum for non-Jewish schools that is also featured on BBC Teach, events for the public, and regular training for corporations, charities, regulators, police forces, university societies and others. Our annual internship programme grows in popularity every year, and our podcast – the only podcast in the world dedicated to antisemitism – is in the top five percent most shared podcasts globally on streaming giant Spotify, and is in the top ten percent most followed podcasts. Guests have included David Baddiel, Eddie Marsan, Robert Rinder, Simon Brodkin, Elon Gold, Modi Rosenfeld, Ben M. Freeman, Eve Barlow, Natan Levy and numerous other celebrities, influencers, rabbis, academics, activists and authors.

This is just a selection of what our volunteers, who work day in and day out, have achieved, with the support of our staff and lawyers, who are paid for by donors who give what they can to make this work possible.

Please help us to keep achieving our goals.

To keep up to date with our work, please subscribe or follow @antisemitism on all major social media platforms.

From everyone at Campaign Against Antisemitism, we wish you a happy and healthy Jewish new year ahead!

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Conservative MP hires former Labour councillor with history of inflammatory comments about Jews 

A Conservative MP has hired a former Labour Party councillor who has a history of making inflammatory comments about Jews. 

Paul Bristow, the Conservative MP for Peterborough, hired Ansar Ali, who used to be a councillor for Peterborough City Council, according to the JC.

Mr Ali was suspended from the Labour Party in 2021 whilst under investigation after he posted that he was “boycotting the biased BBC” because the broadcaster “didn’t want to upset the Zionist Israeli government lobby”. Mr Ali was reinstated to the Party after it concluded its investigation. 

The Labour Party is alleged not to have investigated other social media posts that he published, such as one in 2017 linking to an article asking, “How many British MPs are working for Israel?” which he described as “interesting and thought-provoking”, and another from 2016 referencing “Nazi-Zionist collaboration”.

Mr Bristow has acknowledged that whilst he was aware that Mr Ali had been suspended by Labour due to accusations of antisemitism, he had not “closely checked” what prompted the investigation. Nevertheless, according to Mr Bristow, Mr Ali “regrets deeply this social media activity and now sees clearly why it is antisemitic”. 

Mr Bristow added: “In an environment where material such as this (and worse) is being shared openly, he should have known much better.

 “I know some will disagree with my decision to give Ansar a chance to make amends. People may be disappointed. I understand this. But I am convinced that Ansar will stand with me in the fight against hatred and antisemitism. He will use his experience and mistakes as lessons for others.

“Ultimately the proof will be in actions, not words, and I look forward to this being demonstrated. By having his support, I will make a bigger difference than asking him to walk away.”

Mr Bristow also recommended that local politicians in the area undertake antisemitism training: “I think all councillors in Peterborough need to go through antisemitism training as a matter of course. We have a deserved reputational issue.  We owe it to Peterborough to address it.”

Mr Bristow also confirmed that Mr Ali will remain working for the Conservative Party in his role as a translator and caseworker for Mr Bristow’s constituency office. 

Mr Ali said: “In the past I have commented and shared social media posts that I now fully understand would have caused hurt and distress to members of the Jewish faith. This was wrong, and I deeply regret any hurt I have caused to the Jewish community and others.

“I have always considered myself someone who works to bring diverse communities in Peterborough and beyond together. These specific examples of social media activity fell well short of this aspiration.

“I shall work to ensure all community leaders strive to eliminate antisemitism and all forms of racial hatred and division wherever it is expressed. I aspire for a just and peaceful world where humanity comes first. Justice for All. Love for all, hate for none.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

Image credit: Twitter via the JC

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Camp for former soldiers revealed to be hotbed of antisemitic conspiracy theories

A camp for former British soldiers has been revealed to be a hotbed of antisemitic conspiracy theories. 

PTSD Camp Bath, a camp for “ex-forces with PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder]”, has allegedly hosted several antisemitic conspiracy theorists as well as far-right individuals, according to an investigation by the JC.

The camp is located in a rural area and offers therapy sessions with horses as well as classes on woodland skills.

According to the investigation, the centre is run by Dion Drayford and Jo Drayford. Mr Drayford has reportedly appeared on podcasts with members of Patriotic Alternative (PA). According to his wife, Mr Drayford previously worked as a bodyguard in Iraq for American clients and, before that, served as a paratrooper for around twenty years. 

His wife, Jo, is also known to have been a guest on a podcast with the alleged former East of England organiser for PA, Chris Mitchell. 

PA is a UK-based group headed by the former leader of the youth wing of the BNP, Mark Collett. Mr Collett is reported to have dabbled in Holocaust denial, is regularly heard as a guest on the radio show of the former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard, David Duke, and has described the Holocaust as “an instrument of white guilt”.

PA is known for its efforts to recruit youth to its white nationalist ideology. Previously, the far-right group published an online “alternative” homeschool curriculum condemned as “poison” and “hateful” and attempted to recruit children as young as twelve through live-streaming events on YouTube, according to The Times.

In 2017, Mr Drayford reportedly shared content that claimed to uncover a “Jewish organ-trafficking centre”. In the content, it was alleged that Jews harvest organs from Syrian refugees. 

Currently, the centre is understood to be organising a fundraiser for Alfred Guenigault. Mr Guenigault is a 98-year-old veteran who fought in the Second World War and whose landlord evicted him from his home. The fundraiser is claimed to be organised by Darren Edmundson, the self-proclaimed “Pembrokeshire Patriot” who was involved in protests against asylum seekers arriving in the UK. It is understood that the logos of both PTSD Camp Bath and Patriotic Alternative appear on the fundraising videos.

John Lawrence, the founder and leader of the National Housing Party, is known to have made a livestream in which he encouraged people to donate to Mr Guenigault. 

According to its website, the National Housing Party is a “nationalist party with realistic policies which will benefit both the indigenous population and UK citizens”. According to the Party, “the politically correct society we now live in is a vicious anti-white and anti-Christian one.”

Mr Lawrence has reportedly said: “I’ve met many veterans alongside Dion [Mr Drayson] at the camp.”

Earlier this year, a message on Telegram was reportedly sent from the National Housing Party which read: “Every major contributor to the dogma of Cultural Marxism was Jewish. The Frankfurt School from where it originated was a nest of Jews. Its goal was simple destroy white Christian civilisation and replace it with a multicultural madhouse under Jewish hegemony [sic].” 

The Party has also allegedly said that “there is not an anti-Jewish agenda… there is a vicious anti-white agenda” and that the “mainly Jewish” Soviet authorities were responsible for the deaths of Christian Ukrainians by starvation. 

Nigel Marcham and Alan Leggett, who are nicknamed “Little Veteran” and “Active Patriot” respectively, are understood to be attendees at the camp. Both Mr Marcham and Mr Leggett were previously banned from the docks at Dover after a judge concluded that they were “abusing” migrants. 

In 2020, Mr Marcham allegedly led a protest against boat crossings over the Channel. The protest, which was attended by white nationalists, led to the port being closed. 

A spokesperson for the Government said: “There is no place in our country for antisemitism in any form – it is abhorrent and will not be tolerated. The UK has some of the strongest legislation in the world, but we recognise there is more work to be done and will continue to push for prosecution where religious or racially motivated criminal activity occurs. We also continue to work closely with Jewish communities and the police to tackle hate crime.”

Simon Fell, the MP for Barrow and Furness who sits on the Home Affairs Select Committee, said: “Given the links to Patriotic Alternative, this is deeply concerning. The police and the Home Office must scrutinise this camp very carefully to ensure it is not a front for more insidious activity.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

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CAA writes to Charity Commission over charity that hosted senior commanders from antisemitic Islamist terrorist group

Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the Charity Commission last month over a charity that hosted senior commanders from the antisemitic Islamist terrorist group, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

It was reported last month that several IRGC leaders gave lectures to students nationally. It is believed that some of the talks have been held at the registered address of the Al-Tawheed Charitable Trust.

The Al-Tawheed Charitable Trust is understood to be under investigation already by the Commission due to “serious concerns regarding events held at its premises” after the charity reportedly held an event to celebrate and commemorate Qasem Soleimani, an IRGC terrorist mastermind who was assassinated by the United States in 2020. 

The lectures were reportedly organised by the Islamic Students Association of Britain. 

The Islamic Students Association of Britain reportedly has branches on university campuses in Bradford, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Cambridge.

Saeed Ghasemi, reported to be a former general in the IRGC, allegedly told British students that the Holocaust was “fake”.

“The one that the Jews say happened is fake. The real Holocaust happened in my country in the First World War, 1917-19, when the UK occupied Iran,” he reportedly said during an online talk.

He also is reported to have encouraged his audience of students to join “the beautiful list of soldiers” who would fight and kill Jews in a coming apocalyptic war. 

Hossein Yekta, another figure believed to be a high-ranking IRGC official, is said to have accused Jews of having “created homosexuality”. He allegedly told students that they should view themselves as “holy warriors”, promising them that the “era of the Jews” would soon be at an end. 

Earlier this year, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to all MPs calling on them to back the Government’s reported proposal to proscribe the IRGC under the Terrorism Act 2000.

We provided the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, and the Security Minister, Tom Tugendhat, and all MPs with a dossier on the IRGC, detailing its horrendous record of antisemitism and violence against Jewish people.

The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has a long and appalling record of promoting antisemitic propaganda, including Holocaust-denial, and funding and orchestrating violence against Jews. This is in addition to being the world’s biggest state-sponsor of terrorism more generally, the effects of which are not only profound in the Middle East but felt on every continent in the world. According to our nation’s security chiefs, Iran directly threatens the UK.

But what is less known is that it is specifically the IRGC that is one of the principal instruments through which the Iranian regime carries out these endeavours.

Founded in 1979 by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the IRGC is a paramilitary force that answers directly to the radical regime. Its purpose is to serve as a praetorian guard for the theocracy at home and to advance its interests abroad. That includes training, arming and supporting terrorist groups and encouraging strategic acts of terror against targets deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic.

The IRGC has a paramount role in cultivating antisemitic sentiment, giving succour to antisemites and backing terrorism against Jews.

The IRGC is a vital organ pumping out antisemitic propaganda in Iran and through the Middle East, it emboldens those who wish harm to Jewish people in the name of extremist religion, and it is the indispensable patron of such antisemitic genocidal terrorist groups as Hizballah and Hamas, both of which are proscribed by the UK.

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BBC admits presenter’s accusation that “Israeli forces are happy to kill children” was not impartial

The BBC Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) has admitted that its presenter’s baseless accusation that “Israeli forces are happy to kill children” was not impartial. 

The outrageous and unfounded claim came during an interview on BBC News in July with the former Prime Minister of Israel, Naftali Bennett, about Israel’s military operation in Jenin, which has now concluded.

When speaking on the topic of the targets of the operation, Anjana Gadgil, the presenter who conducted the interview, stated: “The Israeli forces are happy to kill children.” 

Mr Bennett robustly rejected the baseless assertion, including by noting that the seventeen-year-olds in question were armed combatants.

The notion that the military of the state of Israel – the Jewish state – is “happy” to kill minors draws on the symbolism of the blood libel.

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g. claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterise Israel or Israelis” is an example of antisemitism.

The original antisemitic blood libel dates to 1144, when Jews in England were falsely accused of the murder of a boy known as William of Norwich.

Incidents of blood libel grew in the Middle Ages, with Jews accused of murdering Christian children in order to use their blood in Passover rituals. In 1290, it was a pretext for the confiscation of all Jewish property and the complete expulsion of Jews from England. They were not permitted to return until centuries later. The blood libel has been a case of much persecution and murder of Jews ever since, including up to the present day.

In the modern era, updated versions of the blood libel continue to pervade antisemitic discourse.  Contemporary manifestations include the accusation that Jews or the Jewish state steal human organs, drink or utilise the blood of non-Jews, or willfully and readily murder non-Jewish – particularly Arab – children.

After Campaign Against Antisemitism and many others complained to the BBC about the comments, the broadcaster apologised. Now the ECU has also published the results of its investigation.

A spokesperson for the ECU said: “The ECU accepted that, as phrased, the statement might have given viewers the impression that they were hearing the presenter’s personal view on a controversial matter, and that it therefore fell below the BBC’s standards of impartiality.”

The spokesperson also said that BBC News had “already acknowledged a problem with the interview” on its corrections webpage and that it, therefore, considered the complaint resolved. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors traditional media and regularly holds outlets to account. If members of the public are concerned about reportage in the media, they should contact us at [email protected].

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BBC to work with expelled Labour member and controversial filmmaker Ken Loach

The BBC is reportedly set to work on a film with the expelled Labour member and controversial filmmaker Ken Loach.

The film, entitled, “Downtrodden”, is reportedly in partnership between the BBC and Mr Loach’s production company, Sixteen Films, according to The Telegraph. 

Mr Loach was expelled from the Labour Party in August 2021 without public explanation. Mr Loach had been a leading ally of other controversial figures in Labour’s antisemitism scandal, especially those who denied that there was such a scandal of antisemitism. He said at the time of his expulsion: “Labour HQ finally decided I’m not fit to be a member of their party, as I will not disown those already expelled,” adding that he was “proud to stand with the good friends and comrades victimised by the purge. There is indeed a witch-hunt…Starmer and his clique will never lead a party of the people. We are many, they are few. Solidarity.”

Mr Loach’s voice was among the loudest of those who attempt to dismiss Labour’s antisemitism crisis as non-existent and a right-wing smear campaign. He claimed that Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was subjected to a “torrent of abuse” that was “off the scale” and that regardless of what he did, the “campaign” of antisemitism accusations was “going to run and run”. He described the BBC’s Panorama investigation into Labour antisemitism as “disgusting because it raised the horror of racism against Jews in the most atrocious propagandistic way, with crude journalism…and it bought the propaganda from people who were intent on destroying Corbyn.”

He was also reportedly behind a motion passed by Bath Labour Party branding the Panorama programme a “dishonest hatchet job with potentially undemocratic consequences” and asserting that it “disgraced the name of Panorama and exposed the bias endemic within the BBC.” John Ware, the programme’s reporter, is apparently considering legal action against Mr Loach for his comments.

In 2017, Mr Loach caused outrage when, during an interview with the BBC, he refused to denounce Holocaust-denial. The International Definition of Antisemitism states that “denying the fact, scope, mechanisms (e.g. gas chambers) or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust)” is a manifestation of antisemitism. Although Mr Loach later sought to clarify his remarks, he has continued to make inflammatory and provocative statements about Labour’s antisemitism scandal.

While speaking at a meeting of the Kingswood Constituency Labour Party, Mr Loach advocated the removal from the Party of those Labour MPs, some of whom are Jewish, who have taken a principled stand against antisemitism. Shortly after that incident, the Labour Party announced that it would no longer use Mr Loach as a producer of their election broadcasts.

The Labour Party was found by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to have engaged in unlawful discrimination and harassment of Jews. The report followed the EHRC’s investigation of the Labour Party in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the complainant, submitting hundreds of pages of evidence and legal argument. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the report a “day of shame” for the Labour Party.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This is a terrible lapse in judgement which we will discuss with the BBC. Ken Loach has been just appalling in his antisemitism-denial, not only during the years of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party, but long after the Equality and Human Rights Commission found evidence of illegal antisemitism and the Labour Party admitted it. Even the Labour Party has ditched him, so why would anyone think he’s still an acceptable partner for the BBC?”

Mr Loach has denied that he is involved in the production of “Downtrodden”, reportedly telling the PA news agency:  “This is unfounded abuse from a pressure group. I have answered such allegations many times. There are important questions to put to the CAA [Campaign Against Antisemitism] when it makes these unpleasant attacks. They have a political agenda and they clearly do not represent all Jewish people, maybe only a minority. They never challenge me directly, simply seek to cause professional damage and personal distress.”

Mr Loach reportedly described himself as a “target” for pressure groups such as Campaign Against Antisemitism, purportedly because he is “known to be of the left” and someone “who supports Palestinian rights”. He added: “In this instance, the CAA has its facts wrong. I am not a producer of the film Downtrodden, nor involved in its production. Sixteen Films is a production company that works with several directors.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

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Labour spends over £500,000 in lawsuit over controversial leaked antisemitism report

The Labour Party has spent over £500,000 in legal costs as part of its case against former staffers who are accused of leaking an internal antisemitism report. 

The costs, reported to be at least £503,260, are understood to relate to a recent hearing in which the Party tried to gain access to Laura Murray’s e-mails. Ms Murray is a disgraced former aide to Jeremy Corbyn who was appointed to lead the Labour Party’s disciplinary process during his tenure as leader of the Party.

The hearing is part of a wider counterclaim against the Party’s former staffers who were criticised in a controversial internal report into the handling of antisemitism cases by the Party. The report, which was a last ditch attempt to discredit allegations of antisemitism in the Party, was intended to be sent to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) as part of its landmark investigation into Labour antisemitism in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the originating complainant.

In the counterclaim, four other former staffers are named: Karie Murphy, a trade unionist and Mr Corbyn’s chief of staff, whose nomination for a peerage was blocked; Harry Hayball, a staffer in Labour’s Governance and Legal Unit and former Head of Digital Communications at the pro-Corbyn Momentum pressure group, who was reportedly labelled as the author in the report’s metadata; Seamus Milne, the far-left journalist who served as Mr Corbyn’s Executive Director of Strategy and Communications; and George Robertson, who worked in Labour’s communications team.

Last year, it was reported that Labour could face up to £5 million in claims and counterclaims relating to the leaked report. 

The Labour Party was found by the EHRC to have engaged in unlawful discrimination and harassment of Jews. The report followed the EHRC’s investigation of the Labour Party in which Campaign Against Antisemitism was the complainant, submitting hundreds of pages of evidence and legal argument. Sir Keir Starmer called the publication of the report a “day of shame” for the Labour Party.

A spokesperson for the Labour Party said: “The party has conducted a wide-ranging and appropriately thorough investigation following the leak and is confident of the case it has presented to the court. That remains the case.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Green Party announces expelled Labour Party councillor as prospective parliamentary candidate

The Green Party has announced that Jo Bird, a controversial expelled Labour Party councillor, has been selected as a prospective parliamentary candidate for the Party.  

A post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, for the Wirral Green Party read: “We’re pleased to announce our Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Birkenhead, Cllr Jo Bird. #JoBird4Birkenhead #GetGreensElected”. 

Cllr Bird then retweeted the post and wrote, “Birkenhead deserves better,” before continuing to list various policy issues. 

Cllr Bird, who re-joined the Labour Party in 2015 when Jeremy Corbyn was running for the Party’s leadership, has a long history of controversy relating to Jews, including renaming ‘due process’ in the Labour Party as “Jew process”, for which she was suspended; supporting the expelled Labour activist and friend of Mr Corbyn, Marc Wadsworth, who was thrown out of the Party after a confrontation with Jewish then-MP Ruth Smeeth; and worrying about the “privileging of racism against Jews, over and above — as more worthy of resources than other forms of racism.”

Elected to Wirral Council in August 2018, Cllr Bird has been a member of Jewish Voice for Labour, the antisemitism-denial group and sham Jewish representative organisation, and she has described Labour’s institutional antisemitism as based on mere “accusations, witch-huntery and allegations without evidence”.

Cllr Bird appears to have been expelled from Labour for her association with the proscribed antisemitism-denial group, Labour Against the Witchhunt.

Cllr Bird then joined the Green Party last year, after Campaign Against Antisemitism warned of the danger of controversial activists who have left the Labour Party joining the Greens instead.

Earlier this year, the Jewish Greens appointed Cllr Bird as a senior officer. 

Our polling of British Jews found that the Greens were second only to Labour in how many respondents felt that the Party was too tolerant of antisemitism (43%).

Campaign Against Antisemitism has extensively documented alleged antisemitism among officers of the Green Party of England and Wales, including the Party’s former Equalities and Diversity Coordinator, on which the Green Party has failed to act.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

Campaign Against Antisemitism advocates for zero tolerance of antisemitism in public life. To that end we monitor all political parties and strive to ensure that any cases of concern are properly addressed.

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Government promises to end public funding to mosques that host hate-preachers 

The Government has pledged to halt public funding of mosques that host hate-preachers. 

An investigation by the JC revealed that four mosques that have hosted inflammatory speakers in Britain have received substantial public grants in recent years. 

The investigation found that Finsbury Park Mosque in North London received almost £300,000 from Islington Council between 2017 and 2022. 

Earlier this year, the mosque’s General Secretary, Mohammed Kozbar, reportedly wrote on Facebook that he was “honoured” to meet the antisemitic former Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad. 

In 2015, Mr Kozbar allegedly visited the grave of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and described him as “the master of the martyrs of resistance, the mujahid [holy warrior] sheikh, the teacher.” Mr Yassin is known as one of the founders of Hamas, an antisemitic genocidal terrorist group.

Mr Kozbar has also reportedly met senior Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Mahmoud al-Zahar.

In 2021, the UK banned Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist group following calls by Campaign Against Antisemitism and others.

Mr Kozbar also hosted Egyptian cleric Omar Abdelkafi. Despite Mr Abdelkafi’s record of quoting from the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and a Facebook post that included a prayer to “liberate the al-Aqsa mosque from the filth of the Jews,” Mr Kozbar reportedly described him as “our beloved preacher”.

In 2011, Mr Kozbar was reportedly caught on video speaking at an anti-Israel rally, where he allegedly said that he looked forward “to the end of Israel, inshallah.”

He has also reportedly given public support to the disgraced Bristol University academic David Miller and to Shaima Dallali, who was removed from her position as President of the National Union of Students amidst allegations of antisemitism.

Days after the investigation was published, Jeremy Corbyn, the former Leader of the Labour Party, wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter: “Finsbury Park Mosque offers a place of peace, hope and solidarity to so many people in our community. We will not be divided by those in our media who seek to sow hatred and fear. It is love for our neighbours, whatever their faith, that unites us all.”

According to the investigation, Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre in Birmingham was reported in August to have received a grant of £2.2million from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). 

The funding is understood to come from a Government Youth Investment Fund and is for the mosque to build a centre for young people. The centre would host courses provided by the mosque on topics such as “how to empower marginalised communities” and “critical thinking”.

The decision to award the mosque money was reportedly made by the Social Investment Business (SIB). SIB is a foundation that is contracted by DCMS to help with decisions in social investment. 

A spokesperson for SIB said that the distribution of the grant has been “paused”. A “pre-construction” grant of £600,000 however, has already been paid to the mosque. 

In terms of SIB’s vetting processes, the spokesperson said: “Prior to any decision to award beneficiaries funding, due diligence checks are conducted.” 

The spokesperson added: “This includes information publicly available via the Charity Commission and Companies House, as well as extensive assessments of project bids and documentation.” 

In 2021, Shaykh Zakaullah Saleem, the mosque’s Head Imam and Head of Education, reportedly said in a recorded talk that female adulterers should be killed and that “there must be a hole dug in the earth and she [the adulterer] must be covered up to half her body.” 

In 2019, Shaykh abu Usamah at-Thahabi, who is known to be a regular speaker at Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre, appeared in a video that was posted to the mosque’s YouTube channel in which he said that he was stopped from entering Israel as he was considered a “threat to public safety”. He later reportedly remarked in the same video that he was not a threat and that his visit was to see holy sites in Jerusalem before comparing Israel to a “concentration camp”. 

In another video, Mr Thahabi allegedly said that “the Jews made a lot of trouble for the Arabs in Medina, a lot of trouble.”

He has also reportedly expressed homophobic beliefs publicly which included saying, “you make sure you kill the one who is doing it and the one who it is being done to,” after suggesting that Shariah law permitted killing LGBTQ+ people. 

It is also understood that the mosque hosted a speaker who claimed that Jews are “people of envy” who “killed the prophets and the messengers”. 

Another video appeared to show a leading imam of the mosque saying that women who are adulterous should be stoned to death. 

A spokesperson for Green Lane Masjid and Community Centre claimed that the video “lacked context” and was “taken from a wide-ranging theological discourse that included the recounting of events in Arabia over 1,400 years ago…he did not suggest that these practices have a place in UK society.”

The investigation also found that Lewisham Islamic Centre in South London received nearly £540,000 between 2015 and 2022 in “local authority grants”. 

In 2016, the mosque’s Head Imam, Shakeel Begg, was determined by a High Court judge to have “promoted violence in support of Islam” during his unsuccessful libel claim against the BBC.

It is also understood that Mr Begg told young Muslims to “go to Palestine and fight the Zionists.”

Lewisham Council has reportedly said that it has no record of the grants made between 2015 and 2022.

Michael Adebolajo, who murdered British soldier Lee Rigby, used to be a member of the Lewisham congregation and attended a speech by Mr Begg at the mosque in 2021. During the speech, Mr Begg reportedly showed support for the use of rockets against Israel. Mr Adebolajo described the speech as “inspiring”. 

Mr Begg said that he was “appalled” by the murder of Mr Rigby. 

In the centre’s 2022 Annual Report, there is an endorsement by Ellie Reeves, the Labour MP for Lewisham West, which says that the centre does “absolutely brilliant work for the Lewisham community”. In the same report, Damian Egan, the Labour Mayor of Lewisham, described it as “a source of guidance, community and friendship”. 

Another mosque was revealed to have received over £850,000 between 2017 and 2022. Jamia Islamia Ghousia in Luton is believed to have received the funding locally from its town council. 

In 2021, Jamia Islamia Ghousia allegedly backed a rally where the speaker, Attiq Malik, reportedly claimed that Israel was committing “genocide” and said that this was underreported in the media due to “global censorship by Zionists”.

It is understood that the mosque’s Chief Imam attended the rally. 

At the same rally, another speaker reportedly said that “Israel is a disease that needs to be cut out,” before leading a chant that said: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” only makes sense as a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a State of Palestine — and is thus an attempt to deny Jews, uniquely, the right to self-determination, which is a breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. 

According to the Definition, “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination (e.g. by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour)” is an example of antisemitism.

It is understood that following the investigation, Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, and Michael Gove, the Communities Secretary are pushing for better “due diligence” checks to be conducted by the Government and local governing bodies.

Rachel Hopkins, the Labour MP for Luton South, attended the rally and said to local media afterwards: “I was proud to speak at today’s Luton demo against the abuses in Israel and Palestine. There’s no justification for such violent, traumatic attacks.” 

Campaign Against Antisemitism works to raise awareness of antisemitism among all faith and minority communities.

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Former prison officer who shared neo-Nazi rap songs sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment 

A former prison officer who shared neo-Nazi rap songs was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment on Thursday. 

Ashley Podsiad-Sharp, 42, from Barnsley, was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on the charge of being in possession of material likely to be of use to a terrorist contrary to section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000. 

Mr Podsiad-Sharp formerly worked as a prison officer at a men’s prison in Armley, Leeds. 

The material in question was the White Resistance Manual. According to law enforcement authorities in California, the White Resistance Manual is “basically a guerrilla warfare manual instructing people on different types of weapons, on creating weapons, on police investigations, basically how to conduct covert urban operations.”

The manual states: “No longer will we allow the Jews to live like parasites upon the body of our race. No longer will we tolerate any Jewish influence in our political system, our legal system or our mass-media.” 

Following an investigation into Mr Podsiad-Sharp’s online activity, he was arrested by Counter Terrorism Policing North East with the assistance of South Yorkshire Police, in May 2022.

In May, he appeared at Sheffield Crown Court where he faced accusations of running an online fitness club in which he promoted terrorism through the use of neo-Nazi rap music.

Said to be the founder of the White Stag Athletic Club, Mr Podsiad-Sharp described the club as “nationalist boy scouts for grown-ups”, which he said was “something beautiful, a brotherhood among a lot of men who have none — white working-class men”. As part of the process for new recruits for the club, members were asked if they were of Jewish or Muslim heritage, mixed race or LGBTQ+. 

Judge Richardson said during Mr Podsiad-Sharp’s sentencing: “The simple fact of the matter is you created a cauldron of self-absorbed neo-Nazism masquerading as a low grade all-male sports club. This sought to camouflage your real purpose to incite violence against those you hated with a vengeance. Those individuals were inadequate, ill-educated, unsuccessful, and dangerous. The terrorist manual was an integral part of this scheme. Sooner or later that violence would have eventuated.”

“You place Hitler and his henchmen as idols in your life,” Judge Richardson later added.

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

Image credit: Counter Terrorism Policing North East

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Former RAF cadet and “Hitler’s strongest soldier” admits to far-right graffiti

A former RAF (Royal Air Force) cadet admitted in court on Friday that he was responsible for far-right graffiti.

An unnamed seventeen-year-old boy appeared in court at the Old Bailey and admitted two separate acts of vandalism in 2022 on a Windrush memorial in Port Talbot. The graffiti consisted of a swastika, text that read, “Nazi zone” and “1488”, and a racial slur. 

1488 is often used as a coded reference to the neo-Nazi fourteen-word oath, “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children,” a slogan initially devised by David Lane, a member of the white supremacist terrorist group “The Order”, which was responsible for the murder of Jewish radio host Alan Berg. The number 88 refers to the eighth letter of the alphabet, H, and is intended as a code for “Heil Hitler.”

The Court heard about the teenager’s troubling history of engagement with far-right ideology, which included: Being banned from Instagram for posting Nazi content; owning a copy of Mein Kampf, which was bought for him by his mother; and having an internet history of extreme far-right material. 

According to the prosecution, police also found knives, a gasmask, a KKK flag, a swastika flag and an air rifle among the defendant’s possessions. 

A video was shown in Court where the teenager posed with the air rifle and called himself, “Hitler’s strongest soldier”. Another video showed him wearing a swastika necklace and talking about “white power”.

It was also found that the defendant wrote “check my art out” on Telegram after the mural was vandalised. 

The Court heard that the defendant was referred to the Government’s Prevent programme last year by his RAF cadet group. He was later expelled from the group when he shared an image of himself with a swastika on his chest with other cadets. 

Lucy Jones, prosecuting, also presented content from the defendant’s diary, which included an entry that expressed desire for a “race war”. 

Another entry included a to-do list that detailed items such as “burn a building down, maybe bomb it”, “kill someone”, “join a Nazi militia”, “get a gun or make one” and “get buff as hell”.

The teenager previously pled guilty to two charges of possessing a terrorist document, three charges of distributing a terrorist document and three charges of criminal damage in June. 

The defendant is due to be sentenced in September and will remain on unconditional bail until then. 

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

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After six years, GPhC finally admits pharmacist Nazim Ali’s comments at pro-Hizballah rally were antisemitic, but still lets him off with just a warning

Following six years of dogged action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has finally admitted that comments by the pharmacist Nazim Ali were antisemitic, but has still let him off with just a warning.

The GPhC’s Fitness to Practise Committee ruled that Mr Ali’s conduct while leading the pro-Hizballah ‘Al Quds Day’ march in London in 2017 brought his profession into disrepute due to comments made over a public address system that the Committee found to be antisemitic.

Today’s hearing comes after a previous decision by the GPhC to let Mr Ali off with a warning was quashed following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, which, along with others, took the matter to the Professional Standards Authority (PSA). Campaign Against Antisemitism has also brought a private prosecution, launched a judicial review, and submitted the initial complaint to the GPhC, in our efforts to secure justice.

Ultimately those efforts have succeeded today, much as the final sanction is unacceptably weak.

At the hearing in London today, two of the four comments made by Mr Ali at the ‘Al Quds Day’ march in London on 18th June 2017 were found to have been antisemitic, based on how a “reasonable person” would have understood the comments.

The two comments, made before a crowd holding Hizballah flags and placards proclaiming “We are all Hizballah” were: “Any Zionist, any Jew coming into your centre supporting Israel, any Jew coming into your centre who is a Zionist, any Jew coming into your centre who is a member of the Board of Deputies, is not a Rabbi, he is an imposter”; and “They are responsible for the murder of the people in Grenfell. The Zionist supporters of the Tory Party,” referring to the tragic fire in which seventy-two people had perished four days prior to the march. The Committee found that it was “proved” that the comments were antisemitic.

The Committee made reference to the International Definition of Antisemitism, and determined that a reasonable person could find that the first comment “conveyed [that] there are certain categories of persons who are not [a] proper representation” of Jews, and that the use of the word “imposter” was antisemitic because it “displayed hostility to the Jewish people”.

With regard to the second comment, the Committee found that, given that Zionism had nothing to do with the tragic Grenfell Tower fire, a reasonable person could view “Zionist” in this comment as a synonym for Jews, and that this engaged the Definition, according to which “Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, or even for acts committed by non-Jews” is an example of antisemitism. The Committee found that, in this instance, “‘Zionist’ connoted antisemitic tropes.”

The sanction of a warning was considered suitable by the Committee even though it found that Mr Ali’s remarks were given greater “salience” by the fact that he led the rally, rather than merely participating in it, and that his claims about the Grenfell Tower tragedy were made soon after the fire when emotions would have been at their “rawest”. Despite these findings, the next level of sanction — suspension — was not even sought by the GPhC’s counsel.

Disappointingly and inexplicably, an additional two comments, “It’s in their genes. Zionists are here to occupy Regent Street. It’s in their genes. It’s in their genetic code”; and “European alleged Jews. Remember brothers and sisters, Zionists are not Jews,” were “not proved” to be antisemitic. Regarding the first comment, in this case “Zionists” was not deemed to be synonymous with ‘Jews’, and the second comment about Zionists not being Jews was supposedly ambiguous, and the Committee understood it to mean simply that ‘Zionists are not the same as Jews,’ and concluded that that was not an antisemitic comment.

Nevertheless, the Committee deemed that the “nature of what was said amounted to serious misconduct” and that it constituted an impairment to practise “on public interest grounds”, and that it was “entirely likely he would be identified as a pharmacist,” and indeed Campaign Against Antisemitism did identify him as such. It was found that he “did not lead by example,” as is required by all in the pharmaceutical profession, and his “comments brought the [pharmaceutical] profession into disrepute.”

While the Committee did not feel that Mr Ali posed a risk to patients, and even though he did not repeat his comments in subsequent years, the Committee concluded that he had brought the profession into disrepute with his comments, and that his words “had caused damage to the public’s confidence in the pharmaceutical profession.”

Despite the damage to the profession that the Committee found that Mr Ali’s comments caused, the Committee nonetheless decided to issue Mr Ali with only a warning, a weak sanction that a reasonable person would interpret as indicative of an unseriousness toward racist conduct as it pertains to Jews.

In 2020, the GPhC’s Fitness to Practise Committee found that Mr Ali had brought the pharmaceutical profession into disrepute. Although the Fitness to Practise Committee had found that Mr Ali’s words were offensive, it did not find that the words had been antisemitic, and the panel let him off with only a formal warning.

Following the GPhC’s ruling, Campaign Against Antisemitism and others made representations to the PSA, which oversees disciplinary decisions made by the GPhC. We asked the PSA to use its statutory power to appeal the GPhC’s decision to the High Court under the National Health Service Reform and Healthcare Professionals Act 2002, on the grounds that the decision made by the GPhC panel was insufficient to protect the public because it was “irrational and perverse”.

In particular, we asked the PSA to review the GPhC’s ruling that Mr Ali’s statements were not antisemitic, including by attempting to distinguish between “antisemitism” and “antisemitic”. We asked the PSA to consider the International Definition of Antisemitism, which has been adopted by the British Government, and the Guidance to all Judiciary in England and Wales produced by the Judicial College that makes clear that the word “Zionist” or “Zio” as a term of abuse has no place in a civilised society.

The PSA made the referral that we requested, opening the way for the High Court to decide whether to quash the GPhC panel’s decision. Subsequently, the GPhC itself also agreed with Campaign Against Antisemitism and declared that it would not oppose the appeal at the High Court, leaving Mr Ali to do so himself. The High Court allowed the PSA’s appeal, ruling that the case was to be remitted to the Fitness to Practise Committee to redetermine whether Mr Ali’s comments had been antisemitic. Mr Ali subsequently sought leave to appeal the High Court’s ruling in the Court of the Appeal, but permission to appeal was refused.

Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Today’s ruling marks the culmination of more than six years of work by Campaign Against Antisemitism to secure justice against the leader of the infamous 2017 pro-Hizballah ‘Al Quds Day’ march. It has finally been ruled that Nazim Ali’s address to the crowd contained antisemitic invective, an obvious conclusion that has been resisted for years.

“Despite this admission at long last by the GPhC, Mr Ali has only been given a warning, a slap-on-the-wrist sanction that shows a disturbing lack of seriousness toward racist conduct as it pertains to Jews.

“The road to justice in this case has proved long and winding, but we always said that we would not allow this injustice to stand and we are pleased that this ruling that the comments were antisemitic has at long last vindicated our efforts, even as the sanction shows that enforcement remains unacceptably weak in many cases. British Jews can be assured that we will always be unrelenting in pursuit of justice, and we will be meeting with the GPhC about its approach to antisemitic hate.”

UPDATE: On 14th March 2024, the High Court dismissed the case against the decision of the GPhC, noting that Mr Ali apologised for his rhetoric and the chastening impact of years of legal proceedings, which reduces the likelihood of his repeating his past conduct. The High Court did consider that the GPhC’s warning to Mr Ali could have been worded more clearly to clarify that two of his statements were found to be antisemitic (not just offensive), but the Court declined to order that the wording be substituted, given that the fact that Mr Ali made antisemitic comments has been made clear in a public judgment in the High Court.

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CAA reveals that 43 universities have still not properly adopted, or refused to adopt, International Definition of Antisemitism

As the new academic year approaches, Campaign Against Antisemitism can reveal that 43 universities in Britain have still not properly adopted, or have expressly refused to adopt, the International Definition of Antisemitism.

The number of universities that have adopted the Definition in full, including the eleven integral examples, and have not adopted any other qualifying or competing language, is 134. However, the rate of adoption is slowing, with our research indicating that the most recent adoption may have been as far back as March 2022. The latest information, which is updated in real time, can be found at antisemitism.org/universities.

Among those universities that have not adopted, some have not provided any cogent reasons, such as the University of Brighton and the University of Wales Trinity St David.

Brighton University, for example, told us: “A Race and Faith commission was set up following discussions at the Academic Board and Board of Governors on the subject of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism. The Commission recommended that the University should not adopt the definition.”

This Commission relied on work by the UCL Academic Board, which even the UCL leadership has not followed (UCL has adopted the Definition), input from the University and College Union (UCU), which is a staunch opponent of the Definition and whose reputation in the Jewish community is in the gutter, and Prof. David Feldman, a former Deputy Chair of the whitewash Chakrabarti Inquiry into antisemitism in the Labour Party and whose advocacy against the Definition has been grossly counter-productive to the fight against antisemitism.

Some universities claimed that, while they have not adopted the Definition, they nonetheless ‘use’ it, including Cardiff University, Edinburgh Napier University and the University of South Wales.

Others insisted that their existing policies already cover antisemitism and therefore adoption is not necessary, such as Kingston University, Robert Gordon University and SOAS University of London.

SOAS, for example, told us: “While SOAS University of London has not adopted the IHRA definition, we stand firmly against antisemitism, as we do against all forms of discrimination. Our SOAS Charter on Racism, Antisemitism and All Forms of Cultural, Ethnic and Religious Chauvinism makes a clear, demonstrable commitment to every member of staff and every student that we will not tolerate any form of racism or religious chauvinism, and that we will maintain an inclusive space for every member of our community.”

Readers will draw their own conclusions as to the strength of SOAS’s commitment to standing against antisemitism, in light of its appalling record.

Some universities have not adopted the Definition, because it does not cover all faith groups. These include Ravensbourne University London, Swansea University and the University for the Creative Arts.

The University of St Andrews has decided not to adopt the Definition because it believes that it is polarising to adopt only this definition of antisemitism. The University of Greenwich has gone further, adopting both the Definition and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism. The Jerusalem Declaration is a wrecking document intended to undermine the globally-recognised Definition. Any university that has adopted it alongside the Definition or an amended version of the Definition (for example by omitting the eleven integral examples), such as Greenwich University or Goldsmiths, University of London, cannot be said to have adopted the Definition. Campaign Against Antisemitism recently submitted evidence to an inquiry into antisemitism at Goldsmiths.

The arguments that these universities have deployed to justify their failure to adopt the Definition do not hold water. Those that claim that their existing policies render the Definition unnecessary misunderstand its purpose: the Definition is not a policy on antisemitism but a definition of antisemitism. Existing policies can detail how antisemitism is treated; they cannot identify it. For that, the Definition is needed.

The claim, meanwhile, that the Definition can have a “chilling effect” on freedom of expression or inhibits criticism of Israel are also baseless canards. The Definition, which is context-specific, states clearly that “criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic.” Moreover, as Campaign Against Antisemitism has shown, the Definition does not at all conflict with freedom of expression under law, and indeed a 2023 report into antisemitism in higher education found that, of 56 universities asked, none knew of a single example in which their adoption of the Definition had in any way restricted or chilled freedom of expression or academic research.

These excuses are wearing thin, particularly as antisemitism on campuses is rising. CST reported at the beginning of this year that there has been a 22% increase in university-related reported antisemitic hate incidents over the past two academic years, while polling conducted in 2021 by Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in British universities is a problem.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We commend the vast majority of British universities that have chosen to show solidarity with Jewish students and do their part in the fight against anti-Jewish racism by adopting the International Definition of Antisemitism. It is appalling that a minority of universities continue to take the opposite course, and it is astonishing that they persist in providing excuses that have already been debunked years ago. These universities are bowing to pressure by those who either fail to appreciate the gravity of contemporary antisemitism or do not have the interests of British Jews at heart. It is cowardly. They must urgently revisit their positions.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism will continue to monitor the adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism by universities.

If any students are concerned about antisemitism on campus or need assistance, they can call us on 0330 822 0321, or e-mail [email protected]. 

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Comedy agent reportedly screamed at Jewish comedian about how “Jews exaggerate antisemitism” at Edinburgh Fringe

A comedy agent reportedly berated a Jewish comedian about how “Jews exaggerate antisemitism”.

The alleged incident occurred in a bar on the last day of this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, also known as the Edinburgh Fringe, the world’s largest annual performing arts festival.

Bennett Arron, a Welsh comedian and writer who in 2018 performed at a Campaign Against Antisemitism comedy fundraiser, wrote of his “upsetting” experience on X, formerly known as Twitter, where he said the incident had “really spoilt what had been a wonderful Festival”.

“Bit upsetting. The Agent of some well known comedians decided to scream at me in a bar, in front of my family who had come to celebrate my success at the Fringe, that Jews exaggerate antisemitism and that other minority groups have real justification for complaint but not Jews,” he said.

Continuing, he wrote: “He also went on to scream that Jews should never have been given Israel and that Jews smeared Jeremy Corbyn. When I asked if we could discuss this another time as he was upsetting my family, he shouted “See THEY always do this!” It really spoilt what had been a wonderful Festival.”

Mr Arron was met by support from other comedians.

Geoff Norcott posted that it was “Horrible to read of these kind of comments in 2023,” while Felicity Ward wrote: “This is so awful. The confidence of the abuse given the time and place is even more upsetting. To feel bold enough to do it publicly without fear of any real reprimand is disgusting. I’m really sorry you and your family had to endure this.”

Robert Popper, creator of the Channel 4 sitcom Friday Night Dinner, said: “Nasty. Sorry this had to happen to you. I wonder if his clients know. And what they’d think about it.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Jewish comedians should not have to live in fear about being harassed by antisemitism-deniers. It is utterly appalling to hear that Bennett Arron was subjected to such vile abuse, and it is even more concerning to learn that someone within his own industry might be responsible. Individuals working in comedy would do well to remember that racism against Jews is no joke. We have since been in touch with Mr Arron to offer our support.”

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Blake Flayton: “They connect Jews with hot-button issues to whip up outrage”

Blake Flayton, a columnist for the Jewish Journal and a social media commentator on American-Jewish and Israeli political issues, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about anti-Zionist antisemitism.

This podcast can be listened to here, or watched here.

“There’s a lot of misconceptions about Zionism, whether they come from within the Jewish community or outside the Jewish community,” he said. “The Jews have a right to live in the land in which they’ve always been associated with. We have been known as Jews, and in different languages, it’s just a variation on the word ‘Jew’. We have been named after this piece of land for the last 2,000 years, if not more so.”

Mr Flayton explained how, during the first 30 years of Israel’s existence, neighbouring Arab countries would denigrate the country, even going as far as to assert that they would “push the Jews into the sea” and that “Jews are cockroaches.” 

The activist said how that in the shadow of the just-passed Nazi era, these statements were ones that “nobody in the West who could ever call themselves ‘liberal’ or ‘progressive’ could support”.

“Standing up for the Jews was a good, progressive cause overseas. And then, the Soviet Union enters stage-left somewhere in the mid-to-late ‘70s and basically flips the language of anti-Zionism in order to make it more palatable to people in the West, to journalists and academics and activists,” Mr Flayton said.

The Soviet Union would then “make the language of anti-Zionism sound as though it was a progressive fight for justice, a call for righteousness, and it’s been going ever since because it’s believable,” he said.

“They use the lingo, they use the words, that connect with people who style themselves as activists. In reality, it’s the same Nazi-like war against the Jewish right to self-determination that’s been going on since 1948. The goal is the same, and that’s from the river to the sea, there will not be a Jewish state.”

When asked why university campuses have seen an increase in anti-Zionist rhetoric, he said: “This is actually in-line with how antisemitism has worked forever, because the antisemites take advantage of the hot-button issues of the day, and they connect Jews with those hot-button issues in order to whip up outrage among their supporters and get closer to their goals on campus.”

Elaborating on the goals in question, Mr Flayton said that some examples might be the “passing of BDS resolutions or isolating Jewish organisations, or simply just making individual Jews feel uncomfortable.” 

Podcast Against Antisemitism, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, talks to a different guest about antisemitism each week. It streams every Thursday and is available through all major podcast apps and YouTube. You can also subscribe to have new episodes sent straight to your inbox.

Previous guests have included comedian David Baddiel, television personality Robert Rinder, writer Eve Barlow, Grammy-Award-winning singer-songwriter Autumn Rowe, and actor Eddie Marsan.

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Identifiably Jewish men accosted whilst walking to Finchley synagogue

Two identifiably Jewish men were reportedly accosted whilst they were on their way to attend a Sabbath service at a synagogue in Finchley on Saturday 26th August.

The alleged victims were two men in their 70s and were both wearing kippot (skullcaps) and and carrying bags containing tallit (prayer shawls). Whilst the men were walking down Chessington Avenue towards Finchley United Synagogue, also known as Kinloss Synagogue, a car, believed to be a small black hatchback, stopped beside them. 

The driver, described as being a man of Middle Eastern appearance wearing a baseball cap who was approximately 30 years of age, was said to have rolled down his window before asking one of the men if he could ask them a question.

He then allegedly proceeded to show them a photograph on his phone of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before asking: “You know who this is?” 

One of the men responded to the driver by saying “I haven’t a clue….never seen him before,” before asking his friend to take a look who then gave the same reply.

Seemingly infuriated, the driver apparently began shouting at the pair before speeding off.

If you have any information about this incident, please e-mail [email protected].

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Oxfordshire “pure-blood female” enters Miss Hitler beauty competition

A woman from Oxford has been revealed as a contestant for a ‘Miss Hitler’ beauty pageant. 

Sarah Mountford, 42, is alleged by the Simon Wiesenthal Center to be a participant in the inflammatory pageant, under the alias ‘Miss Aryan Angel’. Originally from Brighton, Ms Mountford is now understood to be living in Oxford with her three children. 

The competition is hosted by VKontakte, a Russian social media platform. Contestants are encouraged to use pseudonyms when they enter the pageant, in which users can vote for their favourite competitor. 

Ms Mountford has reportedly described herself in a statement on her competitor’s page as, “straight, white, pure-blood female with a longing to return to traditional ways. In accordance with nature. Blood and soil. Ancestors and honour. Our people matter.” 

Photos of Ms Mountford alongside swastikas and other Nazi symbols were also found on her page. 

When Ms Mountford was contacted about her involvement in the competition, she reportedly said: “It was just a bit of fun, really, a spur of the moment thing. I didn’t set out to upset anyone. It’s not like I’ll get a crown – it’s more of a poll. I’ll try to get it taken down. My views aren’t extreme, you hear the same at every bus stop.”

She also said: “He [Adolf Hitler] has been dead a long time. I didn’t think of the impact his name still has.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This is not the first time that we have encountered so-called ‘Miss Hitler’ pageants. There is nothing beautiful in the grotesque idealisation of Adolf Hitler, who oversaw the murder of millions of Jews and a world war that brought about immense suffering. The far-right continues to find new ways to attract and engage new and existing adherents, and will readily appeal to people’s baser instincts, in this case their vanity. Participants in these far-right activities should be warned: they cannot hide behind pseudonyms, and they will be found and shamed.”

In 2020, Alice Cutter, a woman who entered a “Miss Hitler” beauty pageant in order to attract new members to the British neo-Nazi terrorist group National Action, was found guilty of membership in the proscribed organisation and sentenced to three years in prison.

Campaign Against Antisemitism closely monitors the far-right, which remains a dangerous threat to the Jewish community and other minority groups.

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Man arrested in connection with vandalism in Kent Jewish cemetery 

A man has been arrested in connection with vandalism of a cemetery at a Jewish cemetery in Kent. 

The suspect, a 41-year-old man, was arrested in relation to alleged criminal damage to the cemetery adjacent to Chatham Memorial Synagogue, in Rochester, Kent. 

Headstones in the cemetery were found knocked over and smashed earlier this month. 

Kent Police have confirmed that an investigation is still ongoing and encourage anyone with further information relating to the incident to contact them. 

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This is not the first time that Chatham Memorial Synagogue has been attacked. It is a sober reminder that we are in a time when Jews, including their institutions, are five times likelier to be targeted in a hate crime. We commend the police for acting swiftly and making an arrest, and expect that any perpetrators will be punished to the full extent of the law. If anyone has any information about the attack, please urgently contact us or the police.”

If you have any more information, please contact Kent Police on 101, quoting crime reference number 46/152042/23, or Campaign Against Antisemitism at [email protected] or on 0330 822 0321.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over five hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than five times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.

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Artist with inflammatory social media history exhibits art in London gallery

An artist with a history of inflammatory social media posts about Jews is once again exhibiting her work in London.

Anna Laurini is currently showing her art at the Fitzrovia Gallery, having also exhibited elsewhere in London in 2022.

The Italian painter has a history of sharing inflammatory conspiracy theories about Jews on social media.

In one Instagram post, for example, a figure, which appears to be Ms Laurini, poses on a rooftop with the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City in the background. The caption reads “Imagine a world without #Israhell”, a reference to the conspiracy theory that Israel was responsible for the terrorist attacks on New York City on 11th September 2001.

In a Facebook post, Ms Laurini appears to have shared an article apparently from the publication, Palestine Voice, which seems to have featured Ms Laurini in a 2020 edition. Ms Laurini captioned the post with the words “From the river to the sea”, part of the slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”. This chant only makes sense as a call for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state — and its replacement with a State of Palestine — and is thus an attempt to deny Jews, uniquely, the right to self-determination, which is a breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism.

Another online post apparently shared by Ms Laurini features a black and white image of the gates to what looks like a Nazi concentration camp, but replaces the infamous words above the entrance gate, “Arbeit macht Frei” (“Work sets you free”), with the words “Green pass macht Frei”, which compares COVID-19 restrictions to Nazi ideology.

Ms Laurini appears to have repeated the sentiment in this post in another, which features a version of the flag of Nazi Germany. In this instance, the post shows the flag with a green background and the words “green pass”, again apparently comparing Nazism and anti-coronavirus measures put in place by European governments.

Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.

Additionally, Ms Laurini appears to have retweeted a post that features the image of Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, who is Jewish, with captions that seem to suggest that the Rothschild family are responsible for a conspiracy that involves the “geo-engineering” of the weather and its “rebranding” as climate change, which allegedly leads to the erosion of democratic freedoms around the world.

The Rothschilds appear in many anti-Jewish conspiracy theories as a sinister, controlling force.

In a further post, she also reportedly appeared to link the Rothschild family to the 9/11 attacks, alleging that the Israeli shipping company, Zim, “broke [a] lease it had held for 30 years and moved out of the World Trade Center.” She continued: “Zim is half owned by the Rothschilds.” The notion that the Jews had advance notice of the attack on the World Trade Centre, often purportedly because the Israeli foreign intelligence service, Mossad, was involved in orchestrating the attack, is a popular antisemitic conspiracy.

In another Instagram post, Ms Laurini reportedly shared photos of herself posing with the conspiracy theorist and antisemitic hate preacher, David Icke.

She has also reportedly shared material on Gab, a social-media platform that was founded in 2016 with a claim to “champion free speech,” and has become a haven for supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory and other far-right groups and individuals banned from mainstream platforms.

She reportedly shared a cartoon there that showed a man asking “how are they connected?” as he stands in front of a board on which topics including “pornography”, “banking” and “Hollywood” are connected by string in the shape of the Star of David. The post adds: “If you ignore the JQ you are politically illiterate.” “JQ” is a reference to the “Jewish Question”.

Another post reportedly shared by Ms Laurini described the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as a “billionaire Jew pal of the rich and powerful,” and his convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell as a “rich Jew”.

Asked by the JC about some of these posts, Ms Laurini reportedly said: “I cannot now recall the content of the postings that you claimed I share on social media [sic].” She reportedly added that the account on which those posts appeared “closed down over two years ago” and that the comments “do not represent” her views.

In a statement, the Fitzrovia Gallery told the JC: “We simply hire the gallery space for artists and/or their agents to exhibit. We do not get involved with any of their artwork or selection of it. We are simply a space for hire. We have not ‘arranged’ her show.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

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CAA commends Waterstones for removing “Deluxe” edition of “Mein Kampf” from online sale after we reported it

Waterstones has removed from sale a “Deluxe” edition of Mein Kampf after Campaign Against Antisemitism alerted the bookseller to the listing on its website.

Mein Kampf was the Magnus opus and manifesto of the Nazi leader, Adolf Hitler.

The retailer explained that it receives title information for its website through an automated feed from Nielsen. Although Nielsen and Waterstones both provides a level of scrutiny for the books that come through, the size of the catalogue reaches tens of millions of titles and some undesirable books make it through the filters.

Waterstones concluded: “This listing has now been removed from our database and the title will not be available to purchase via our website or our bookshops. Once again, thank you for highlighting this issue.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We commend Waterstones for immediately removing the ‘Deluxe’ version of Mein Kampf from its website after we contacted them. Such vile antisemitic rhetoric has no place on the virtual shelves of a major retailer, let alone being marketed as a superior collector’s item. With websites relying more and more on automations, it falls to groups like ours to ensure that online filters work and that sellers are held to account. To its credit, Waterstones has repeatedly taken antisemitism seriously and removed racist propaganda from sale.”

In 2020, Waterstones agreed to remove all books by the conspiracy theorist and antisemitic hate preacher David Icke.

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CAA seeking witnesses in connection with Kent Jewish cemetery vandalism

A Jewish cemetery in Kent was discovered to have been vandalised. 

Several headstones at the cemetery adjacent to Chatham Memorial Synagogue in Rochester were found last week to have been smashed and knocked over. 

Dr Dalia Halpern-Matthews, a Trustee of the synagogue, said: “We shouldn’t be having to put up with the mass destruction of something that should be sacred,

“The cemetery is very special obviously in terms of every individual grave, but when you consider that it is the only shul [synagogue] with a cemetery attached in the country, it is a very significant shul. It has been Grade II listed for many years.”

This is not the first time that the synagogue has been the target of such attacks. According to Dr Halpern-Matthews, the cemetery itself has been attacked five times over the past ten years.

Last year, an attack on the cemetery is understood to have cost the synagogue £19,000 in repairs. 

Other attacks on the synagogue have included graffiti that reportedly depicted “genitalia” with “something about ‘f***ing religion’”. On another occasion, faeces was found smeared onto the building. 

Incidents such as these have reportedly left some of the synagogue’s congregants fearful of attending services in person.

The most recent incident has been reported to Kent Police and is under investigation. 

In a statement, Kent Police said: “At around 12pm on Friday 18th August 2023 Kent Police received a third-party report of criminal damage at a synagogue in Rochester. Officers have since spoken to representatives of the synagogue and this incident is being treated as a hate crime. Enquiries to locate those responsible for the damage are ongoing.”

If you have any more information, please contact Kent Police on 101, quoting crime reference number 46/152042/23, or Campaign Against Antisemitism at [email protected] or on 0330 822 0321.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over five hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than five times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.

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Following CAA action, Newcastle music venue cancels screening of antisemitism-denial film

Following correspondence with Campaign Against Antisemitism, a music venue in Newcastle has cancelled a screening of a propaganda film about the antisemitic former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn.

The screening of the film Oh, Jeremy Corbyn! The Big Lie was due to be shown earlier this month at The Lubber Fiend, but the booking is understood to have been made by a third party, and not by the venue itself, which we understand was not made aware of the nature of the film.

The news comes shortly after, following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism, Glastonbury Festival, YMCA, Unite union, Basildon Council, North Ayrshire Council, the national pub retailer Greene King, Tolpuddle Village Hall, Yeovil Labour Club, a Nottinghamshire church, Ludlow Assembly Rooms and independent venues around the country, have cancelled screenings of the film.

The film claims that it “investigates the ‘secret war’ waged against Corbyn” and questions whether there was an “orchestrated campaign” against the former Party leader.

The film’s contributors include a who’s who of controversial figures such as Jackie Walker, who has previously stated that Jews were “chief financiers” of the African slave trade; the filmmaker Ken Loach, who caused outrage when, during an interview with the BBC, he refused to denounce Holocaust denial. Both were expelled from the Labour Party; Graham Bash, the Political Officer of Jewish Voice for Labour, an antisemitism-denial group and sham Jewish representative organisation; and Moshe Machover, a professor and Holocaust revisionist. All have been expelled from the Labour Party, although Mr Machover was readmitted.

Also featured in the film is the disgraced academic and conspiracy theorist, David Miller, who was fired by the University of Bristol in 2021 over comments he had made about Jewish students, a month after Campaign Against Antisemitism commenced a lawsuit on behalf of current students against the institution and amidst a Jewish communal outcry. More recently, he tweeted that “Jews are not discriminated against” before going on to write: “They are over-represented in Europe, North America and Latin America in positions of cultural, economic and political power.”

Another contributor involved is Andrew Murray, a close adviser to Mr Corbyn who, in 2005, authored an article in which he claimed that the roots of the 9/11 terror attacks lay in “Zionist colonialism” of the Balfour Declaration. However, Mr Murray has since sought to distance himself from the film.

The film is narrated by comedian Alexei Sayle who claimed in 2014 that BBC presenter Emma Barnett, who is Jewish, supported the murder of children following an article and radio interview in which she had decried antisemitism amongst anti-Israel activists.

Campaign Against Antisemitism commends the venue for its swift and decisive action to cancel the screening as soon as we brought it to its attention.

Additionally, we received confirmation from the Widcombe Social Club that a planned screening of the film, at which Mr Loach was also due to speak, was cancelled, as has one at Havant and Emsworth United Reformed Church, the independent book retailer, October Books, and Leicester Students’ Union.

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2019 showed that antisemitism on the far-left of British politics has surpassed that of the far-right.

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CAA to write to Walk This Way Surplus over sale of Hitler bust and other Nazi memorabilia 

Campaign Against Antisemitism will be writing to a Berwickshire-based shop over the sale of Nazi memorabilia. 

Walk This Way Surplus, a militaria shop in Coldstream, lists several Nazi-era items on its website, including Nazi party triangle pennants, listed for £100.

Also for sale are an assortment of Third Reich knives, including a bayonet and a utility knife, that range from £139 to £1,800.

In its on-site shop, it is understood that there is a bronze Hitler bust, listed for £150; a German merit cross with a swastika, listed for £250; an SS helmet, listed for £300; and a Totenkopf [death skull] SS pin, listed for £135. 

Earlier today, we wrote to Richard Winterton Auctioneers Ltd over the sale of Third Reich items. 

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CAA to write to Richard Winterton Auctioneers over sale of Nazi daggers, bayonets and medals 

Campaign Against Antisemitism will be writing to a Lichfield-based auctioneer over the sale of Nazi memorabilia. 

Richard Winterton Auctioneers Ltd will be hosting a “Toys and Militaria” auction in Tamworth on 30th August. 

In the auction, an array of items, including Third Reich daggers and an assortment of metal swastika badges, will be sold. 

The auction also features bayonets, swastika and eagle decorations for caps, uniform patches, a belt buckle, and a letter from the senior Nazi figure, Heinrich Himmler, all from the Nazi era.

Campaign Against Antisemitism understands that the sale of the Nazi items has prompted a member of the local Jewish community to withdraw their own listings from the auction house.

Last week, we wrote to Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood over their sale of Nazi-era items.

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We wish to express our solidarity with the local member of the Jewish community who is seeking to pull her items from sale by Richard Winterton Auctioneers. The sale of Nazi memorabilia is always repugnant, but here it is in the starkest relief. Such sales are an affront to those who died fighting the Nazis and those who were murdered at their hands. We shall be writing to the auction house.”

We are seeking to recruit a General Counsel a Creative Communications and Events Officer a Communications and Research Manager an Education and Outreach Intern to join our London office

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Campaign Against Antisemitism is a volunteer-led charity dedicated to exposing and countering antisemitism through education and zero-tolerance enforcement of the law. Everything that we do is done by people who volunteer their time, using donations contributed by members of the public. Join the fight against antisemitism by subscribing to our updates, volunteering, or donating.