A sentence imposed on Dieudonné over videos that he released in 2020 has been reduced by the Paris Court of Appeal to a fine roughly equivalent to £75. However, the Appeal Court upheld a fine of 10,000 euros (£80,000) in another case against him.
Dieudonné, whose real name is Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala, is a French comedian and political activist who has been convicted for hate speech and advocating terrorism, among other offences, in France, Belgium and Switzerland.
At his trial in May 2021, Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala, 56, was found guilty of antisemitic insults, incitement to hatred and a crime against humanity. He claimed that the videos in question were fake, created through a sophisticated digital technique.
The original custodial sentence of four months’ imprisonment plus a fine was reduced to a fine of 100 euros. However, the Court of Appeal upheld a fine of 10,000 euros plus 3,000 euros in damages against Dieudonné for a video released in September 2020 defaming anti-racism delegate Frédéric Potier, who is involved in the fight against antisemitism and LGBT hatred.
In the summer of 2020, in a move to combat hateful content, Dieudonné was banned from major online platforms, such as YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
In May 2021, he was also sentenced to three years’ imprisonment, only one of which must be served, plus a further fine of 200,000 euros for a string of financial crimes, including tax fraud and money laundering.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that an Oregon university that fired a Jewish professor after he accused its president of making antisemitic remarks violated the professor’s academic freedom.
Linfield University in McMinnville, 38 miles south of Portland, fired English professor Daniel Pollack-Pelzner in 2021 after he accused president Miles K. Davis of making comments about the supposed size of Jewish noses and jokes about sending Jews to gas chambers. Prof Pollack-Pelzner also suggested that the university had covered up reports of swastika graffiti and other instances of hate speech, as well as sexual assault allegations.
Prof Pollack-Pelzner also recalls not only that President Davis withheld his reports, fearing that they would bring the University into disrepute and accusing Prof Pollack-Pelzner of “harbouring a secret agenda to grab power”, but that the President warned of “disloyalty from within” in a meeting. Prof Pollack-Pelzner also claims that President Davis said that “people like him were destroying Linfield University from within”.
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.
The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) has now decided that Linfield violated Prof Pollack-Pelzner’s academic freedom when they fired him, stating that the University “contributed to a culture of abuse” in the way it treated the professor.
The AAUP report holds that Linfield forced Prof Pollack-Pelzner out of his job and ensured he was unable to use his e-mail account without holding an initial disciplinary hearing (a requirement for charges against a tenured professor).
Linfield University itself did not take part in the AAUP investigation, and university spokespeople indicated in their interactions with faculty and local media that they did not accept the report’s allegations and were ready to fight them in court.
Prof Pollack-Pelzner is now reportedly a visiting scholar at Portland State University.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Following action taken by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the Solicitor General has confirmed that he will refer Nicholas Nelson’s absurdly lenient sentence for antisemitic harassment to the Court of Appeal.
Mr Nelson, the defendant in a criminal case that resulted from first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism, was given an eighteen-month sentence, suspended for two years, at Southwark Crown Court last month. However, given that his campaign of harassment endured for a period of time against multiple victims and came after he had committed several similar offences, we considered this sentence to be inexplicably lenient.
Accordingly, we wrote to the Attorney General’s Office, which has the power to refer sentences for certain offences which are believed to be unduly lenient, to the Court of Appeal.
We have now received confirmation from the Solicitor General that he is referring the case to the Court of Appeal.
Alex Chalk QC MP agreed that “the behaviour of Mr Nelson was truly appalling.”
Offering two reasons for his referral, Mr Chalk wrote: “First, it is arguable that the judge failed sufficiently to have regard to the fact this was multiple offending against three separate victims over a sustained period of time. Given there were three separate victims, the judge arguably ought to have imposed consecutive sentences.”
Providing his second reason, Mr Chalk said that “There were two features in this case that required an immediate custodial sentence,” the first being that “These were serious offences committed against multiple victims over a significant period of time. Given the nature of the offending, and Mr Nelson’s previous convictions, a significant deterrent element was required, together with appropriate punishment.” He also pointed out that “abuse, harassment and antisemitism online and on social media is a significant public issue and of real concern to the wider public.”
Mr Chalk added: “Secondly, Mr Nelson had a poor compliance history with court orders. The offending was committed in breach of two earlier suspended sentences. Such a disregard for the earlier orders of the court required punishment by way of immediate custody, notwithstanding any mitigation or progress made since those earlier sentences.”
The Solicitor General expressed his gratitude that Campaign Against Antisemitism brought this case to his attention. He has a record of referring unduly lenient sentences to the Court of Appeal, including, recently, that of the neo-Nazi teenager Ben John, a review of whose sentence we also called for.
Mr Nelson’s case was the culmination of first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism to unmask an anonymous antisemitic online troll. He pleaded guilty at Peterborough Crown Court in January to racially aggravated harassment under section 31(1)(b) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and with sending an electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety under 1(1)(a) of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, after he repeatedly sent abusive antisemitic e-mails and messages to Oscar-nominated Jewish writer Lee Kern and hateful messages to communications strategist Joanne Bell, and harassing a staff member at the Board of Deputies, a Jewish charity, over the telephone.
Mr Kern contacted Campaign Against Antisemitism, which funded a case on his behalf led by Mark Lewis, the esteemed lawyer who is also an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The abusive communications came from accounts that Mr Nelson had worked hard to make anonymous. Victims of abuse from anonymous accounts usually have nowhere to go, because only rarely will the police track down the sender, and the cost of private action is usually beyond victims’ means.
However, a new legal initiative devised by Campaign Against Antisemitism together with counsel breaks through that barrier. It has enabled us to identify the anonymous troll by obtaining a special kind of court order which has its origins in the pharmaceutical industry and has never before been used to unmask an anonymous abuser sending antisemitic messages. The court order requires an internet service provider to disclose details of the owner of an online account so that legal proceedings can be issued.
We used this legal device to identify Mr Nelson and criminal proceedings were commenced, leading to him pleading guilty. Mr Nelson had called for another Holocaust, called Mr Kern Shylock, spoke of Jews being used for gun practice, called Jewish women whores, shared obscene sexual fantasies involving Hitler, and glorified the proscribed genocidal antisemitic terror group, Hamas.
Mr Nelson, who lives in Cambridgeshire and was a vigorous supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, also previously sent abusive messages to two Jewish women Labour MPs, branding one a “vile useless c***” and the other a “traitor” who should “end yourself”. At the end of 2018 he pleaded guilty to the same charge and was given a twenty-week suspended sentence for twelve months and ordered to complete 160 hours unpaid work. In 2020, he pleaded guilty to three charges of sending communications of an offensive nature to two other Labour MPs, one of whom is Jewish and the other is an active campaigner against antisemitism. In addition to the charges that Mr Nelson pleaded guilty to today in relation to Mr Kern and Ms Bell, Mr Nelson also pleaded guilty to harassing a member of staff at the Board of Deputies over the telephone.
He had committed the offences whilst apparently already subject to a suspended sentence for other antisemitic offences. This would appear to demonstrate his contempt for the supposedly deterrent suspended sentences that he had already been handed. Nonetheless, instead of going directly to prison, the defendant, Nicholas Nelson, 32, was instead ordered to undertake just 30 days of rehabilitation activity and 220 hours of unpaid community service. He must also pay a modest victim surcharge and is subject to a restraining order.
Handing down the suspended sentence and referring to Mr Nelson’s “horrible tirades”, Judge Charles Gratwicke said that “Nobody sitting here in this courtroom who has read the newspaper can feel anything but revulsion, sickness and downright anger at the type of hate that you engaged in.” Nevertheless, he insisted that the defendant was “not the person you were two or three years ago.”
On the day of the sentencing, Mr Kern said: “I have noted the immediacy with which custodial sentences have been handed out for first time offenders who have engaged in other forms of racism. Yet here we have a repeat offender who has embarked upon an unparalleled campaign of hatred against Jews and has been spared prison again and again. Why are antisemitic hate crimes not deemed as criminal as those of other forms of racism? What exactly does it take for a person found guilty of repeated racially motivated crimes against Jews to actually go to prison? This is a disgrace and an embarrassment and sends a clear signal to Britain’s Jews that when it comes to receiving justice, they don’t count.”
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We are grateful that the Solicitor General has readily acceded to our request for a review of Nicholas Nelson’s absurdly lenient sentence. To all but let off a defendant who committed racist offences over a sustained period against multiple victims, apparently whilst serving suspended sentences for similar offences, is a staggering miscarriage of justice and mocks not only the direct victims of this campaign of harassment but the whole Jewish community and all those who suffer at the hands of online trolls. We hope that the Court of Appeal will impose a more fitting punishment on someone who has brought such harm to the targets of his racist bile.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
It has been reported that a rock concert in Tucson, Arizona has dropped a band from its bill due to an antisemitic website run by its frontman.
The “Whole Enchilada” benefit concert, held on 16th April at the Hotel Congress in downtown Tucson, was supposed to feature a number of popular local bands, including veteran outfit Chuck Wagon and the Wheels.
However, the attention of the organisers was drawn to the band’s lead singer, Chuck Maultsby, whose website allegedly contains numerous antisemitic posts, including examples of Holocaust denial, posts supporting Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, and rationalisations for the concentration camps in which millions of Jews were interned and murdered.
Mr Maultsby’s material consists of over 250 pages of conspiracy theories blaming the coronavirus pandemic on Jews, claims that the Jews planned the 9/11 attacks on New York City, and celebrations of Adolf Hitler, who Mr Maultsby says was a “good guy”.
Along with justifications for the actions of notorious Auschwitz doctor Josef Mengele, who, according to Mr Maultsby, saved the lives of tens of thousands of “inmates” at the death camp through his “tireless efforts”, the website explains how Jews are responsible for the deaths of former American President John F. Kennedy and US Army General George S. Patton, as well as announcing that the diary of Anne Frank is a “hoax”.
Mr Maultsby also describes the Holocaust in such terms, asking in one post from 2017: “Is the Holocaust a Hoax? Short Answer: OF COURSE. Within five minutes, any intelligent, open-minded person can be convinced that the Holocaust gassings of World War II are a profitable hoax.”
Mr Maultbsy’s website is reportedly no longer available at its original location, but has apparently been archived in several places. The site does still, however, show memes with Hitler’s photograph, myths about a “white genocide” orchestrated by Jews, and a self-published book that its author claims to have been banned on Amazon. One such meme reads: “If you think I am evil, it means you have never did any research but you are fully brainwashed by the Jewish written History [sic].”
Chuck Wagon and the Wheels were subsequently disinvited from the concert, and some members of the Tucson music scene denounced the singer.
David Slutes, the entertainment director for Hotel Congress, said: “It’s harder than you think to move quickly on something like this, even when it’s obviously the right thing to do. Everyone feels embarrassed, guilty and bad about it. But learning about the depth of Chuck’s insanity was rough. I have worked for this Jewish-run business for 25 years and they are like extended family. This was not going to work for any of us.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that the neighbourhood of Squirrel Hill in eastern Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has seen two separate antisemitic incidents over the last week.
On 15th April, the first night of the Jewish festival of Passover, more than twenty families had antisemitic flyers tossed into their driveways by a hate group who have also been known to work in California, Florida, New York, Colorado, and other American states.
Residents reported finding the antisemitic flyers inside a plastic bag filled with rice. This fits the profile of other similar incidents in Palo Alto, Beverly Hills, and elsewhere, though the Squirrel Hill victims did not disclose the precise wording of the material.
On 17th April, a male reportedly shouted “F**k Jews” as he walked past the Shaare Torah Congregation on Murray Avenue, a long street that connects the two communities of Squirrel Hill North and Squirrel Hill South.
In October 2018, Squirrel Hill, where 40 percent of the more than 26,000 residents are Jewish, saw the most violent antisemitic incident in American history, when 46-year-old Robert Bowers entered the Tree of Life synagogue and opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle and three handguns, murdering eleven and wounding seven members of the congregation.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A mosque leader who called for “Jihad by sword” while making a stabbing gesture and wearing a black top emblazoned with the words “Free Palestine, resistance is existence” has been jailed after being found guilty of intending to encourage terrorism.
Abu Bakr Deghayes’ twenty-minute sermon a congregation of around 50 at Brighton Mosque and Muslim Community Centre in November 2021 was caught on CCTV. The audience reportedly included teenagers and young men in their twenties, as well as older members, and it is understood that several in the audience began to fidget as the speech went on, with some walking out.
The Old Bailey heard that Mr Deghayes, 53, from Saltdean, Sussex and originally from Libya, spoke in English and Arabic, urging the congregation to ignore the British Government and its Prevent programme. He is claimed to have said: “Allah is more powerful than you. You, idiots. You non-believers, idiots. Allah is more powerful than you. The non-believer…is an idiot; he’s stupid. Jihad is compulsory upon you, you, you and you until the Day of Resurrection, whatever the British Government thinks, whatever Prevent thinks, whatever Israel thinks.
“Send to the sea. They can go and drink from the sea, Allah curse their fathers, OK? Jihad, jihad, jihad! Jihad is compulsory. Jihad by fighting by sword that means this jihad is compulsory upon you, not jihad is the word of mouth but jihad will remain compulsory until the Day of Resurrection. And my livelihood is under the shadow of my spear.”
He added that anyone who did not like what he said was an enemy of Allah, declaring: “Go fight Allah! Go Fight Allah!”
Mr Deghayes, who denied wrongdoing, has been handed a sentence of four years’ imprisonment, plus a further year on licence.
Two of Mr Deghayes’ sons were killed fighting in Syria (a third died in a stabbing incident in Sussex). Abdul, who was reportedly involved with drugs and was murdered by a dealer in 2019 aged 22, was the twin brother of Abdullah, who was killed in 2016 fighting in Syria. Their brother Jaffar was killed in 2014 aged seventeen while fighting to overthrow the Syrian dictator, Bashas Al-Assad. Both were apparently fighting for the al Qaida-affiliated Al-Nusra Front. Yet another son, Amer, is believed still to be fighting in Syria.
In 2017, a serious case review reportedly identified missed opportunities to prevent the sons from being radicalised, as well as noting failures to understand the role of religion in their lives. The report also alleged that Mr Deghayes would wake the boys up at 04:30 in the morning to study the Koran and would whip them with electrical wire.
The boys’ uncle, Omar Deghayes, was arrested in Pakistan in 2002 and spent five years in Guantanamo Bay.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that over eight in ten British Jews consider the threat from Islamists to be very serious.
During a court hearing that was held today for a man who was arrested after visibly Jewish men were punched to the ground in January, the defendant was deemed unfit to give his plea due to his mental ill health.
Police in Haringey arrested a man after two visibly Jewish men were viciously punched to the ground in Stamford Hill in January in an assault that was widely publicised. CCTV footage showed a man striking blows to the two Jewish men’s faces and bodies.
The victims, Israel Grossman and Erwin Ginsberg, were promptly treated by Hatzola, a volunteer-run emergency medical service, and were hospitalised. It is understood that one victim sustained severe bruising, a broken nose and a fractured wrist, while the other also suffered bruising and injuries to his wrist and eye.
The incident took place on Cadoxton Avenue and was reported by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
Malaki Thorpe, 18, of Fairview Road N15, appeared in Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court shortly after the incident and was charged with two counts of racially aggravated ABH and one count of possession of an offensive weapon.
He was remanded in custody, and did not attend a hearing at Wood Green Crown Court in March, when the court determined that he was to undergo a mental health assessment to determine his fitness to stand trial.
Today, at the hearing in the same court, Mr Thorpe’s lawyer, David Lyons, stated that the defendant was unfit to plead as he was “suffering from psychotic illness”.
Mr Thorpe is currently remanded in custody and is awaiting transfer to Chase Farm Hospital to receive medical treatment. The court will reconvene in June for a case management hearing where, depending on a doctor’s assessment, Mr Thorpe may have an opportunity to state his plea.
Mr Lyons also disclosed that there is no dispute that Mr Thorpe hit these men, but he requested that the court reconsider whether the racially motivated element is applicable, to which Judge Aaronberg responded that the comment had been noted.
Florence Schechter, a comedian and presenter who is also the founding Director of the Vagina Museum, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where, speaking from first-hand experience, she provided an insight into the crossover between antisemitism and LGBTQ+ phobia.
“The Museum shared a post which was about International Women’s Day, and we were talking about some trans women from history,” Ms Schechter said, “and somebody replied to that post saying ‘Imagine my surprise, I found out the founder’s Jewish’, and there was this weird, like, ‘Look at the Jews, trying to destroy society.’”
Agreeing with an assertion made by Pink News’ CEO Benjamin Cohen, who appeared on Podcast Against Antisemitism in February, that antisemites also tend to be homophobic, racist, misogynistic and transphobic, Ms Schechter explained: “What’s really interesting is there’s a current narrative at the moment that in particular, trans people, but the LGBT community in general, are trying to control society and influence it, and I saw a tweet recently where somebody was like, ‘Isn’t it weird that this tiny minority of trans people have infiltrated all our big organisations and are changing the rules in their favour, isn’t that weird?’ And I was like, oh, that’s just an antisemitic argument wrapped up against trans people instead.
“And because there’s this exact style of argument happening, I think there’s a lot of people who have the overlap of ‘Whose the person with the strings? It’s the Jews and it’s the queers.’”
Ms Schechter also revealed that she has also received large amounts of online antisemitism outside of Twitter. “On my YouTube videos, for a few of them, I had to shut off comments because people were making rape threats and death threats towards me because I was Jewish. I found myself listed on an antisemitic website once…I won’t name the website but it was a website that listed people who are a threat to white supremacy.
“They had all these pages of all these famous people, Jews and non-Jews, who were a threat to white supremacy…it had links to my website, links to my Twitter so that people could find me really easily…it was really scary.”
The podcast with Ms Schechter can be listened to here, or watched in its entirety here.
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, writer Eve Barlow and actor Eddie Marsan.
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the University regarding Ray Bush, who was then a Professor of African Studies and Development Politics. Prof. Bush appeared to have tweeted from the Twitter handle “@raymondobush” a large number of tweets that breach the Definition. Prof. Bush’s profile page on the University’s website links to the offending Twitter handle.
There were three types of breaches.
First, the tweets stated that Israel’s existence itself is unacceptable, using the exact language of the Definition in referring to Jewish self-determination as “a racist endeavour”. The Definition states that “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 antisemitic. This claim was repeated on numerous occasions:
“#DefyIHRA the state of #Israel is a #racist endeavour”
“#defyIHRA the state of Israel is a racist endeavour. The IHRA definition of antisemitism is a threat to free expression | Ash Sarkar https://theguardian.com/commentisfree/”
“#racistendeavour #warcrimes #Israel join the dots and understand why Israel is a zionist entity and settler colonial regime that exists solely because of US money and European guilt. #endtheoccupation”
“#Labourparty #NEC big mistake with #IHRA #Israel is a racist endeavour and what about other discrimination? Is NEC recognising defined discrimination and racism of #BAME ? #Corbyn got outflanked by #Zionists time to recalibrate and take offensive against occupation of #Palestine”
“So, @Keir_Starmer prefers a #LabourParty without @RLong_Bailey. Shane [sic] on him and all the other #labourparty members failing to recognise #zionism as a pernicious #racist ideology promoted by zealots to dehumanise #Palestinians”
“So it continues, use an anti Semite smear, stop progressive politics #Zionism is #racism amongst other things ….”
“Of course @MarkSerwotka is right #Israel #hasbara #zionism #racism”
Second, the tweets breached the Definition by comparing Israelis and Zionists to Nazis. According to the Definition: “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is antisemitic. For example, the following was tweeted:
“Does it take a nazi to recognise a #nazi #Israel #racism ?”
“#nazi-zionistalliance #zionism #settlercolonialism hold onto power whoever you align with”
Third, the tweets contravened the Definition by claiming that concerns about institutional antisemitism in the Labour Party, which were vindicated by the report of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, were due to a campaign run by the “Israeli embassy.” The tweets thus supported one of the oldest tropes used to justify acts of antisemitism: the discredited myth of a Jewish conspiracy in which Jews are disloyal and act as a fifth column against the interests of their home countries. The Definition states that: “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as a collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions” is antisemitic. This was done in tweets including:
“The reason they hate Corbyn of course is because he is anti #Zionist and the antisemitic campaign is ran by the #Israeli embassy among others
“Always rely on @guardian to get it right on #antisemitism thanks for all your help demonising #Corbyn and #Labour the #Israeli embassy will be delighted. Who is next in your mediocre target?”
The University acknowledged receipt of our letter and pledged to revert to us, but not only did the institution fail to do so, but there is no evidence that any investigation into Prof. Bush and the Twitter account bearing his name ever took place. In the meantime, Prof. Bush has retired, and now holds the prestigious position of Emeritus Professor of African Studies and Development Politics, which means that he is still connected to the University. Indeed, his profile page on the University’s website links to his offending Twitter account.
Neither the University of Leeds nor Prof. Bush responded to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We have always been clear that adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism is only a first step. What is vital is that universities actually apply the Definition when allegations of antisemitism arise. In this case, not only has the University of Leeds apparently failed to do so, but there is no indication that it launched any investigation at all. Instead, it has allowed Ray Bush to retire quietly and assume the prestigious position of emeritus professor, while continuing to advertise the offending Twitter account on its website.
“These tweets are clearly in breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. Anyone airing and disseminating dangerous antisemitic views is not fit to be entrusted with the responsibility of teaching young people. For this reason, it was important for the matter to be properly investigated and for consequences to follow. Leeds missed this opportunity to demonstrate that it takes the safety of its Jewish students seriously. Now, the University must explain why it failed to take action.”
The incoming President of the National Union of Students (NUS) has again stirred controversy, claiming in an interview published today that, although it is “absolutely not true” that “I don’t like Jewish people,” nevertheless, “as a black Muslim woman, it [the allegation] is something that I expected.”
Shaima Dallali’s comments were reported in The Guardian, which interviewed the union’s already embattled President-elect.
Last week, NUS announced that it was launching an independent investigation into antisemitism, including allegations facing Ms Dallali. Ms Dallali, 27, told the newspaper that “The investigation is the right thing to do,” adding: “I know quite a few Jewish students feel alienated. This is the first step to start bridging the gap and reaching out to Jewish students and ensuring that Jewish students feel like they have a place in NUS, so I do welcome it.”
Ms Dallali, who has a history of inflammatory tweets, including one for which she apologised, reportedly compared herself to a notorious former NUS President, Malia Bouattia. According to the newspaper, Ms Dallali said that “the backlash against her election was part of pattern, seen with previous student leaders including Malia Bouattia, who in 2016 became the first black Muslim woman to become NUS president.”
“Unfortunately, as a black Muslim woman, it is something that I expected because I’ve seen it happen to other black Muslim women when they take up positions in the student union or the NUS, where they are attacked based on their political beliefs or their pro-Palestinian stance,” Ms Dallali said.
She also claimed that she had received a lot of racist and anti-Muslim abuse online: “I’ve had private messages of people calling me a raghead, people telling me to go and kill myself, calling me a Jew hater and an antisemite. That has been difficult to read. And so many threats as well – if I continue to do this then things will happen to me. I just try to delete, to block, I try not to let it get to my head. It’s something I receive every day and I’m continuing to receive. It’s affected me mentally and physically. Sometimes I don’t feel safe.”
Ms Bouattia was also investigated by NUS during her tenure and found to have made antisemitic statements, but no action was taken against her in what was one of many instances of the union appearing to brush racism against Jews under the carpet.
During her election campaign, Ms Dallali, who will assume her position as President in July, was forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. In 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, Ms Dallali tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.” Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE. She also had a history of other inflammatory tweets, and last week, it also emerged that Ms Dallali had been in a group shouting aggressively at Jewish students attending an Israel Society event at King’s College London in 2018, at which it was reported that the “Khaybar” chant was heard.
Ms Dallali reportedly told The Guardian that, as the newspaper put it, “Muslims were not allowed room for growth.” She said: “It genuinely is really difficult to have to see these horrible things being said about me. They are not true. This idea that I don’t like Jewish people, or I’m hateful towards the Jewish community is absolutely not true. During my time as a sabbatical officer, I’ve worked with the Jewish community to support them, for example to commemorate Holocaust memorial day. My door has always been open to all students regardless of who they are. I want to reiterate my willingness to work with Jewish students to combat antisemitism, to address their concerns. I want to represent all students and their concerns are important. I may at times disagree with people politically. Everyone has the right to have their own political ideas, but I don’t hate anyone. I definitely don’t hate the Jewish community. I do believe I can bridge the gap and build bridges.”
NUS’s announcement of an investigation into antisemitism came after Robert Halfon MP wrote together with Campaign Against Antisemitism to the Charity Commission calling for an investigation into the union’s charitable arm. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here.
In addition, over twenty former NUS Presidents wrote a letter expressing their “serious concerns about antisemitism”, and another letter, organised by the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and signed by over 1,000 Jewish students and allies, called for NUS to launch an independent investigation.
The Universities Minister also called for an investigation into NUS by the Charity Commission, and it has been further suggested that the Government’s grant to NUS should be withdrawn, and that the Government should cease to recognise NUS as the voice of British students, if concerns over antisemitism are not addressed.
It has also been reported that the Department for Education is looking at its relationship with NUS and at its charitable status, after Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi reportedly accused the union of “systemic antisemitism”.
The calls came following revelations about Ms Dallali and the recent Lowkey scandal, where Jewish concerns were reportedly brushed aside as the controversial rapper and activist was invited to headline the union’s centenary conference. He eventually withdrew as NUS came under media pressure.
After the circulation of the letter by former NUS Presidents, another letter has reportedly been published in support of Ms Dallali and calling for a simultaneous NUS investigation into Islamophobia and racist, as well as antisemitism.
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].
Executive Order 2022-06D, called “Defining and Combating Antisemitism”, describes anti-Jewish hatred and prejudice as a “persistent, pervasive, and disturbing problem in American society, including…in Ohio.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has ordered all state agencies, departments, boards, and commissions, including public colleges and universities, to adopt the Definition, and encouraged “all federal and local governments and governmental agencies and entities to adopt it as well.”
There has been a steadily growing Jewish presence in Ohio since 1817. According to a 2020 study, the Jewish population was 151,615, making up 1.3 percent of a total state population of nearly twelve million.
The Executive Order points out, however, that Ohio’s Jewish population has been the target of several examples of antisemitic terrorism plots. These include an attempted attack on two synagogues in Toledo in December 2018, and another incident in white a white nationalist was arrested for threatening to attack a Jewish community centre in Youngstown with firearms in August 2019. The perpetrators behind these incidents are now serving prison sentences.
More recently, a professor at Ohio State University avoided long-term disciplinary consequences after using the term “Jew down” in one of her classes while referring to haggling about prices in a market. There have also been instances of antisemitic graffiti on the side of a Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), a zoombombing during an online careers fair at Ohio’s Miami University, and one example where a Jewish couple received antisemitic abuse and threats, and had rocks thrown at their home.
Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Since then, numerous local councils, universities and sport associations in the United Kingdom have adopted the Definition, as have several national governments and myriad municipalities and associations around the world.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Over 200 Scots have signed a letter to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in connection with the lack of clarity over whether the two Scottish Green ministers in her Government endorse the International Definition of Antisemitism or not.
Ms Sturgeon, who is the leader of the SNP, has repeatedlystated that all members of the Scottish Government must endorse the Definition as a prerequisite for being part of her devolved administration. However, it remains to be clarified whether or not Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater of the Scottish Greens, which has yet to adopt the Definition but on whose support Ms Sturgeon’s Government depends, support the Definition of not.
In response to these revelations, Sammy Stein, a founder member of the Scottish National Party’s Friends for Peace in the Middle East and Chair of Glasgow Friends of Israel, wrote a letter to Ms Sturgeon which has so far received 213 signatures.
The letter reads: “I was disappointed that you did not provide a clear answer to the matter of the two Scottish Green ministers as, to the best of my knowledge, neither of them has signed up to the IHRA [international] Definition of Antisemitism. I would thank you on behalf of the Scottish Jewish community for continuing to support the IHRA Definition and your strong stance against antisemitism. You have also made your position abundantly clear by stating that ‘I do speak for and am accountable for all the members of my Government, which is a signatory to the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism, and every minister before being appointed to my Government has to be clear that they sign up to and accept it. That includes the two Green Party members. It is my understanding however that with regards to your statement above, neither of the Green Party ministers has as yet signed up to the IHRA Definition despite the fact that they were invited by you to join the Government in August 2021. It would be helpful to know if this is correct and if it is, how is it possible that the two Green Party ministers were appointed to your Government BEFORE they signed up to the IHRA Definition.
“I would be grateful if you can advise the steps you plan to take in order to ensure that these two ministers comply with your guidance and how long it may be before you consider the appropriate steps to exclude them from your Government. I would suggest that this is a matter by which your commitment to continuing to actively support your stance against racism in general and antisemitism, in particular, will be judged and I do hope and expect that you will stay true to your publicly stated position.”
Mr Stein said: “There appears to be a clear discrepancy between what Nicola Sturgeon says about combating antisemitism and waht she decides to do about it. I believe she is very sincere in her support for adopting the IHRA definition, but she is clearly concerned about upsetting the Greens and losing control of her majority in Parliament. The fact that so many people felt compelled to sign this letter shows the strength of feeling within the community and I hope she takes notice of this and resolves this matter.”
Ms Sturgeon recently addressed a gathering of Scottish Jews, reiterating her Government’s commitment to the Definition but coming under pressure over the position of the Scottish Greens.
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.
Three people have been arrested over their alleged involvement in an unofficial version of the Disney game Club Penguin, after users were said to be exchanging messages full of antisemitic abuse.
City of London police say that they detained the trio for alleged copyright offences in connection with their role in running ‘Club Penguin Rewritten’. The suspects have been released on bail.
The arrests come two years after the BBC launched an investigation into another unauthorised clone of the popular children’s game, where users also exchanged antisemitic material.
The original, authorised Club Penguin was launched in 2005 as one of the first social networks aimed at children. During the peak of its popularity, the Disney platform had over 200 million users. Anybody was free to join, but content filters and human moderators prevented any inappropriate material from being shared.
Disney closed the website in 2017, after which unofficial fan-operated clones were launched using stolen or copied source code. Such clones became increasingly popular during pandemic lockdowns.
In a BBC video explaining the earlier scandal, users were shown writing things like “due to all my fans and support I will be ***** the jews [sic]”.
Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police, confirmed the seizure of the site and arrests. He said: “Following a complaint under copyright law, PIPCU have seized a gaming website as part of an ongoing investigation into the site. Three people were arrested on 12th April on suspicion of distributing materials infringing copyright, and searches were carried out.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
Jewish children have been abused and stolen from by teenagers in Stamford Hill according to two reported incidents.
In one such incident, teenagers reportedly broke into a block of flats where they found children between the ages of four and six playing amongst themselves before pouring water on them and proceeding to steal their toys. It has been alleged that the teenagers also stole other residents’ belongings from the communal area of the building.
The assailants were believed to have been a mixture of young men and women and video footage appears to show two people running out of the building.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 1809 13/04/22
In a separate incident, the same gang of teenagers is believed to have assaulted an eleven-year-old and one-year-old baby in a play area. The perpetrators, who were said to have been young-looking women of Black ethnicity, reportedly poured yoghurt over the infant and buggy and threw ice lollies at them whilst hurling verbal abuse.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 2621 13/04/22
Additional CCTV appears to show, in a third incident, a Jewish-owned shop where the premises have been vandalised, reportedly by the same assailants behind the previous incidents.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 3374 13/04/22
All three incidents took place last week in Stamford Hill and were reported on Friday by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
#HateCrime#Antisemitism#Racist Gang (believed from Guinness Trust buildings) gained entry on several occasions to a block of flats & abused 4 yr old children playing in the public area & poured water over them
Jewish leaders in Rome have spoken out against a cartoon depicting Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, with a hooked nose, which is a classic antisemitic stereotype.
The image, by satirical cartoonist Vauro Senesi, shows profiles of Mr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin side-by-side surrounded by the words “No alla guerra…senza ze e sensa vla!” (“No to war without Zes and Vlas”, a pun on the phrase ‘No ifs or buts’). While Mr Putin is represented with a stern, square visage, Mr Vauro’s representation of the Ukrainian President gives him a very prominent hooked nose.
In a tweet, President of the Comunità Ebraica di Roma (Jewish Community of Rome), Ruth Dureghello, said that “It is not a coincidence, but a habit that a certain gentleman depicts Jews with hooked noses in the style of the Defence of the Race. Not for this reason is it less serious and no one can get used to shame.”
Ms Dureghello was referring to the fortnightly Italian publication Difesa della razza (Defence of the Race) that ran from 1938 to 1943. It is widely regarded as the main tool for promoting antisemitism by the Italian fascist regime headed by Benito Mussolini, which ended in 1945 with the Allied victory in World War Two. Difesa began publication shortly after the 1938 Manifesto della razza (Manifesto of Race), which stripped Italian Jews of their citizenship and Government and professional positions.
This is not the first time that Mr Senesi has been accused of drawing inflammatory cartoons. In 2012, an Italian court fined Italian journalist Peppino Caldarola €25,000 for allegedly slandering Mr Senesi, after Mr Caldarola produced a satirical version of one of Mr Senesi’s cartoons that allegedly depicted Jewish Italian politician Fiamma Nirenstein in a classic antisemitic form. The President of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald S. Lauder, called the ruling “a travesty”.
Mr Senesi has denied any allegations of antisemitism, describing himself as an “anti-Nazi communist”. He said: “In this drawing there is no reference to the Jewishness of Zelenskyy, something which is wholly meaningless to me. If I draw a caricature (it’s called that because it ‘charges’ the facial features) it is obvious that I exaggerate his features so that it resembles him: Zelenskyy has a major nose not because he is Jewish but because it is his nose. I have never thought that Jews necessarily have a hooked nose, also because I know very many who have noses of various kinds. I would have preferred not to answer all those cretins who have commented on Zelenskyy’s nose. I’m only doing so because it is bad faith unless it is imbecility.”
Italian Senator Andrea Marcucci took to Twitter to denounce Mr Senesi, writing: “Re-proposing Nazi propaganda on the Jews to draw President Zelenskyy is literally a disgusting operation.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Swastika graffiti was discovered on trees in Forest City Community Park in Wantagh, Nassau County, on 14th April, the eve of Passover and Easter.
A pentagram Satanic symbol was also discovered at the New York park.
In response to the incident, the swastikas will be scrubbed off and the Parks and Public Safety departments will conduct more patrols and additional check-ups of the park and its facilities, according to authorities.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
School staff discovered two swastikas painted on a utility room at Landels Elementary School, Mountain View on 11th April.
Police said that they were not able to find any footage to help them in their investigation and have therefore issued a press release to seek the community’s help in finding the perpetrator.
This incident comes after graffiti that included the N-word was found at Amy Imai Elementary School. Similarly, graffiti has been discovered at both Bubb and Monta Loma elementary schools, including swastikas.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The Labour Party has suspended a candidate in the upcoming local elections after he reportedly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, as a “Zionist”, questioning why he had so much support.
Ziad Alsayed, a candidate for the Baruc ward in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, allegedly wrote the tweet in Arabic on 26th February, saying “How could we side with a country that has a Zionist president?” He has since deleted the tweet.
Alun Cairns, Conservative MP for the Vale of Glamorgan, expressed his concern about another tweet written by Mr Alsayed, in which the Labour candidate calls Mr Zelenskyy a “fascist”. Mr Alsayed is understood to have responded to an expression of solidarity for Ukraine written by London Mayor Sadiq Khan with the words: “If you mean the Ukrainian people that’s OK, but not the fascist president.”
Although the Labour Party has suspended Mr Alsayed pending an investigation, he will remain on the ballot for the election, nominally as the Party’s candidate, because nominations have already closed.
A spokesperson for Labour said: “The Labour Party takes all complaints seriously. They are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures, and any appropriate action is taken.”
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’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.
It has been reported that two men have been charged with causing the death of a French Jewish man who was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram.
The two suspects, reported to be aged 27 and 23, are now the subject of a manslaughter investigation by police in Bobigny, six miles north-east of the centre of Paris. However, though the alleged antisemitism behind the crime has been widely reported, the public prosecutor said: “There is currently no evidence to establish the discriminatory nature of this attack.”
The suspects are instead being investigated for “intentional violence resulting in death without the intention of causing it.”
While the death of Mr Cohen, 31, was at first treated as a traffic accident, his family went on to release video footage that appears to show him being attacked by a group of men, leading him to flee for safety without noticing the oncoming tram. Mr Cohen was taken to hospital but did not survive his injuries.
Mr Cohen is believed to have been wearing a kippah, or skullcap, during the attack, and the family called upon the police to reopen the investigation into his death as they felt his visible Jewish identity played a role in his attackers’ motivation.
It was reportedly only when the family started asking questions, handing out fliers in post boxes throughout the neighbourhood and urging witnesses to come forward, that someone eventually came forward with the crucial video footage that showed that the victim was being attacked moments before his death.
The victim’s father, Gerald Cohen, said: “Why is the family the one who needs to bring the evidence to police investigators? If we hadn’t done that we wouldn’t have known the truth. We want justice for our son Jeremy.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Shaf Mahmood, who was due to stand as a Conservative candidate in the Redvales ward, saw his endorsement from the Party reportedly revoked last week after it emerged that he has tweeted, in 2017, that “Jews r at it again”. According to a report in the Jewish News, Mr Mahmood, who had backed George Galloway’s Workers’ Party in the Batley and Spen by-election last year, had allegedly also shared a social media post which labelled Sir Keir Starmer a “Zionist”.
That revocation came a day after another Conservative candidate, Sham Raja, who was the Conservatives’ candidate in the Sedgley ward, was also dropped after numerous historic and inflammatory social media posts were uncovered, including one allegedly comparing Israeli footballers to “assassins”. The tweets were reported in the Jewish Telegraph.
Another Conservative, Shahbaz Mahmood Arif, the candidate for Bury West, reportedly shared an inflammatory article from the controversial far-left website, The Canary. He had been selected by the local party after a young Jewish councillor had been – apparently inexplicably – deselected a few weeks ago. Another prospective Conservative candidate who was unsuccessful in his bid for selection feared that he was blocked due to his sympathies for the Jewish community and pro-Israel views, which Bury Conservatives denied.
Concerns have also been raised about Mazhar Aslam, another Conservative candidate in Sedgley, over his social media activity.
In a statement, Bury Conservatives said: “Following certain social media posts being brought to our attention yesterday made by two of the candidates for Sedgley Ward the Association has investigated the matter and spoken to both candidates. Mr. Sham Raja no longer has the endorsement of Bury Conservative Party in this election. Mr Mazhar Aslam continues to be a Conservative Candidate. His explanation was that the single post complained of was not antisemitic in nature although he understood some would not agree with the contents of his post. He apologised and undertook to be more careful with the use of his language in this sensitive area in the future. His explanation and apology were accepted. We also wish to make clear that Dr Shadman Zaman was not confirmed as a Besses Ward candidate because of his failure to comply with instructions regarding electoral law and Party guidance and not because of any of his expressed views.”
Nick Jones, the leader of Bury Conservatives, said: “I am appalled at such ignorance regarding the State of Israel and I have asked the Conservative Association to investigate these matters immediately. As a Party we accept different views but it’s how these views expressed when the line is crossed is our challenge and investigation must be robust. As these statements have come to the attention of the association, I welcome that they have been dealt with robustly and on the day of them arising. The Conservative Council Group on Bury Council are friends of Israel and we fully support the IHRA [International] Definition of Antisemitism.”
Last year, a Conservative councillor in Bury who had the Party whip removed after he allegedly made antisemitic comments in a job interview was reinstated by the Party. Cllr Robert (Bob) Caserta was found to have breached the Code of Conduct for Councillors and Other Voting Representatives four times when he appeared before the Standards Sub-Committee over comments apparently made during an interview to recruit a senior officer at the Council in July 2019, when Cllr Caserta is alleged to have referred to “grot spots” in Sedgley and said that it would be difficult to communicate with residents “unless you are able to speak Hebrew”.
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.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has announced on ITV News that it is offering a £10,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in connection with a violent antisemitic attack in West Hampstead.
Over Chanukah, a Jewish man was allegedly violently attacked by a man carrying what appeared to be a knife in an antisemitic attack in the north London neighbourhood. The alleged assailant said that he wanted to “Kill my first Jew” but has not been traced.
Police released a CCTV image of a man whom they need to speak with. The photograph that has been released may not be of the assailant.
Following the attack, police faced criticism for their initial slow response, which they had said would take an hour to respond to, however the police investigation was upgraded following intervention by CST. Nevertheless, the investigation has stalled, and we are now again appealing to the public to provide information so that justice can be done for the victim.
The incident took place on 2nd December at around 19:20, when the victim was returning from work. He exited West Hampstead Underground Station and walked to the nearby Marks and Spencer supermarket located in West Hampstead Square.
He saw the alleged attacker desecrating a 4-metre high public Chanukiah that was erected on West Hampstead Square to celebrate the Jewish festival of Chanukah, pulling the object down before proceeding to stamp on in and shout antisemitic abuse.
With no prior interaction, the attacker approached the victim and aggressively said: “You look Jewish” and that he was “looking for a Jew to kill” after singling out the victim among other pedestrians, despite there being no visible indication of his Jewish background.
He allegedly asked threateningly: “Are you Jewish?” The victim, understandably wishing to avoid a confrontation, said “No,” to which the man replied: “Good, I want to find a Jew to kill.”
The victim entered a nearby Marks and Spencer supermarket and the man remained outside. The victim was worried for the safety of other Jews and their families in the neighbourhood where the man was loitering, which has a sizeable Jewish population. The victim approached a supermarket employee, who said that the man had been in the store earlier.
The victim decided to call the police, explaining the situation to them over the course of about eight minutes.
Officers told the victim that they did not consider the case urgent enough for a priority response and would come within an hour, despite the attacker threatening to kill Jews. After a short period of time, the victim spotted the man again, outside the shop, pulling down the public Chanukiah which someone had put back up in the intervening time. The victim also said that the man was shouting aggressively at a young woman, aged 18-25 who fled the square. He then returned to pulling the Chanukiah to the ground.
Fearing for the young woman, the victim and the supermarket employee confronted the man from a ten-metre distance. The attacker allegedly shouted at him in response: “I knew you were Jewish, you lied to me” and began walking towards his victim while shouting: “You are Jewish. I am going to kill you.” He said something in Arabic before allegedly declaring: “I want to kill my first Jew.”
The victim ran back into Marks and Spencer and turned to see if the man had followed him, which he had, having put on a facemask in the meantime.
As the assailant walked into the shop, he shouted at the victim again: “You are Jewish.”
The man reached the victim, allegedly squaring up to him aggressively with barely a metre between them. Within seconds, the man allegedly pushed the victim as hard as he could with both hands on the victim’s chest, forcing the victim to take a step backwards, all the while repeating: “You are Jewish. I am going to kill you.”
The attacker then allegedly punched the victim violently with force towards the head around five times, the victim had to guard himself from the attacks using his forearms and elbows.
After the first attack, the victim again told the man to back away and pushed the attacker away. The attacker allegedly replied: “I am not leaving until you are dead.” Taking steps backwards with his coat and heavy bag restricting his movement, the victim found himself cornered at the edge of an aisle with nowhere else to move backwards to.
He turned his head around to see what was blocking him, at which point the attacker took advantage of the victim’s shift in concentration and allegedly threw a strong punch which connected with the victim’s head. The victim tried to move his head backwards in an attempt to limit the impact. Had he not done this, the victim believes that his injuries would have been even more severe and he would have been knocked unconscious onto the floor of the supermarket.
Again, the victim told the man to “back away” to which the attacker repeated “I am not going away until you are dead.”
By this point, the victim began to fear for his life. He had no inclination to fight the man and wanted to defuse the situation. He managed to extricate himself and head towards the self-service checkout machines, with the man following him and allegedly shouting more antisemitic abuse and death threats. He was also heard shouting in Arabic.
The victim dropped his bag and jacket to make it easier to run from the man, but the man kept walking faster and faster, eventually reaching for his right jacket pocket.
He grabbed what was apparently a knife and allegedly said “I will kill you now, you Jew.” The victim ran to the back of the shop before the man had the chance to reveal the weapon fully. He turned to see that the man remained by the checkout machines, still staring at the victim and allegedly performing a slit-throat gesture.
The man then allegedly picked up the victim’s jacket and bag and walked calmly out of the shop. The victim remained where he was, terrified for his life. He did not see the man thereafter. A staff member then approached the victim to tell him that the man had left. The victim called the police for a second time, as did the shop employee, and spoke to operators for an extended period. Another staff member then brought over the victim’s bag, which had been discarded, and he later found his jacket in the shop. None of the contents of the bag or jacket had been taken.
Finally, the police arrived. Despite the duration of the incident and the proximity of a police station only half a mile up the road.
The victim called the CST, which provided support to the victim and pressed the police to upgrade their investigation. Police mounted extra patrols in the area in subsequent days and CST adapted its operations to take account of the incident. Campaign Against Antisemitism has subsequently provided legal and other assistance to the victim.
The assailant is described as being black and possibly of Somali ethnicity, aged between 25 and 30 and between 6’0” and 6’1” in height. He had a slender build and bad teeth, and wore a dark green beanie hat, a dark puffer jacket with large pockets, dark trousers and no gloves. He wore a dark facemask when in the shop. He spoke in English, with a mixed East London and foreign accent, and spoke Arabic.
If you have any information, please e-mail us at [email protected] or call us on 0330 822 0321.
You may contact us in confidence or provide details so that we can contact you if your information leads to a conviction and you are eligible for the reward. Your reward will be payable upon Campaign Against Antisemitism determining, at its discretion, that there has been a successful conviction as a result of the information that you provide, and only after the deadline to appeal such conviction has passed.
Alternatively, you can contact the police directly on 101, quoting reference: CRIS 2328674/21. Please note that if you choose to contact the police directly and do not also contact us, you may be ineligible for the reward, given that we may be unable to contact you.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “What this victim has suffered is unspeakable, and it is only thanks to his quick thinking that he survived the ordeal without even worse injury than he endured. The delayed response of the police, despite the close proximity of a police station just up the road, and subsequent police failures, mean that the investigation is now stalled. We are calling on the public for help to ensure that justice is done and a dangerous assailant is taken off our streets. If you have any information, please contact us.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
A Jewish resident of Thornhill, Ontario, has expressed his dismay after finding antisemitic graffiti while out for a walk.
On 11th April, Dennis Kalish was on one of his favourite walks around “picturesque” Bond Lake in the Richmond Hill area, around twelve miles north of the centre of Toronto, when he found antisemitic symbols daubed in blue and black spray paint on a downed tree.
Mr Kalish said this is not the first time that he has seen such graffiti in his local area. He said that not only that he has seen his synagogue defaced and heard antisemitic slurs yelled at visibly Jewish people, but that he thinks antisemitism is becoming more common in Canada.
Mr Kalish said: “There’s no shame, no accountability. This is what’s happening over here; it’s becoming so prevalent.”
Mr Kalish has reported the incident to York Regional Police, who released a statement saying they are looking into the incident.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz has been sentenced to jail today once again, after being found guilty of a communications offence following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
Last week’s two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court concerned a video of the scene in the classic Oliver Twist film when Fagin, a fictitious Jewish criminal (a character that has come under significant criticism over the past century for its antisemitic depiction), is explaining to his newest recruit how his legion of children followers pick pockets. Ms Chabloz uploaded the video and sings an accompanying song of her own about how Jews are greedy, “grift” for “shekels” and cheat on their taxes.
The video appeared to be either a bizarre fundraising effort for her mounting legal costs due to numerous charges she has faced, including several ongoing prosecutions in which Campaign Against Antisemitism has provided evidence, or an attempt at mockery of Campaign Against Antisemitism for pursuing her in the courts.
At court, Ms Chabloz tried to suggest that the video was part of a personal quarrel and that her racism is directed not at “Jews” but at “Zionists”. She expressed scepticism about the facts of the Holocaust on the stand, and replicated a racist Quennelle gesture, which she has performed in the past. She rather insightfully observed that “antisemitism is not a crime. If it was, the prisons would be full.”
Summing up, Judge Nina Tempia said that the defendant “was making up evidence” as she went along, and she did not accept Ms Chabloz’s claim that her song was about the controversial activist Tommy Robinson, describing that suggestion as “ludicrous”. Instead, Judge Tempia said, “I have not doubt” that the song related to Jews. She further noted that, given Ms Chabloz’s previous convictions, she “knew exactly what she was doing” and that she had a propensity to commit these types of offences.
The prosecution asked the court to take into account that the whole Jewish community was a victim in this crime and that Ms Chabloz had an incomplete report of her previous sentences.
Sentencing Ms Chabloz today, Judge Tempia reiterated her comments of last Friday and sentenced Ms Chabloz to 22 weeks’ custody – because the matter is, Judge Tempia said, “so serious” – of which she will serve half and then be under post-sentence supervision. She has also been ordered to pay £1,058 in costs by 30th September. She will not have bail pending any appeal.
Ms Chabloz is a virulent antisemite and Holocaust denier who has an extensive record of using social media to publicise her hatred for Jews and to convert others to her views about Jewish people. Following a private prosecution by Campaign Against Antisemitism, which was later continued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Ms Chabloz became the first person in Britain to be convicted over Holocaust denial in a precedent-setting case.
Ms Chabloz is fixated on the idea that the Holocaust did not occur, and that it was fabricated by Jews and their supporters as a vehicle for fraudulently extorting money in the form of reparations. This forms the basis for her second obsession, that Jews are liars and thieves who are working to undermine Western society. Ms Chabloz is also connected to far-right movements, at whose meetings she gives speeches and performs her songs, in the UK and North America. She is currently banned from entering France, where Holocaust denial is illegal.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “We welcome this sentence, in view of Alison Chabloz having dedicated herself to spreading her hateful and dangerous views about Jews. She is a repeat offender who has never shown any sign of remorse for the damage that she causes. It is right that she now will have to serve another prison sentence.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Drew Matthews, a police officer at the University of Colorado Boulder has been put on administrative leave following accusations of racism and antisemitism.
Safe Access for Everyone (SAFE), which has been described as “an anti-police organisation”, found tweets allegedly posted by Mr Matthews under the account /u/BocoRam18 on the Boulder and CUBoulder subreddit boards, as well as on the ProtectandServe board for police officers, on which he reportedly verified his identity as a campus police officer.
According to SAFE, Mr Matthews is alleged to have compared a private business’ vaccine mandate to the Holocaust, reportedly writing: “If people told you to wear a star on your shirt you’d do it.” In a post referencing homeless people, Mr Matthews is claimed to have written: “I say call in fire with the police and just spray the hoses at them till they leave”. Mr Matthews also allegedly wrote, in another comment, that he stopped “every black male” at a house party that he broke up after receiving a report of sexual assault, where the suspect was black with an average height and build wearing a white T-shirt and jeans.
Mr Matthews was placed on paid administrative leave on 11th April due to allegedly “offensive and reprehensible” posts.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Luc Bernard, a video game developer and the creator of the first video game about the Holocaust, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about how video games could be an instrumental resource in teaching young people about the Shoah.
Mr Bernard, whose grandmother assisted children who arrived in the United Kingdom on the Kindertransport, an initiative in 1938-39 to rescue nearly 10,000 Jewish children from Europe, described his motivation in the creation of his game, The Light in the Darkness.
“Some don’t believe video games can be educational. That’s something I disagree with,” he said. “The problem is, no one has thought about what is the next step, or how do we continue education in new ways? Because I think education is trying to get the digital generation to adapt to them, rather than trying to adapt to the digital generation.”
Pointing to the successes of previous artforms in providing Holocaust education after meeting initial resistance, Mr Bernard said: “Comic books were viewed as insane at one point until Maus came out. Films were kind of viewed like, ‘I don’t know, man,’ until Shoah came out, and Schindler’s List. Video games need to be able to tackle the subject because we’re the number one form of entertainment, and I think rather than discourage game developers towards doing it, we should actually be able to guide game developers and encourage them to make these games, because then there would be more awareness.”
The story of the game revolves around Polish Jews in France during the Holocaust, Mr Bernard told our host. “You follow a Polish Jewish family in France, so you get to play, more like interact and experience, the story from France before the occupation, up to the occupation, antisemitism rising…we’re kind of going through every single step.
“What I really wanted to do is actually have you become attached to these characters, get to see who they were, get to live their life, rather than just go automatically into the bad things, because you know how film is, you want people to become attached emotionally so it has a bigger impact on the viewer, or on the player…also, in between scenes, you will have an option to listen to survivor testimonies, French survivors. You’ll be able to see the similarities to compare what they went through to what that current scene is showing.”
Asked whether ‘video game’ is an accurate title for The Light in the Darkness, Mr Bernard said that “it could be called several things,” including “an interactive story” or “an educational video game.”
Despite Mr Bernard referring to The Light in the Darkness as a ‘game’, he clarified that he has removed the player’s ability to make choices within the game to mirror the reality of the Holocaust for Jewish people. “If I made choice-based things, it would make it seem like Jews could have saved themselves. There’s so many factors to the Holocaust [and] why it happened. The fact that loads of countries closed their doors, didn’t allow refugees in. How, as the Jews were trying to get to what was British Palestine back then, Britain closed it down. How Britain only allowed 10,000 children on the Kindertransport. All those things are pretty much out of everyone’s control and I know some people [whose] mothers had to give them up just so they could live. If I made it choice-based so that it could affect the story, it would just make it seem like people had a choice and that’s why I really just had to eliminate that, and that’s again what makes it very weird for a video game. It’s very different to anything else I’ve ever done before.”
Mr Bernard chose to set the game in France under the Vichy Government. “What makes the Vichy government so interesting is that it was France that deported the Jews, it was France that decided to deport the children. France went full-on collaboration and they weren’t Nazis – they were bad people, and they had the same intent as the Nazis – and setting it in France shows how it wasn’t just the Nazis that did this, and how everyday people can become hateful.
“I think when people will play it, they’ll be like ‘wait, this was the French Government that did this? It was the French policeman that rounded them up?’, then they’ll actually realise the extent to how bad the Holocaust was because a lot of people just think it was just the Nazis. And, no, it was Europe. Europe did this.”
Mr Bernard, who is himself French, said “I actually love France, but it also means you have to address the dark, historical past of your country.”
The Light in the Darkness is expected to be released later this year for Xbox and Windows, with other platforms also under consideration.
Throughout the interview, Mr Bernard touched upon a wide variety of topics which included his own Jewish background, why the far-right has infiltrated video games, and how other video games have traditionally fallen short in how they depict Nazis.
The podcast with Mr Bernard can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Video game developer @LucBernard is the creator of the first-ever video game about the Holocaust.
Luc discusses how vital it is to create new educational resources on the Holocaust and why the much-misunderstood genre of video games could be the answer.https://t.co/wfHbxOT8Se
— Campaign Against Antisemitism (@antisemitism) April 14, 2022
Following a string of controversies surrounding the National Union of Students (NUS) and its leadership, the union has called for an independent investigation into recent antisemitism allegations raised by concerned members of the Jewish community and its allies.
The announcement comes after Robert Halfon MP wrote together with Campaign Against Antisemitism to the Charity Commission calling for an investigation into the union’s charitable arm. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here. In addition, over twenty former NUS Presidents wrote a letter expressing their “serious concerns about antisemitism”, and another letter, organised by the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and signed by over 1,000 Jewish students and allies, called for NUS to launch an independent investigation.
The Universities Minister also called for an investigation into NUS by the Charity Commission, and it has been further suggested that the Government’s grant to NUS should be withdrawn, and that the Government should cease to recognise NUS as the voice of British students, if concerns over antisemitism are not addressed.
In its statement today, NUS said that it is “very concerned about the pain and hurt being expressed” and has revealed that an independent investigation will be launched, which will “cover all public allegations made between March – April 2022 about NUS and the President Elect.” Regarding President-elect Shaima Dallali, the statement confirmed that the investigation would cover “a range of comments and actions that are alleged to have taken place over the last decade.”
It added that the investigation would also specifically examine the concern surrounding NUS’s booking of Lowkey for its centenary conference and would also include “a review of allegations of a wider culture of antisemitism within NUS.”
NUS has said that the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) would be consulted in arranging the investigation and that regular meetings with UJS would be taking place.
The announcement comes in the wake of numerous controversies involving NUS. In one recent scandal, the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event. As the scandal erupted, Robert Halfon MP excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by the Education Select Committee, which he chairs.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
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].
The Chair of the Enfield Southgate Conservative Association has been suspended pending an investigation after a photograph emerged apparently showing him dressed in full Nazi military regalia.
The image appears to show Colin Davis, a former Head of Military Law at London-based firm Carters Solicitors, dressed in full Nazi uniform, in a back garden. It was apparently taken during the 1980s and was reportedly found at a property that Mr Davis and his former wife used to live in.
Mr Davis is said to be “well connected” with the British Armed Forces and claims that he may have been a member of the British Army Reserves at the time that the photograph was taken.
It has been reported that Mr Davis was meant to stand in the May 2022 local elections as a Conservative candidate, and had been tipped potentially for the Oakwood ward – which has many Jewish potential voters – in the north London council.
Enfield Southgate Conservatives have since removed Mr Davis’s profile from its website. A similar action seems to have been undertaken by Carters Solicitors.
Mr Davis told Jewish News: “I have a long history of representing all the principles for which the Conservative Party stands. I’m not familiar with the photograph you are referring to. I have in the past served as a councillor. I have done all sorts of things. I have exposed extremism wherever it is to be found. On the other hand like Voltaire, I have tended to defend those whose own extremism has sometimes manifested itself in extreme types of intolerance. That doesn’t include defence of Nazism.”
Leader of the Enfield Southgate Conservatives, Cllr Joanne Laban said: “Mr Davis has been suspended from the Party by Enfield Southgate Conservative Association pending investigation. The Conservative Party takes allegations of this nature extremely seriously and the swift action taken reflects this.”
Concerns have also been raised about Bury Conservatives in Manchester, where a candidate has been dropped by the local Party after inflammatory social media posts emerged following other controversies. Campaign Against Antisemitism is continuing to monitor developments.
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.
Following a string of controversies surrounding the National Union of Students (NUS) and its leadership, over twenty former Presidents of the union have written to its current President to press her to deal with the concerns of Jewish students.
Signatories to the letter include Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, former Education Secretary Charles Clarke, former Labour MP Stephen Twigg and columnist David Aaronovitch.
In their letter to current NUS President Larissa Kennedy, they express their “serious concerns about antisemitism”.
“We are writing to you privately as former presidents with serious concerns about antisemitism, the safety and treatment of Jewish students at NUS events and within your democracy, and the way in which NUS is responding to these concerns,” the letter says.
It is clear, the letter observes, that NUS has “a serious and significant problem.”
The letter comes as NUS faces scrutiny over its record in relation to Jewish students and amidst a series of controversies in connection with antisemitism. In one recent scandal, the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event. As the scandal erupted, Robert Halfon MP excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by the Education Select Committee, which he chairs.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
Earlier this week, Mr Halfon wrote to the Charity Commission calling together with Campaign Against Antisemitism for a statutory inquiry into NUS. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here.
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].
The global governing body behind the international motor sport, The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), has launched an investigation after the winner of a karting race appeared to make a Nazi salute while celebrating his victory on the podium.
Russian driver Artem Severiukhin, fifteen, who was competing under the Italian flag due to sanctions against the country of his birth since its invasion of Ukraine, seemed to thump his chest and raise his right arm with a flat palm before laughing after winning the first round of the European Championship in Portugal on 10th April.
Following the incident, Mr Severiukhin has had his contract with Swedish team Ward Racing terminated. The team said that it condemned the driver’s behaviour in the “strongest possible terms” and is “deeply in shame”.
In a tearful video account of the incident, Mr Severiukhin said: “Standing on the podium I made a gesture which many perceived as a Nazi salute. I have never supported Nazism and consider it one of the most terrible crimes against humanity. I know it’s my fault, I know I’m stupid, and I’m ready to be punished. But please understand that I did not support Nazism or fascism with this gesture.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A minor level ice hockey organisation in Canada is facing complaints after it was reported that some fans who were attending games had targeted young Jewish players with antisemitic slurs.
The Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) has reportedly hired a private investigator to deal with three sets of allegations from 31st October 2021, 11th November 2021, and 6th March 2022.
Each incident took place before or during an under-thirteens game between the Avenue Road Ducks and the Don Mills Mustangs, with the slurs apparently being made by parents of the Mustangs’ teenage players.
Vice President of Toronto’s Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, Noah Shack, said: “No one should be subjected to hate when they are going to a rink to play hockey.”
With 2,800 and around 40,000 players, the Greater Toronto Hockey League is the largest youth ice hockey organisation in the world. In March 2022, the League published the findings of an independent committee which stated that racism and discrimination were endemic in the GTHL, though the report said nothing specific about antisemitism.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that a Jewish shopper was the victim of an allegedly antisemitic attack after his kippah (skullcap) was “snatched” from his head in a supermarket near Manchester.
It has emerged that, at around 01:10 on 3rd March, the unknown assailant advanced on a male victim by the self-service checkout area, before grabbing the kippah from the victim’s head and running away onto Pilsworth Road in the direction of the M66 motorway.
It was reported that, before the incident, the alleged offender was with two other men who left in a taxi.
Police were alerted to the incident, which took place in a branch of supermarket chain Asda in Pilsworth, Bury, and are now appealing to the public for help in finding the perpetrator. The police have now released a CCTV image of a person to whom they would like to speak.
Greater Manchester Police said that the taxi apparently then headed towards the Darnhill area of Heywood.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
A man charged with attacking five religious Jews in the North London neighbourhood of Stamford Hill has pleaded guilty to two criminal charges, but the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has outrageously dropped the religiously/racially aggravated element of the charges as part of a plea bargain.
Last Thursday, Abdullah Qureshi, 28, from Dewsbury in West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty at Thames Magistrates’ Court to one count of assault by beating and one count of grievous bodily harm with intent. But it has emerged that the CPS dropped the religiously/racially-aggravated element of the charges, despite Mr Quershi having attacked only visibly Jewish people — including a child and a 64-year-old man — that day in one of Britain’s most diverse neighbourhoods.
In one incident at 18:41, an Orthodox Jewish man was struck in the face with what appeared to be a bottle. In another at 19:10, a child was slapped on the back of the head, and in yet another at 20:30, a 64-year-old victim was struck and left unconscious on the ground, suffering facial injuries and a broken ankle. It is understood that two further incidents have been alleged.
The incidents received significant media attention at the time, and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, condemned “this appalling attack,” adding: “Let me be clear, racist abuse and hate crime, including antisemitism, have absolutely no place in our city.”
Mr Qureshi had originally been charged with in connection with a series of assaults in Stamford Hill in August, with one count of racially or religiously aggravated wounding or grievous bodily harm, four counts of racially or religiously aggravated common assault and one count of racially or religious aggravated criminal damage. The charges related to five incidents on 18th August investigated by Metropolitan Police’s Central East Command Unit. Groups including Campaign Against Antisemitism and Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol, put out witness appeals following the incidents, as three of the five alleged incidents were caught on video.
He is due to be sentenced in May, but the guilty pleas will come as little consolation for his victims or the wider Jewish community.
Recent polling by Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that a record 59% of British Jews do not believe that the CPS does enough to protect them. This failed prosecution will be viewed by many in the Jewish community as another failure of the CPS to protect them.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “In a violent spree, Abdullah Qureshi attacked innocent Jews as he came across them in the street, from a young child to an elderly man. We applaud the Shomrim for reporting these incidents and the police for identifying the perpetrator. It is disgraceful that, once again, the CPS has proved to be the weak link in our collective effort to secure justice and protection for British Jews. Polling shows that a majority of British Jews do not believe that the CPS does enough to protect them. This failed prosecution will only reinforce that eminently reasonable conclusion.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Five former pupils are suing Brighton Secondary College in Victoria, Australia, reportedly accusing it of tolerating an antisemitic culture.
News reports in 2020 about allegations of antisemitism at the school were followed by the launch of an investigation by the Victorian Department of Education. The 124-page resulting report included eighteen recommendations to improve the reporting and the monitoring policies at the school, and other mechanisms to deal with racist and antisemitic behaviour.
Now, five former pupils are suing the school, reportedly alleging that it tolerated an antisemitic culture that “robbed them of their right to be educated in safety”. Twenty other students are involved in the legal action as well.
One pupil described the school as a “prison culture” and how reporting bullying to staff would only increase its severity. Knife assault is among the incidents that the boy claims to have faced.
The pupils also claim that they were discriminated against by the school’s administration. One student alleges that he was criticised by a teacher because he had “started growing facial hair in accordance with Jewish tradition and law”. The boys claimed that the school’s efforts to address antisemitism were poor, including one class where the Holocaust graphic novel Maus was taught, and teachers were unable to stop laughter and Jewish pupils being called “rats”.
The school has denied legal liability but has reportedly admitted that there were some acts of antisemitism. However, the school has claimed that “the antisemitic acts were small in number and done by a small number of students”. The school also rejected the accusation that it tolerated swastika graffiti.
The case comes as the Jewish Community Council of Victory launches a professional learning programme and a bystander training programme at Brighton Secondary College to give teachers training for how to deal with Antisemitism.
A case against the State of Victoria was launched last year.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A couple from Boston say they have bought a building with the aim of creating the city’s first museum dedicated to the Holocaust.
Co-founders of the Holocaust Legacy Foundation, Jodi Kipnis and Todd Ruderman, explained that they have bought a building on Tremont Street in the centre of the city to house the project.
Though Boston already hosts the New England Holocaust Memorial, erected in the centre of the city in 1995, just one mile from Ms Kipnis and Mr Ruderman’s proposed museum, this new venture would be the city’s first indoor museum about the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany and its collaborators.
The announcement comes after a rise in antisemitic incidents in and around Boston, including swastika graffiti found at a Boston high school, amongst other incidents in schools across Massachusetts, and the presence of the neo-Nazi group Nationalist Social Club at the recent St Patrick’s Day parade.
Ms Kipnis and Mr Ruderman have expressed their concern about young people’s lack of knowledge about the Holocaust.
Ms Kipnis said: “The timeless and timely lessons of the Holocaust have never been more urgently needed. In order for the Holocaust to remain relevant to new generations, Holocaust Legacy Foundation is taking the opportunity to create a powerful museum for all of New England.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A neo-Nazi terrorist who encouraged acts of violence against Jews has received a two-year sentence in a young offenders institution.
Thomas Leech, 19, promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories about the nefarious “global influence” of Jews and the “Great Replacement”, a far-right conspiracy theory which claims that Jews are responsible for mass immigration and the supposed extinction of white Europeans, as well as posting examples of Holocaust-denial.
He also glorified neo-Nazi terrorists, including Norwegian mass shooter Andrers Breivik, Pittsburgh Tree of Life Synagogue shooter Robert Bowers, and Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof.
Mr Leech confessed to being a Nazi when taken into custody by counter-terrorism operatives, but continued to post extreme antisemitic content even while on bail.
He first came to police attention when he claimed to be planning a shooting at his West Yorkshire school in 2017, but insisted that it was merely a “prank”. He received a caution and was referred to Prevent but eventually “dropped off the radar” when he moved to Kent later that year. He later moved to Preston, and his online activity was uncovered by CST.
The prosecution said that “the cumulative effect of the [social media] posts is a call to arms by Mr Leech, inciting others who shared his world view to commit mass murder.”
At Manchester Crown Court, Mr Leech pleaded guilty to three counts of encouraging acts of terrorism and stirring up religious or racial hatred.
Judge Alan Conrad QC called Mr Leeches actions “deeply disturbing”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has been monitoring and acting against the threat from the far-right for years and continues to support the authorities following suit.
It has been reported that Canada plans to criminalise Holocaust denial in a bid to deal with increasing antisemitism.
The Canadian government is said to be debating a law that would make it illegal to either publicly deny that the Holocaust took place at all or to justify it or trivialise details about it, including the number of Jews killed. The law will not, however, apply to what people say in private conversations.
According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “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 an example of antisemitism.
Canada now follows a number of mainly European countries that have passed laws banning Holocaust denial including Austria in 1947 (amended 1992), Belgium in 1995, the Czech Republic in 2001, France in 1990, Germany in 1985, and Greece in 2014.
There is, however, no mention of the penalties to be faced by perpetrators of Holocaust denial, though one version of the bill proposes a two-year jail sentence.
Other countries have imposed harsh penalties on those who violated these laws, including well-known Holocaust deniers and revisionists like French presidential candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen (fined three times between 1987 – 2016), French Holocaust revisionist Robert Faurisson (fined €7,500 and given three months’ probation), and Ernst Zündel, Horst Mahler, and David Irving, who were all handed lengthy jail terms by German courts.
The bill is justified as Canadian MPs and anti-hate groups have expressed their concerns about rising antisemitism in the country.
Vice-President of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs Richard Marceau said: “Jewish Canadians comprise one per cent of the Canadian population yet are the target of 62 percent of all religiously motivated hate crimes. We live in a time of rising antisemitism.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The University of Essex has inexplicably determined that protestors who chanted the “from the river to the sea” slogan as part of campus anti-Israel protests were not engaging in antisemitic conduct.
The slogan was chanted by activists opposed to a speaking engagement in October 2021 at the University’s Conservative Society by the former head of British armed forces in Afghanistan, Col. Richard Kemp.
Joe Wigoder, a third year politics student at the University of Essex, lodged an official complaint with the University about the chanting outside the event, but his complaint was rejected. University Registrar and Secretary Bryn Morris, on behalf of the Office of the Vice-Chancellor, wrote in an e-mail to Mr Wigoder that “it was not found that antisemitic behaviour took place” during the protest, and that “no evidence was found that chants had been used to specifically deny the state of Israel…or express hatred of Jews.”
The chant of “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.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi has previously said that the slogan “from the river to the sea” is antisemitic and, given its popularity with Hamas and its supporters, its use could be reported to the police.
Mr Wigoder said: “It is incredibly disappointing to read this disheartening news and see the University yet again abandoning their promises to Jewish students. Time after time, the university attempts to sweep antisemitism under the rug, and it leaves us feeling completely unsafe on campus. I have been chasing this complaint for months and this is an upsetting conclusion.”
An investigation into the conduct of an Ohio State University professor who allegedly used an antisemitic slur in one of her classes has resulted in no long-term disciplinary consequences for the academic.
Jackie Buell, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences specialising in sports nutrition, was accused of using the phrase “Jew down” in an October 2021 class discussion about haggling over prices while making purchases in Mexico. The phrase alludes to an antisemitic stereotype of Jewish people as excessively frugal.
Though the University suspended Prof. Buell from teaching classes in the Spring 2022 semester and directed her to take anti-discrimination training for the next twelve months, the investigation found that she did not breach the University’s non-discrimination and harassment policy. Her conduct has instead been officially described as “inappropriate”.
The University’s Office of Institutional Equity reportedly found Prof. Buell’s behaviour “offensive, concerning and inappropriate,” but decided that her comments did not interfere with or deny any student’s ability to access educational facilities at the University.
Prof. Buell is expected to demonstrate a certain level of growth following her training before she is permitted to begin teaching again.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that a solicitor from Ayrshire has denied posting allegedly antisemitic comments on social media, but has been handed a fine by the Law Society of Scotland.
Criminal defence lawyer Neil McPherson, 64, is reported to have compared Auschwitz to Paisley, thirteen miles west of Glasgow. Mr McPherson is alleged to have written in a Facebook post that the concentration camp was like the Scottish town “but without the social problems.”
Mr McPherson is said to have claimed that the posts were written by someone else. The Law Society of Scotland’s professional conduct committee, however, found that it was “more likely than not” that the solicitor made the comparison, posted under another Facebook user’s photograph of a visit to Auschwitz.
Mr McPherson has been fined £2,000 and ordered to pay a further £100 to Arnon Nachmani, a Scottish-Israeli lawyer who was born in Paisley and who lost family in the Holocaust, who stumbled across the comments some months after they were posted.
Mr Nachmani said he would donate the money to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem.
Campaign Against Antisemitism continues its robust engagement with social media companies over the content that they enable to be published, and we continue to make representations to the Government in this connection.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
The Police Department in Lakewood, New Jersey, has released details of an allegedly antisemitic attack that took place on Friday 8th April.
Dion Marsh, 27, is accused of taking part in a series of incidents throughout Lakewood. All of Marsh’s alleged victims are said to be Orthodox Jews.
Mr Marsh reportedly assaulted a driver and stole his car before running over someone else, stabbing a third victim in the chest, and striking a fourth with the vehicle in nearby Jackson Township.
All four victims are reported to have been injured in the incident, the latter two critically. Mr Marsh has been charged with three counts of attempted murder and bias intimidation, as well as carjacking and weapons charges.
The ADL’s New York/New Jersey Regional Director is reported to have said: “More needs to be done to prevent violence against the Jewish community, and in particular visibly identifiable Jews in Ocean County and across our region. Jews should not be afraid to go about their business without living in fears that they will be targeted for violence.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
New data published by the New York City Police Department shows that antisemitic hate crimes rose by 92% in March 2022 compared to a year ago.
23 antisemitic hate crimes were reported in New York in March 2022. In March 2021, the police recorded eleven such incidents.
These findings reflect those of previous months: February 2022 saw a 400% increase in antisemitic incidents compared to February 2021 (56 compared to eleven the year before), while January showed almost 300% additional antisemitic hate crimes year on year.
While the NYPD recorded increases in hate crimes aimed at Muslims, people based on their ethnic origin in general, and based on the victim’s sexual orientation, the number of incidents with Asian or Hispanic victims went down.
Taking all reported incidents into account, the data reveals that there were more antisemitic hate crimes than those experienced by any other group except Asian-Americans.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The Union of Jewish Students of France (UEJF) has condemned antisemitic messages discovered written in the bathroom of the law building at the Paris Nanterre University.
The graffiti includes a Star of David with “MEDIA” written on top, phrases such as “Hitler, you’re the best”, and other slogans that evoke the concept of Jewish control over the media.
“This antisemitism, unabashed, assumed, in front of thousands of students and in the total indifference, it is every day,” reported the UEJF president Samuel Lejoyeux to Le Figaro Étudiant. “It’s complicated to be a Jewish student…we are constantly brought back to the question of Israel, to the conspiracy that whites dominate everything, and that Jews are ‘super whites”.
“We condemn in the strongest terms and in an absolute manner”, responded Philippe Gervais-Lambony, president of the university “any antisemitic and racist act”. The university then reported that it was cleaning the graffiti and launching an investigation.
According to a survey commissioned by UEJF in 2019, 45% of Jewish and non-Jewish respondents have witnessed antisemitism at school.
In February, a report by France’s Jewish Community Security Service said that antisemitic incidents in France had skyrocketed by 75% in 2021.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Robert Halfon MP, Chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, has today written to the Charity Commission calling together with Campaign Against Antisemitism for a statutory inquiry into the National Union of Students (NUS).
In his letter, Mr Halfon wrote to “voice my dismay at the actions and behaviour of the National Union of Students and its trustees, in regards to their treatment of Jewish students and the Jewish community’s concerns regarding antisemitism. Together with Campaign Against Antisemitism…I politely request that the Commission launch a Section 46 inquiry, pursuant to the 2011 Charities Act into the NUS and look forward to receiving your response.”
Mr Halfon enclosed a dossier of evidence by Campaign Against Antisemitism detailing how NUS has failed Jewish students. He wrote that he is “particularly concerned about the enclosed dossier of antisemitic events that have taken place within the NUS over the past several years — and which come following decades of concerning trends — which was prepared by CAA.”
The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read below.
Mr Halfon made particular reference in his letter to the recent scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event.
As the scandal erupted, Mr Halfon excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by his committee.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
As the dossier produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism observes, “Despite [its] ostensible and much-vaunted commitment to anti-racism, NUS has a long record of controversy in relation to Jewish students and antisemitism, dating back decades.
The dossier notes that antisemitism on campus has surged to record levels, with CST recording a 191% increase in antisemitic incidents on campus in 2021, and that Campaign Against Antisemitism’s latest Antisemitism Barometer found that an overwhelming 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
“NUS’s blind spot when it comes to inclusion of Jewish students and openness to their concerns is significant, giving rise not only to a failure of representation but also to a toleration of hostility to the needs of Jewish students within NUS and even instances of outright antisemitism. The result is tangible harm to Jewish students,” the dossier explains. “As an organisation, NUS is failing in its objective to represent and advocate for all students, and, as a charity, it is failing to act for the benefit of the public.”
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Shaima Dallali’s election as NUS President only a week after the Lowkey scandal is the last straw. It follows decades of similar indications that this union does not even aspire to represent Jewish students. At a time of surging racism against Jews on campus and almost universal concern in the Jewish community about antisemitism in universities, we are grateful to Robert Halfon for referring NUS to the Charity Commission for a statutory inquiry on the strength of our dossier of evidence. NUS must now answer for failing to represent Jewish students and failing to live up to its legal commitment to act for the public benefit.”
A Jewish man who was wrongfully convicted of arson in 1983 and has spent the last 39 years trying to clear his name has been vindicated.
Barry Jacobson’s lawyers, who were supported by the ADL and the Innocence Project, announced on Tuesday 5th April that a court ruled that the jury was biased, and that the case has been dismissed.
Mr Jacobson was sentenced to six months in prison and received a fine of $10,000 after being found guilty of setting a fire at his home in Richmond, Massachusetts in 1983, though only served one month. The conviction caused him to lose his real estate licenses in Massachusetts and New York, which proved to be detrimental to his job in the commercial real estate business.
Mr Jacobson stated that “for nearly 40 years I have been haunted by this wrongful conviction.”
He continued: “Time and again it has affected my career, my business, my family and my community. It has been beyond painful. It is an experience I would not wish on anyone.”
Bob Cordy, Mr Jacobson’s attorney, said that the prosecution and jury deliberations were both affected by antisemitism. The prosecution, Mr Cordy said, relied on a racist stereotype where they believed that Mr Jacobson set the fire for insurance money.
In a sworn statement from one juror, he referred to Mr Jacobson as “one of those New York Jews who think they can come up here and get away with anything.”
Mr Jacobson’s lawyers were aware of antisemitism on the jury months after the verdict, but despite mentioning it in their appeals, there was no vindication.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz has been found guilty of a communications offence after action by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court concerned a video of the scene in the classic Oliver Twist film when Fagin, a fictitious Jewish criminal (a character that has come under significant criticism over the past century for its antisemitic depiction), is explaining to his newest recruit how his legion of children followers pick pockets. Ms Chabloz uploaded the video and sings an accompanying song of her own about how Jews are greedy, “grift” for “shekels” and cheat on their taxes.
The video appeared to be either a bizarre fundraising effort for her mounting legal costs due to numerous charges she has faced, including several ongoing prosecutions in which Campaign Against Antisemitism has provided evidence, or an attempt at mockery of Campaign Against Antisemitism for pursuing her in the courts.
At court, Ms Chabloz tried to suggest that the video was part of a personal quarrel and that her racism is directed not at “Jews” but at “Zionists”. She expressed scepticism about the facts of the Holocaust on the stand, and replicated a racist Quennelle gesture, which she has performed in the past. She rather insightfully observed that “antisemitism is not a crime. If it was, the prisons would be full.”
Summing up, Judge Nina Tempia said that the defendant “was making up evidence” as she went along, and she did not accept Ms Chabloz’s claim that her song was about the controversial activist Tommy Robinson, describing that suggestion as “ludicrous”. Instead, Judge Tempia said, “I have not doubt” that the song related to Jews. She further noted that, given Ms Chabloz’s previous convictions, she “knew exactly what she was doing” and that she had a propensity to commit these types of offences.
The prosecution asked the court to take into account that the whole Jewish community was a victim in this crime. Sentencing is due to take place next week, and Ms Chabloz’s incomplete report of her previous sentences may be considered an aggravating factor.
Ms Chabloz is a virulent antisemite and Holocaust denier who has an extensive record of using social media to publicise her hatred for Jews and to convert others to her views about Jewish people. Following a private prosecution by Campaign Against Antisemitism, which was later continued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Ms Chabloz became the first person in Britain to be convicted over Holocaust denial in a precedent-setting case.
Ms Chabloz is fixated on the idea that the Holocaust did not occur, and that it was fabricated by Jews and their supporters as a vehicle for fraudulently extorting money in the form of reparations. This forms the basis for her second obsession, that Jews are liars and thieves who are working to undermine Western society. Ms Chabloz is also connected to far-right movements, at whose meetings she gives speeches and performs her songs, in the UK and North America. She is currently banned from entering France, where Holocaust denial is illegal.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “We welcome this verdict against Alison Chabloz, who has dedicated herself to spreading her hateful views about Jews. As a repeat offender, she must face a sentence with real teeth in order to bring an end to her rampage of anti-Jewish racism which has continued relentlessly for far too long, paused only by stints in prison that our effortsbrought about.”
Ms Chabloz was originally facing a charge of incitement to racial hatred under the Public Order Act, but this was reduced to an offence under s.127 of the Communications Act.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
The Prime Minister of Peru has claimed that remarks appearing to praise Hitler were misunderstood and has offered to apologise in person to the Israeli ambassador.
Anibal Torres reportedly praised the Nazi leader for turning Germany into the “first economic power in the world”, a comment met with protest by both the Israeli and German embassies.
The 79-year-old Prime Minister made the remark in Huancayo, an Andean town at the centre of ongoing protests over the economic situation in the country. Mr Torres praised Hitler’s and Mussolini’s infrastructure policies, saying: “On one occasion Hitler visited the north of Italy, and Mussolini shows him a highway built from Milan to Brescia, Hitler saw this and went to his country and filled it with highways, airports and turned Germany into the first economic power in the world. We have to make an effort, make sacrifices to improve our roads.”
The Israeli Embassy said that “Regimes of death and terror cannot be a sign of progress,” adding: “Hitler was responsible for the death of six million Jews, to praise him is an offense to the victims of that world tragedy.”
The German embassy said: “Adolf Hitler was a fascist and genocidal dictator, in whose name the worst war of all time was carried out from Germany and the genocide of six million Jews was committed. Against this backdrop, Hitler is not the right reference as an example of any kind.”
A Peruvian legislator who had lived in Germany for two decades demanded that Mr Torres apologise to the German people, while Peru’s Jewish Association observed that this was not the first time that politicians in the country had comments of this sort, insisting that “the seriousness of these expressions do not merit explanations or half apologies.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Sir Keir Starmer has apologised again for how Jewish members of the Labour Party and the community more generally were treated under his antisemitic predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn.
In his first interview with a Jewish newspaper since his election as Labour leader exactly two years ago, Sir Keir did not apologise for his own role backing Mr Corbyn. Sir Keir also declined to tell the JC whether he believed that Mr Corbyn is antisemitic.
The interview came following numerous expulsions and suspensions of Labour officeholders at the local level.
In Plymouth, Cllr Chaz Singh, the Chair of the Council’s Equalities Working Group, has come under fire for allegedly retweeting a post by a local firm of beekeepers directed at the local ward councillors, which said: “You’re lucky, if you get to see yours! We have three, and they’re as much use as Anne Frank’s drum kit!” The tweet was in reference to a local dispute about sewage. Cllr Singh was criticised by his colleagues for apparently using social media to amplify an offensive analogy to a victim of the Holocaust, and in particular for doing so given his position at the Council and purported status as a champion of diversity.
In Dudley, Cllr Zafar Islam was reportedly suspended from Labour after months of inaction by the Party following a complaint.
The complaint by Labour Against Antisemitism, submitted in September 2021, detailed Cllr Islam’s social media activity, where he claims a “witch-hunt” has taken place against Labour politicians critical of Israel, among other inflammatory remarks.
In London, the former Chair of the Hampstead and Kilburn Constituency Labour Party, Pete Firmin, has reportedly been automatically expelled from Labour over alleged support for factions that have been proscribed by the Party.
In Wales, a former leader of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, has been revealed not to have left Labour after 46 years of his own accord, but rather because he was expelled following disciplinary action. Cllr Hedley McCarthy had reportedly been accused of ‘liking’ antisemitic posts on social media, which he denied, saying that he has “a proven track record of opposing racism of all forms, including antisemitism.”
However, a Labour Party spokesman reportedly said: “Hedley McCarthy was expelled from the Labour Party in January 2022 following the conclusion of an internal disciplinary investigation into antisemitic social media activity. It is therefore incorrect for Hedley McCarthy to claim that he resigned from membership of the Labour Party.”
The local Constituency Labour Party (CLP) reportedly claimed that it had not been aware of the expulsion, relying instead on Cllr McCarthy’s claim that he had left of his own accord. Cllr McCarthy said in response: “I want to apologise to my former colleagues in the Labour group and the CLP for not informing them of the suspension or the eviction letter.” He added that he had been concerned about the confidentiality of the disciplinary process, apparently having been warned that any breach could result in further disciplinary action. “In any case, I left the group in November and didn’t see that the letter was relevant to them by then,” he said, adding: “I am sorry now that I didn’t speak out about these ridiculous accusations.”
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’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.
In an open letter to the NUS leadership this week, the Lancaster University Students’ Union said that it was “deeply disappointed and hurt by the way the Jewish community have been engaged with and treated this year,” making specific reference to the recent scandal involving the inflammatory rapper and activity Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey.
The letter went on to say that “Our Jewish students have legitimate issues and questions about decisions made by the NUS leadership, which we feel need to be addressed,” in regard to the Lowkey affair, in which the controversial figure was invited to headline the NUS’s centenary conference and the concerns of Jewish students’ were dismissed before media pressure brought about Mr Dennis’ withdrawal from the event.
The letter further noted that “NUS has an uncomfortable history with antisemitism,” and that it is “disconcerting” that individuals who have in the past been “embroiled in allegations of antisemitism” and were disqualified from office “ever felt welcome at all.”
Observing that “Antisemitism is a major issue within the student movement” and that NUS “keep[s] failing the Jewish community,” the letter lamented that “Too many Jewish activists have been pushed out of the student movement, from fear, anxiety, hostility, an environment that encourages antisemitic dialogue, and blatant antisemitic comments and/or actions.”
“The Jewish community,” the letter continued, “has been let down time and time again,” and its authors “look forward to seeing a clear communication of the changes you will make,” as “the Lancaster University Students’ Union Full Time Officer team will not sit back and watch the community go through endless trauma caused by NUS.”
Meanwhile, at Durham University, the Students’ Union put out a statement at the end of March affirming that “Jewish students have legitimate questions about decisions made by NUS in planning their National Conference, and the poor response that came when those decisions were challenged. There has been, unambiguously, a failure to recognise the risk and the reality of antisemitism.”
The statement insisted that “We can only bring about the changes we want to education and society if we do it collectively, through NUS. We’re stronger together. But when some students are excluded from NUS, we are all made weaker.” It concluded by saying that “When we’re at NUS Conference this week, we’ll insist that the NUS leadership recognise the problems they’ve created. We trust in their ability to reflect, and to make changes in partnership with Jewish students and their representatives. We’ll hold them accountable for making our national student movement welcoming for Jewish students.”
The comedian and actor Elon Gold appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about how he uses comedy to tackle antisemitism.
Speaking on his approach to discussing antisemitism in his comedy, Mr Gold stated that his priority is to consider whether his material is funny and whether he is making “the right point”.
Describing what constitutes “the right point”, Mr Gold clarified: “If it comes from my heart and from my anger about antisemitism.”
“All of comedy is complaining, and I realised that a few years ago. You have to be annoyed about something to joke about it and to want to deride it, mock it, ridicule it, but first, it has to annoy you. So what annoys me? Antisemitism. It annoys the crap out of me and I’m angry about it because it’s not funny at all, but now I have to find the funny because that’s my job and I happen to be obsessed with finding the funny in hate, because when you do that, when you find the funny in hate, you get to expose the ignorance of bigotry. And you get to mock these bigots.”
Mr Gold outlined what this approach looks like by providing an example of one of his comedy routines that touches upon the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally. “One of my favourite new bits that I’ve been doing lately is mocking those idiots who went to the rallies with the tiki torches going around going ‘the Jews will not replace us.’” Mr Gold joked: “‘And I’m like, ‘the Jews will not replace you? We don’t want to replace you, we just want to put braces on you. Replace you? We just want to manage your portfolio.’”
Discussing why he feels the routine is so impactful, he says that it’s because “It’s got these funny jokes but it’s making a point. Here are these groups of morons walking around with tiki torches going ‘the Jews will not replace us’…what is that message, even? As it turns out, it’s about immigration and it’s a whole thing that it’s their farkakta (nonsense) brains that they think there’s some global conspiracy of the Jews trying to replace them, but it’s all just nuts.
“So it’s my job now to mock these nut-jobs. And I do it from the right place. I know I’m in the right and they’re dead wrong. You can’t justify any sort of racism, homophobia…you’re not right.”
Turning to the subject of offence, Mr Gold has clearly given careful consideration to this issue. “There are bits that I do where I literally do a German accent. And that, you know…you talking about something that’s triggering. The last thing I ever want to do is… let’s say a Holocaust survivor is in the audience, or even the son or grandson of one. And to offend one of them would hurt me deeply. So of course, it’s not my intention to offend, but it is my intention to mock Nazis.”
Mr Gold went on to explain how he differentiates those who may take offence at different types of jokes, for example a dirty joke. “If you’re offended by that, that’s your problem. With antisemitism, with an area as sensitive as that, now we’re not talking about sex, we’re talking about something that people are getting killed over, to this day, and for thousands of years. And I do make it a point not to do any Holocaust jokes. There’s nothing funny about it, and that’s not even a topic I would ever want to bring up.
“However, if Whoopie Goldberg brings it up and says something idiotic like ‘the Holocaust isn’t about race,’ I’m gonna do jokes like ‘oh, the Holocaust isn’t about race? Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s what my great-grandparents heard in the camps.’” In a German accent, Mr Gold jokes: “By the way, this is not about race. This has nothing to do with race, you Jews are always jumping to conclusions!”
Mr Gold goes on to explain his thought behind the joke, saying: “I’m doing the accent, I’m mocking Nazis, but the joke isn’t, God-forbid on the victims. It’s not even on the Holocaust. It’s on Whoopie, and it’s on the Nazis. It’s on the bad guys. Whoopie’s not bad, she said something bad and wrong and it’s my job to correct it with jokes.”
“So to me, I have to say something about this. It’s an impulse, I can’t just ignore it. And by the way, when she said it, again, I wasn’t offended by it. I just said to myself ‘Oh, I have to correct that error.’ And my only weapon is jokes.”
Throughout the interview, Mr Gold touched upon a wide variety of topics which included opening up about an encounter of antisemitism that his family experienced, why he refuses to work on the Sabbath, and his recurring role in the most recent season of Curb Your Enthusiasm.
The podcast with Mr Gold can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
AConservative councillor who was suspended from the Party last year over social media posts, before being permitted to re-join, has resigned from the Thomas Deacon Education Trust.
The Trust has confirmed to Campaign Against Antisemitism that Ishfaq Hussain was appointed a trustee of the Thomas Deacon Education Trust on 20th September 2021 and that he subsequently stepped down as a trustee on 3rd March 2022. The reasons for his resignation are not spelled out.
Cllr Hussain had apologised for sharing antisemitic tropes on Facebook. In one Facebook post, he accused the “Saudi regime” of being “long standing puppets of America and Israel,” and went on to label them “a trilogy of zionists.” He then remarked that “Islam doesn’t breed terrorists the zionist trilogy do.” Mr Hussain also shared a video that was captioned: “The Jews in Israel are not true Jews.”
Cllr Hussain had also captioned his profile picture: “This person does not recognise the State of Israel.” He also reportedly claimed that “Zionism is one of the worst afflictions on the world” and made other inflammatory comments about “Zionists”.
In his apology, Mr Hussain said: “I recognise Israel’s right to exist and wholeheartedly support a two-state solution. I deeply regret that my frustration at events in Israel and Palestine led me to suggest otherwise. Some of my previous language was ill-judged and offensive. It also echoed antisemitic tropes in ways I had not fully understood. However strongly we feel, we should never let our emotions get the better of us. By doing so, I allowed myself to become part of the problem. I am truly sorry.”
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.
Responding to a comment that her Government included two ministers from the Scottish Greens (the Scottish branch of the Green Party), which was described as having “out-Corbyned Corbyn”, the First Minister and SNP leader told the assembly of 250 Scottish Jews: “I am not able to speak for another political party. But I do speak for and am accountable for every minister in my Government. My Government is a signatory to the IHRA [International] Definition of Antisemitism and all ministers have to be clear that they sign up to that and accept that — and that includes the two Green ministers. There is no tolerance in my government for antisemitism or discrimination, prejudice, racism of any kind. I want to assure you of that very, very clearly.”
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism helped to expose the Scottish Greens’ controversial record in relation to antisemitism.
Ms Sturgeon also praised Jewish students, whom she had met recently, for their frankness in discussing the discrimination that they had faced on campus. “I want to make this point very forcibly,” she said, “So long as anyone feels discriminated against, we as a Government have more work to do.”
The First Minister also spoke about Holocaust education, saying: “As generations pass, it is vital that future generations understand what happened. However, understanding the Holocaust is not the same as understanding what it’s like for Jewish communities in countries across the world today.”
On the subject of antisemitism in politics, Ms Sturgeon conceded that the SNP had faced problems. Indeed, Campaign Against Antisemitism’s latest Antisemitism Barometer has shown that 39% of British Jews believe that the SNP is too tolerant of antisemitism.
As it happened, at around the same time, her Party was being urged to fire an SNP candidate in the upcoming local elections after it emerged that he had allegedly tweeted that it was “sickening that Israeli Jews bring up their kids to hate and kill,” using a photo of an American-Jewish family.
The picture in the seven-year-old post is of Bill Bernstein, a kippah-wearing former gun shop owner from Nashville, posing with his daughter Gertrude, both with guns.
Wullie Graham, who is standing in Pollok ward in south Glasgow, was accused by political rivals of having published an antisemitic post and his Party was called on to remove him as a candidate.
In a statement, the SNP said: “Mr Graham has apologised for a post in 2015 that he readily admits was stupid and indefensible. He has taken steps to reach out to the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities as he seeks to make amends and learn from this.”
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.
Three teenagers armed with a sword, a crowbar and a knife allegedly threatened a group of Jewish boys on New York’s Upper West Side.
The teenagers, ranging in ages from twelve to sixteen, allegedly threatened the group of six Jewish boys on the evening of Saturday 2nd April. The teenagers reportedly said that they wanted to “get them” because they were Jewish and proceeded to follow the boys home before running away.
Gale Brewer, the NYC Council Member who represents the district, condemned the incident as a “horrible antisemitic attack” on a Facebook post.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that a man performed a Nazi salute at a Jewish woman on the London Underground when he saw that she was wearing a Ukrainian pin-badge.
Charlotte Saloman, 37, was travelling between Paddington and Baker Street on 5th April when the incident took place. Ms Saloman was first alerted to the potential danger when she noticed a man whom she believes to have been in his early 30s boarding the train and who soon began staring at her and her badge.
Ms Salomon said: “He sat opposite me and stared at my pin. Then he stood up, did a halfway-up arm salute, and moved further down the carriage. At first, I was puzzled, then I realised what the gesture was. I made eye contact with another passenger. They looked confused as well.”
Ms Salomon, Deputy Chair of the Saffron Walden Conservatives Association, was on her way to the House of Lords to take part in an event about women fighting antisemitism.
After sharing her account of the incident on Twitter, Ms Salomon received messages of support, but others contained offensive sentiments, including one that read “Heil Hitler” followed by a swastika.
It has been reported that the police are now investigating this incident.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
A far-right political party has won seven seats in Hungary’s general election.
Mi Hazánk (Our Homeland) won 6.7% of the vote in the election, which means that it is now not only in Parliament for the first time, but it has also become Hungary’s third-largest party.
Our Homeland was founded in 2018 after a split with the nationalist Jobbik party, which first came to Europe-wide attention in the 2009 European Parliament elections. The President of the European Jewish Congress has described Jobbik as an “unashamedly neo-Nazi party” and, elsewhere, the Party has been referred to as an “antisemitic organisation”. Jobbik’s use of well-known antisemitic canards about Jewish financial control has been called “overt antisemitism” and antisemitic rhetoric has even been described as Jobbik’s “trademark”.
The Party has, however, spent the last seven years recasting itself as a moderate conservative party.Our Homeland was formed by former Jobbik members unhappy with this rebranding exercise.
Though Rabbi Shlomó Köves, Chief Rabbi of the Orthodox EMIH-Association of Hungarian Jewish Communities, has described Hungary as one of the safest places for Jews to live in Europe, the emergence of Our Homeland as an electoral force has drawn concern from Hungary’s 100,000-strong Jewish community.
However, Rabbi Köves also made a point of saying that in the past, both Jobbik and Our Homeland “openly had racism and antisemitism on their agenda.”
“Both at this point are not openly making antisemitic statements, but they’re very dangerous. And the real problem that I see is that since the left joined Jobbik [to oppose Fidesz], if in the future anyone else in the government would want to cooperate with Mi Hazank — not that it seems necessary for any reason — but it would be very hard to argue why they shouldn’t do it.
“Throughout this whole [opposition building] process there’s been a legitimisation of these extreme-right neo-Nazi groups.”
Our Homeland’s criticisms of globalisation have been described as being “spiced up” with antisemitic conspiracy theories, including references to a “global elite”, the Jewish Hungarian financier George Soros, and the Rothschild banking dynasty.
Hungary’s controversial long-time Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, and his national-conservative Fidesz Party, won Sunday’s election, increasing its vote by about twenty points and gaining two parliamentary seats. This marks Mr Orbán’s fourth successive term as Prime Minister, his fifth in total.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The family of a French Jewish man who was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram has said that antisemitism may have played a role in the incident.
While Mr Jeremy Cohen’s death in February was initially treated as a traffic accident, new video footage released by the family appears to show a gang of men attacking Mr Cohen, 31, prompting him to flee for safety without noticing the tram.
Mr Cohen is believed to have been wearing his kippah, or skullcap, during the attack, and the family have now called upon the police to reopen the investigation into his death as they feel his visible Jewish identity played a role in his attackers’ motivation.
It was reportedly only when the family started asking questions, handing out fliers in post boxes throughout the neighbourhood and urging witnesses to come forward, that someone eventually came forward with the crucial video footage that showed that the victim was being attacked moments before his death.
The victim’s father, Gerald Cohen, said: “Why is the family the one who needs to bring the evidence to police investigators? If we hadn’t done that we wouldn’t have known the truth. We want justice for our son Jeremy.”
The footage of Mr Cohen was released to the public this past Monday, which was also the anniversary of the murder of Sarah Halimi, a 74-year-old Jewish woman living in Paris who was murdered in 2017 by her twenty-seven-year-old Muslim neighbour, Kobili Traoré. Mr Traoré tortured Ms Halimi before throwing her out of a window, yelling “Allah Akbar,” “I killed the shaitan,” which is an Arabic word for ‘devil’ or ‘demon’, along with antisemitic vitriol.
In a disgraceful decision last year, France’s Court of Cassation ruled that Ms Halimi’s killer could not stand trial due to being high on cannabis whilst committing the murder.
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism held a rally outside of the French Embassy in solidarity with French Jews opposing the Court of Cassation’s unjust ruling, joining simultaneous rallies around the world.
A few months later, it was announced that a French Parliamentary commission of inquiry would be established in order to investigate the murder of Sarah Halimi. However, in January of this year, the inquiry was closed. The results of the 67,000 word report found that police had arrived on the scene before Ms Halimi was killed but waited outside of her apartment during the entire incident, apparently unable to hear her screams. The report shockingly concluded that the officers, judges and psychiatrists involved in the case had done everything by the book.
This led to a disagreement between those on the committee itself, with the report only being passed on a seven to five vote, with Meyer Habib, the French Parliamentarian who formed the commission, accusing police and fellow lawmakers of lying and engaging in a cover-up.
In February, a report by France’s Jewish Community Security Service said that antisemitic incidents in France had skyrocketed by 75% in 2021.
Last year, the murderer of French Holocaust survivor Mireille Knoll was sentenced to life in prison.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A neo-Nazi activist and rapper from Austria has been handed a ten-year jail sentence by a Vienna court.
The 37-year-old artist, who recorded music under the name ‘Mr Bond’, was found guilty of glorifying Nazi ideology. This is a crime in Austria under the country’s 1947 Verbotsgesetz (Prohibition Act), which not only banned the far-right paramilitary organisations that flourished even after the defeat of the Nazi regime, but made it illegal to deny, condone or try to justify the Holocaust.
Mr Bond’s music was based on the appropriation of existing rap songs, to which he gave new lyrics with Nazi and antisemitic themes. One such song was used by the assailant of the October 2019 attack outside a synagogue in the eastern German city of Halle, in which two people died. The murderer, Stephan Balliet, filmed his crime and put it on the internet, soundtracked by Mr Bond’s song.
Mr Bond was described as “particularly dangerous” by the court. In the same trial, his brother was sentenced to four years in prison for running an antisemitic website.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that the director of the Jewish community in the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk has been stabbed by an attacker shouting antisemitic statements.
Igor Perelman was reportedly stabbed three times while out for a walk in the centre of the city.
Vitaliy Kamozin, Chief Operating Officer of the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, stated that Mr Perelman’s wounds have been treated and he is recovering from the attack. Mr Kamozin said: “There were antisemitic statements, but the motive is not yet clear.” The incident is apparently being examined by the police.
The Russian war on Ukraine has elicited a plethora of Nazi comparisons and is witnessing actual neo-Nazi soldiers on the battlefield.
President Putin of Russia justified his war on Ukraine in part by claiming that he needed to “denazify” the country, a stance that was reinforced by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and apparently also adopted by China. Mr Lavrov also compared the United States to Hitler, stating: “Napoleon and Hitler, they had the objective to have the whole of Europe under their control…Now Americans have got Europe under their control. And we see the situation has really demonstrated what role the EU is playing in the context of the global situation. They are just fulfilling a role. So we see, like in Hollywood, there is absolute evil and absolute good and this is unfortunate.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Councillors in the northern Bavarian town of Bayreuth have voted to give new names to two streets once dedicated to noted antisemites.
One was named after the bishop, Hans Meiser, the first Landesbischof (Regional Bishop) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria from 1933 to 1955. Bishop Meisner, boasting a huge following among Bavarian Protestants, was said to have had Nazi ties and once wrote that there was something “corrosive, caustic, dissolving about the Jewish mind”. It has been renamed Dietrich-Bonhoeffer-Straße in honour of the anti-Nazi theologian.
Hans-von-Wolzogen-Straße, named after the friend and biographer of the antisemitic composer Richard Wagner, is now to be called Friedelind-Wagner-Straße. Friedelind Wagner, the composer’s granddaughter, escaped Nazi Germany to the United States in 1941 after being implicated in anti-Nazi propaganda. Baron von Wolzogen, believed to have shared the composer’s antisemitic views, was the editor of the publication Bayreuther Blätter, which published antisemitic material, from 1878-1938.
Richard Wagner lived in Bayreuth from 1873 until his death in 1883. The Bayreuth Festspielhaus (Opera House) was constructed especially for the purpose of showing Wagner’s operas. His villa, Wahnfriend, was converted into a museum dedicated to his life and work after the Second World War.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
YouTube has bowed to pressure and finally removed a channel from its platform that allegedly inspired the Texas hostage-taker, as the platform is accused by a moderator of ignoring his warnings.
After weeks of pressure, including in particular from the JC, the social media network has removed the channels belonging to Israr Ahmed and Wagdy Ghoniem, which boasted 3.5 million subscribers between them.
Malik Faisal Akram, the Briton who took four hostages at the Beth Israel Synagogue in Colleyville before being shot dead by the FBI, was reportedly obsessed with two hardline Pakistani clerics popular on YouTube, one of whom was Israr Ahmed. Mr Ahmed had 2.7 million subscribers on the social media network and was particularly popular with Mr Akram, according to the JC. On his videos, he reportedly called Jews “the ultimate source of evil [and] the biggest agents of Satan”, adding that they “control the banking system of the world.” In another video, entitled “History of the Jews”, Dr Ahmed claimed that Jews had been acting against humanity for over 2,000 years. “The name of Jews became an expletive,” he said. “They became akin to pigs.”
Testimony from moderator-turned-whistleblower and counter-terrorism expert, Khaled Hassan, reportedly prompted the company to act. Mr Hassan, who worked for Crisp, a content moderation firm contracted to YouTube, repeatedly raised the issue of antisemitism on YouTube, according to the JC. This included flagging Mr Ahmed’s channel and that of the Egyptian Jihadist and Muslim Brotherhood leader Wagdy Ghoniem, who is banned in the UK.
Mr Hassan’s report to YouTube warned that Mr Ahmed’s videos “pose[d] a serious risk of inciting hatred against Jews [and] a realistic possibility of leading to real-world violence” and was submitted in October last year, but was reportedly ignored. In January, Mr Akram targeted the Colleyville synagogue after watching Mr Ahmed’s videos, according to his friends and acquaintances.
YouTube reportedly said that, “upon review, we removed the channels belonging…to Israr Ahmad for violating our hate speech policies, and a further eleven videos have been removed as either a result of this circumvention or for violating our Violent Extremism and hate speech policies.”
Mr Ghoniem’s channel had been taken down “for circumvention of our terms of service,” according to the technology company. This came after Mr Hassan’s report had pointed out that he “has been on the list of extremists banned from entering the UK for inciting terrorism since 2009,” has been wanted on terrorism charges in America since 2004, and an Egyptian court had convicted him for leading a terrorist cell in 2014.
Mr Hassan’s report recounted how Mr Ghoneim had falsely claimed that Egypt’s President “is secretly a Jewish person working on advancing the interests of Israel while causing harm to Egypt’s economy and national security”. Mr Hassan claimed that the failure to remove Mr Ghoneim’s videos amounted to “promoting radical ideologies and enabling radical/terrorist groups to recruit members into their ranks.”
Although YouTube’s publicly-stated policy is that all “hate speech” that promotes “violence or hatred against individuals or groups” based on race or religion “is not allowed” and will be “removed,” Mr Hassan told that JC that he believed this policy to be a “sham”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
Speaking at a conference held at the Tottenham Hotspur Football Stadium, Lord Wolfson said that there is no conflict between the British Government’s embrace of the Definition and its commitment to freedom of speech, maintaining that “It’s calumny to say that the fight against antisemitism in some way shuts down free speech, it simply doesn’t.”
Lord Wolfson said that the Definition had no implications for freedom of speech, making a clear distinction between free speech and hate speech. He said that “Antisemitism is hate speech, and all democracies have drawn a line between free speech and hate speech. There are things you cannot say because they are defamatory, and there are things you cannot say because they are racist.”
The Under-Secretary for Justice even said that he disapproves of the word “antisemitism”, preferring “anti-Jewish racism”. There are, he said, some people who fail to see that antisemitism is a problem, despite their vocal commitment to anti-racism in all its forms.
He also explained that those who have attempted to claim that the Definition prevents criticism of Israel are wrong because there is a difference between criticising the policies enacted by the Israeli government and applying a double standard to Israel, singling it out for criticism in a way that would not be done to another country.
In July 2017, Campaign Against Antisemitism published an opinion of expert counsel on the adoption of the Definition. David Wolfson QC (now Lord Wolfson) and Jeremy Brier, who acted pro bono, drew up the nine-page opinion. The opinion includes a detailed assessment of the definition itself, considers the application of the Definition in difficult cases, and contains useful advice for politicians and public bodies, such as universities, which are considering using the Definition.
The opinion states that: “The Definition is a clear, meaningful and workable definition. The Definition is an important development in terms of identifying and preventing antisemitism, in particular in its modern and non-traditional forms, which often reach beyond simple expressions of hatred for Jews and instead refer to Jewish people and Jewish associations in highly derogatory, veiled terms (e.g. ‘Zio’ or ‘Rothschilds’). Public bodies in the United Kingdom are not ‘at risk’ in using this Definition. Indeed, this Definition should be used by public bodies on the basis that it will ensure that the identification of antisemitism is clear, fair and accurate. Criticism of Israel, even in robust terms, cannot be regarded as antisemitic per se and such criticism is not captured by the Definition. However, criticisms of Israel in terms which are channels of expression for hatred towards Jewish people (such as by particular invocations of the Holocaust or Nazism) will in all likelihood be antisemitic.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has also produced a primer on the relationship between the International Definition of Antisemitism and freedom of speech.
An “alarming number” of recent bomb threats directed at Jewish community centres and synagogues in one month across the United States was a sharp reminder that “the Jewish community remains a top target for hate crimes in the United States.”
The warning came from the Secure Community Network (SCN), a Jewish communal security organisation, which noted in a press release issued in late March that since the beginning of the month there had been eighteen reported bomb threats directed at Jewish community centres (JCCs) and synagogues in nine states.
SCN said that it was “actively working with community leaders and law enforcement agencies” over the “recent wave of bomb threats against Jewish facilities nationwide.”
FBI officials have stated that investigations into the threats were active and remained a high priority.
The SCN comments came as the New York Jewish Week reported that the Staten Island JCC had briefly evacuated its premises following a bomb threat, while the JCC of Indianapolis also revealed that it had recently received a bomb threat.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The University of Connecticut has been forced to deal with an incident in which a Jewish student received antisemitic abuse for removing anti-Zionist material that she found in the University library.
Natalie Shclover discovered a series of illustrations of the map of Israel contrasted with the image of a strangled child and a photograph of University President Radenka Maric placed on the walls and strewn on the floor of the Homer Babbidge Library at the University’s Storrs campus.
The flyers were reportedly produced as part of ongoing criticism of Ms Maric for taking a trip to Israel to support Connecticut’s collaboration with higher education institutions there. Soon after the trip was announced, the University’s social media channels were overwhelmed with comments calling Israelis “greedy” and calls for “another Intifada”.
When Ms Shclover and her boyfriend Zacharia El-Tayyeb learned that, because the flyers were on the ground, they are legally thought of as “public property”, the couple went back to the library to dispose of them. This led to an altercation with four other students.
One of the students filmed the exchange on her cellphone and is reported to have said “Even though you’re a Jew, you still have to respect us.” It is alleged that the other students called her a “f***ing b****”, a “f***ing Zionist”, and a “white supremacist”.
Both Ms Shclover and Mr El-Tayyeb were harrassed on the University’s Yik Yak feed – a social media platform that allows users to post messages anonymously to anyone within a five mile radius – and Ms Shclover was dismissed from The Chordials, a student a capella society of which she was President.
Radenka Maric condemned the antisemitic remarks and wrote a message to the University community contextualising the incident in terms of “the combustible combination of religion, cultural identity, politics, history, and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.”
Ms Shclover said: “I think it fell painfully short of addressing the harassment that Zach and I endured, and calling it the ‘library incident’ is very arbitrary. We’ve had emails and communications from administrative bodies at UConn condemning acts of racism, Islamophobia, and even acts of antisemitism in years past, and I don’t understand why an issue surrounding Israel or Palestine would be treated any differently.
“I know that this is a greater issue, one that the Jews and Zionist on this campus are afraid to talk about because they fear what happened to me might happen to them, and I don’t blame them. UConn is not going to thrive if every Jewish student on this campus feels the way they do now, which is unsafe, unprotected, and unheard. UConn will not thrive as a space that is inclusive for everyone but the Jews.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
German football club Borussia Dortmund has hosted a conference aimed at tackling antisemitism in world football.
The club organised the event in collaboration with the German Football League, the Central Council of Jews in Germany and the World Jewish Congress.
Problems with the far-right loom large in Borussia Dortmund’s history. Though it does not distinguish the club from many other German organisations at the time, the club’s chairman in the 1930s was a member of the Nazi Party. During the 1980s, the club’s fanbase included the Borussenfront, a far-right faction who would regularly target Dortmund’s Turkish population and sing songs about sending fans of arch-rivals Schalke to Auschwitz.
During a 2013 Champions League match with Ukraine’s Shaktar Donetsk, a group of far-right Dortmund fans launched themselves at fan representative Jens Volke and Thilo Danielsmeyer, the leader of the Dortmund Fan Project, a group founded in 1988 to combat xenophobia and racism and promote tolerance and inclusion. Mr Volke was struck in the face when he confronted three neo-Nazis chanting far-right slogans. Mr Danielsmeyer was followed into a toilet and then beaten.
For some time, Borussia Dortmund appeared reluctant to recognise the problem of far-right activism and antisemitism among a minority of its fans.
Recently, however, the club has made strenuous efforts to challenge this culture, and reach out to the Jewish community. The club’s Head of Corporate Responsibility, Daniel Lörcher, said that making “clear statements against antisemitism” had a huge impact on the city’s Jews, who now feel that their home town is “against antisemitism and is open for Jewish people.”
Tottenham Hotspur also hosted a conference this week that includes tackling antisemitism on its agenda, after the event was moved from Chelsea Football Club in light of recent events.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A new survey has revealed a “concerning” level of antisemitism among New Zealanders.
The Antisemitism Survey of New Zealand, conducted online by Curia Research and published by the New Zealand Jewish Council, asked more than 1,000 citizens whether or not they agreed with eighteen statements deemed to be antisemitic. 63 percent of those asked agreed with at least one statement while six percent agreed with nine or more statements.
The survey charted four broad trends: the New Zealand public’s knowledge about the Holocaust; reception of “classical” antisemitic statements relating to Jewish power, money, and loyalty; “anti-Israel” antisemitism, such as comparisons between the policies of the Israeli Government and those of the Nazis; and what the report characterised as miscellaneous antisemitism, comprising statements about how societies should treat “Zionists”, the relationship between Jews and “white privilege” and Jewish indigeneity to Israel.
The survey found that 21 percent of people believed two or more “classical” antisemitic statements, such as “Jews have too much power in international financial markets”, while six percent held a staggering nine or more antisemitic views.
Seven percent agreed with the assertion that Israel does not have the right to exist as a majority Jewish state. Questions regarding the Holocaust revealed that only 42 percent correctly identified that six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust, but that seventeen percent confessed to knowing “virtually nothing” about it, while six percent thought that the Jews brought the Holocaust on themselves.
Deborah Hart, Board Chair of the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand, said: “Misinformation about the Holocaust – or Holocaust distortion – is a form of antisemitism. It minimises the suffering of a great number of Jewish families and the murder of their loved ones.”
Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Further concerns have been raised after more troubling tweets from the newly-elected President of the National Union of Students (NUS), Shaima Dallali, have surfaced.
This most recent batch of tweets has come to light mere days after we reported that Ms Dallali was forced to apologise when, in 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, the then-hopeful NUS candidate tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali issued a statement on 23rd March, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Shortly after her apology, it came to light that Ms Dallali’s output on Twitter reportedly included other inflammatory messages as well, including one from 2018 in which she said: “So your special forces invade the Gaza Strip, attempt to kidnap a Hamas commander, kill him and others. Then cry about Hamas being the terrorists. Makes perfect sense. #GazaUnderAttack.” Hamas is an antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation that is proscribed in the UK.
Other alleged tweets expressed support for Jeremy Corbyn, the antisemitic former leader of the Labour Party. On 17th November 2020, Ms Dalalli wrote a response to Mr Corbyn’s readmission to the Labour Party, saying that “He should never have been suspended in the first place.” A few months later, on 5th January 2021, Ms Hallami tweeted that “Jeremy Corbyn was too good for this godforsaken country.” At present, these tweets have not yet been deleted, though it has been reported that several others have.
However, a new set of historic tweets from Ms Dallali has now come to light, one of which includes the antisemitic “From the river to the sea” chant. The chant of “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.
Additionally, Ms Dallali reportedly referred to a preacher who condemned actions taken by Hamas as a “dirty Zionist” and has also raised money for the controversial activist group CAGE which, while it does not advocate violence, has previously been criticised for promoting problematic or extreme views, which they deny.
Ms Dallali also allegedly said that the cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who has been described as an “Islamist theologian”, was the “moral compass for the Muslim community at large”. In January 2009, Mr al-Qaradawi said on Al-Jazeera TV that he would “shoot Allah’s enemies, the Jews.” In a sermon that took place in that same month, he again spoke of Jewish people and called upon God to “kill them, down to the very last one.”
In a 2010 interview on BBC Arabic, Mr Yusuf al-Qaradawi reportedly said: “Throughout history, Allah has imposed upon the [Jews] people who would punish them for their corruption. The last punishment was carried out by Hitler. By means of all the things he did to them – even though they exaggerated this issue – he managed to put them in their place. This was divine punishment for them. Allah willing, the next time will be at the hand of the believers.”
Replying to UJS’s tweet about the “bridges broken” over the past few weeks in regard to NUS’ booking of the controversial rapper Lowkey, Ms Dallali said that her hands “are outstretched to all students and staff that work in our movement, including Jewish students, and would love to arrange a meeting once I’m in office,” though in the past, she has lashed out at UJS over Twitter, accusing them of having “a history of bullying pro-Palestine sabbs [sabbatical officers] and activists.” In that same tweet, she added: “You speak one word of solidarity and they’re after you. UJS and their likes need to be called out.”
It has been reported that four members of a neo-Nazi gang who shared antisemitic material with each other via the social media platform Telegram have been convicted under anti-terrorism and firearms legislation.
Concerns have previously been raised over the alleged increase in neo-Nazi content on Telegram. Last year, the far-right group Patriotic Alternative was found to have created neo-Nazi channels dedicated to sharing vile messages, antisemitic conspiracy theories, and images glorifying Hitler.
Samuel Whibley, 29, Daniel Wright, 29, Liam Hall, 31, and Mr Hall’s girlfriend Stacey Salmon, 29, were convicted of fifteen offences, including counts relating to the encouragement of terrorism and the publication and dissemination of materials related to it, as well as firearms offences.
The jury at Sheffield Crown Court heard that all four defendants shared antisemitic videos, memes, and images, including material celebrating Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. Ms Hall confessed to finding material online in which Jews were alleged to control the media and banks, as well as to watching videos made by neo-Nazis in an attempt to see “both sides of the argument” about Hitler.
The court heard that the group communicated with each other using a public Telegram channel set up by Mr Whibley under the name Oaken Hearth. This was, jurors heard, used as “a gathering place for British white nationalists.” Mr Whibley then audited prospective members, who had to prove they were white by taking a selfie before answering questions about their involvement in neo-Nazi groups.
Mr White joined the chat using the name “Gott Mit Uns”, words found on the belts of Nazi soldiers during the Second World War.
The group also shared racist material aimed at Black people, while Mr Whibley reportedly praised Christchurch mosque shooter Brenton Tarrant, Norwegian neo-Nazi terrorist Anders Breivik, and Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.
Mr Justice Spencer will sentence all four defendants at a later date.
In October, a teenage neo-Nazi was been jailed for eleven years after using Telegram to plot terrorist acts.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has been monitoring and acting against the threat from the far-right for years and continues to support the authorities following suit.
In 2020, members of the proscribed National Action group were sentenced to prison, having engaged, amongst other activities, in far-right stickering and recruitment campaigns.
Campaign Against Antisemitism continues to monitor and report on far-right stickering campaigns, including by the far-right Hundred Handers group.
A Manchester-based Jewish lawyer who won £26,500 in compensation on the grounds of religious discrimination has still not been paid, reportedly leading to a severe decline in his mental health.
According to court documents, NNE Law Limited, run by Ali Nazokkar, dismissed litigation executive Philip Bialick after he took a pre-arranged break for the Passover festival in April 2020.
Mr Bialick began his employment at the firm in January 2020, booking annual leave a month later in anticipation of the festival in April. In March, the UK entered its first pandemic lockdown, but the firm claimed that, “since the courts are not closed…our line of work is considered essential,” and therefore that he should attend work. Two days later, Mr Bialick fell ill and self-isolated, in accordance with NHS guidance.
His isolation period ended on 8th April, when he expected to go on leave to observe the festival. But NNE reportedly said that he should return to work on 9th April, the second day of Pesach.
Mr Bialick explained that he had booked time off for religious reasons and could not come to work but, the next day, the firm asserted that it had no alternative but to terminate his contract.
Though it is reported that Mr Bialick and Mr Nazzokar were friends of long-standing, their relationship is said to have deteriorated due to these events.
However, it is understood that Mr Bialick has still not received the financial compensation owed to him. Mr Bialick is reported to have said that his mental health has declined and that he has faced serious financial difficulties since his dismissal, though he has since been hired by a rival firm. This has been compounded by the fact that he has not yet received any of the money that he is owed.
A spokesperson for NNE Law said: “I would like to advise that the reason the judgement has not yet been satisfied is due to an application having been made for a stay of execution of the order as there are grounds for appeal which are currently being pursued.”
Speaking frankly about the state of his mental health, Mr Bialick said: “It was really bad. I had no money at all. I went pretty much off the rails. My mental health deteriorated massively. I didn’t know where to turn.
“I was really upset and angry about how they treated me. I was desperate at the time as there was no work so I applied for an employment tribunal straight away. Since then I’ve been chasing them and instructed bailiffs.”
“I have lost a lot of money. I’m getting to the point now where I’m desperate. I’m waiting for this money to come through and if it doesn’t I’m in trouble,” he said.
Dr Efraim Zuroff, the Chief Nazi Hunter at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he said that he believes anti-vaccination protesters who wear yellow Stars of David are trivialising the Holocaust.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included protesters donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by governments and other administrative bodies in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
“It’s Holocaust trivialisation,” Dr Zuroff said. “In other words, to, in a sense, turn the Holocaust into a far more trivial event than it was in fact.”
He continued: “It’s very ironic but in a certain sense, I have to say that there’s a small silver lining here which goes to prove the success of the people who have devoted their lives to promoting Holocaust education, Holocaust research, Holocaust commemoration. In other words, the Holocaust has become the ultimate tragedy, and that’s why everyone who has a cause wants to connect that cause or to claim that it’s similar to the Holocaust…related to the Holocaust, because that’s the most effective tool.”
However, Dr Zuroff went on to lament the negative effect that wearing the yellow star has on the Holocaust.
“It’s a horrible thing because it basically turns the Holocaust into something much, much more minor than it actually was.”
Throughout the interview, Dr Zuroff touched upon a wide variety of topics which included highlights from his storied career, the details of ongoing trials of alleged Nazi war criminals, and explained the difference between Holocaust denial and distortion.
The podcast with Dr Zuroff can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
“It’s a horrible thing because it basically turns the Holocaust into something much, much more minor than it actually was.”
It has been reported that items displayed in the collection of a Glasgow museum may have been looted from their Jewish former owners by the Nazis.
The Burrell Collection, which dates back to acquisitions made by the wealthy shipowner Sir William Burrell in 1944, already knew that two works on display were stolen from their Jewish owners by the Nazis in the 1930s. Glasgow City Council even paid out a large amount of money in compensation to the works’ would-be heirs.
However, Glasgow Museums curator Martin Bellamy has recently published a book, A Collector’s Life: William Burrell, which maintains that even more works than previously acknowledged can be proven to have belonged to Jewish owners who relinquished their treasures as part of the practice known as “forced sale”.
This was part of the wider policy of “Aryanisation”, in which Jews in Germany and Austria were forced to register property or assets – including life insurance, stocks, furniture and works of art – valued above a certain amount. They also lost favourable financial incentives available to non-Jews, and were forced to be part of the highest tax bracket irrespective of their actual income. If they chose to leave the country, they were forced to hand over half of their assets and exchange what remained at the least favourable rate of exchange of their destination.
Glasgow Life, a charity that administers the 9,000-piece collection, has admitted that works acquired under these circumstances are on display. They do not, however, identify precisely which works were acquired in this manner.
Scottish historian Sir Tom Devine said: “As long as the provenance of these items is established by experts and curators, it should always be made public. The question the public will ask is, ‘What do they have to hide?’ I find the refusal rather curious. Curators of museums always want the truth to be out, and unvarnished at that.”
Speaking on behalf of the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities, Ephraim Borowksi said: “I suggest that the point to be made is that this isn’t a question of law, but morals. Given the scale of the Holocaust, there may be no surviving family members to make a formal legal claim. It’s up to public galleries to acknowledge the dubious history of items in their collection.”
The Burrell Collection, which has recently undergone a £70 million renovation, will open to the public on 5th April.
A pig’s head and an antisemitic epithet were reportedly left outside the Moscow apartment of a respected Russian journalist.
Alexei Venediktov, the Editor of the Echo of Moscow radio station, took to social media to report the incident, posting one photograph of a pig’s head with a wig on, lying on the floor by his front door, and another picture of a Ukrainian coat of arms fixed to the door itself with an antisemitic slur attached to it.
Echo of Moscow was formed towards the end of the Soviet Union, and since then has been a significant representative of the new freedoms granted as part of the policy of Glasnost (openness) instituted by Mikhail Gorbachev, the last President of the Soviet Union, as part of a campaign to increase government transparency, allowing citizens to publicly discuss problems with the communist system, and potential solutions, for the first time.
Later, Mr Veneditkov, who has Jewish heritage, revealed a still from CCTV footage outside his apartment building. It appears to show a figure posing as a food delivery worker arriving at his front door. However, Mr Venediktov said that the food company in question contacted him and explained that the uniform seen in the video has been out of use for several years.
Mr Venediktov expressed his concern on the social media platform Telegram, writing: “This in the country that defeated fascism. Why not just fix a six-pronged star to my apartment door?”
In addition to the antisemitic element, this incident is also the latest example of the Russian Government’s crackdown on independent media.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has been reported that a man woke up his Jewish neighbours at 4:00 by knocking on their door and yelling antisemitic abuse.
The man was said to have shouted: “I will kill you all, Hitler should come back.”
The alleged incident took place on 19th March and is understood to have occurred in the Stamford Hill area of North London on the morning of the Jewish Sabbath and lasted for approximately one hour.
It was also alleged that, yesterday, the same man told a six-year-old girl: “Get inside, I will kill you”, before threatening to burn her house down.
Both incidents were reported yesterday by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 4735 28/03/22
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
It has been reported that teenagers in Stamford Hill have targeted Jewish homes.
Stamford Hill Shomrim have reported that the vandals had thrown stones at Jewish homes and children playing in gardens from garage roofs on Knightland Road.
Anybody with information should call Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number 4608254/22.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
Reality television star and property developer Dawn Ward has been found not guilty after she was accused of shouting antisemitic abuse at two Jewish brothers and slapping one of them in the face.
The 48-year-old Real Housewives of Cheshire star was accused of going on a “rant” at brothers Jake and Sam Jacobs at London Euston station after having “too many glasses of wine” at the Ritz hotel with her agent.
A jury heard that, on 29th October 2019, Ms Ward overheard the brothers asking aloud why their trains were delayed. She is alleged to have demanded of them: “Why do you lot always complain?”
Prosecutor George Wedge acknowledged that Ms Ward was referring to the Jacobs’ Jewish identity. Ms Ward, however, claimed that she had no idea that the Jacobs brothers or Sam Jacobs’s girlfriend Samantha Eisner, were Jewish.
Inner London Crown Court heard that the brothers chose to overlook Ms. Ward’s comments, only for her allegedly to become violent. She is alleged to have called Jake Jacobs a “fat c***” and a “Jewish p***k” and slapped him in the face. She also allegedly referred to Ms Eisner as a “little disease.”
Ms Ward has been cleared of two counts of racially and religiously aggravated harassment, causing alarm or distress.
After being cleared of two counts of causing racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress and one count of possessing cocaine, Ms Ward is reported to have said: “I am still prone to tears and crying as I write this post. I don’t believe I will ever truly get over this…Anybody who remotely knows me knows I stand for equality of race, religion and sexuality and I will continue to live my life to these values and raise my children to do the same.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
A Jewish man from the Netherlands is reported to have been the victim of multiple antisemitic attacks, but claims that his complaints have been ignored by Dutch authorities.
Kevin Ritstier, 34, from the town of Wijchen in the east of the country, says that he has been repeatedly attacked by a street gang sometimes numbering up to fifteen young men.
Mr Ristier says the harassment originated when the men targeted him after seeing him returning home from a Bar Mitzvah celebration wearing items of traditional Jewish religious clothing, including a kippah and a tallit, or prayer shawl.
This rapidly turned into a campaign of harassment in which the men pounded on Mr Ritstier’s front door and made antisemitic remarks, including “Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas” (a common chant among Dutch football fans) and “Cancer Jew”.
Mr Ristier has also been physically harmed. After one assault, his leg was slashed and he was left bruised and suffering from a split lip.
He added that his numerous formal complaints to the police, lodged after each incident, have led nowhere, claiming that the authorities have ignored each one and that he has been made to feel like he has been bothersome.
The police have reportedly said that criminal proceedings have not been taken against any members of the gang due to lack of evidence, but insist that Mr Ristier’s complaints are being taken “very seriously”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
It has now been reported publicly that, last month,the University of Bristol’s Appeal Panel upheld the University’s decision last year to terminate the employment of David Miller, which took place one month after Campaign Against Antisemitism brought a lawsuit on behalf of current students against the institution, amidst an outcry from the Jewish community and its institutions.
Our legal case against the University concerned alleged unlawful harassment on the basis of Jewish ethnicity and Judaism, amounting to breaches of the Equality Act 2010, as well as breaches of contract. We launched proceedings in late August and the University swiftly realised that it was putting itself in legal jeopardy by sustaining Prof. Miller’s employment at the institution.
A number of brave students at the University stepped forward to act as complainants in the litigation. We also wish to thank Asserson Law Offices, led by senior partner Trevor Asserson, and barristers Derek Spitz of One Essex Court and Benjamin Gray of Littleton Chambers.
The lawsuit related to Prof. Miller’s speech on a Zoom webinar in February last year 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.
Bristol had come under increasing pressure from the Jewish community, which was united in its disgust at Prof. Miller’s comments and the drawn-out investigation that the University was conducting with no apparent end in sight. But the University failed to act for months. Prof. Miller’s statements and the University’s failure to condemn them and take swift action against him were the subject of a great deal of attention from the Jewish community as well as hundreds of academics and Parliament, including a written question by Lord Austin and an intervention from Robert Halfon MP. Prof. Miller was also defended by an array of controversial ‘usual suspects’ whose interventions did nothing for his collapsing credibility.
We thank others in the Jewish community, MPs and academics for the pressure that they brought to bear on the University of Bristol.
The legal claim that we spearheaded contended that Prof. Miller’s statements sought to create a hostile environment for Jewish students. It further alleged that the University was liable for Prof. Miller’s conduct, and was further liable in its own right, for unlawful conduct in breach of the Equality Act, and for its breach of its contract with students.
Other than a final call for prospective claimants, we minimised the public profile of the case in order to protect the identities of the brave student claimants who not only believed that enough is enough but that, in order for things to change, they must also act on that belief. We are enormously grateful to them for their courage. Despite the lower public profile of the case, the University was in no doubt about our intentions and resolve. A month after the launch of the lawsuit, Prof. Miller was fired for gross misconduct.
In a statement exemplifying just why Prof. Miller has no place on a university campus, the Support David Miller campaign said this week: “Support David Miller – a volunteer-led anti-racism campaign, composed of academics, students and independent researchers – has repeatedly expressed concerns that the University of Bristol’s disciplinary processes have been compromised by assets of a hostile foreign state. The State of Israel and its assets in the UK seek to eliminate all critics of Zionism from UK university campuses. Zionism is the racist ideology that professes a G-d-given right of European and other Jewish colonisers to occupy and seize Palestinian land, homes and resources. Professor Miller has been subjected to this censorship campaign because of his research showing that Zionist campaign groups have funded and promoted Islamophobia in the UK and abroad.”
Prof. Miller, who has indicated his intention to appeal the University’s latest decision to the Employment Tribunal, said: “I’ve been targeted by a pernicious witch-hunt, led by known assets of the State of Israel in the UK and funded by the dirty money of pro-Israel oligarchs. This is an attempt at entryism and political intimidation. The University of Bristol has wilted under this new wave of McCarthyism. The University treated this appeal as a mere formality, with a pre-determined outcome. I’ll be challenging the University’s perverse decision at an Employment Tribunal, to help stop our fundamental rights of free expression and academic freedom being further corroded at the behest of a hostile and illegitimate foreign regime.”
Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “This ruling is a further vindication of the courageous Jewish students on whose behalf we brought proceedings against the University of Bristol last year. Following the launch of our lawsuit and an outcry from across the Jewish community, it was clear to the University that it would be held to account in court and had to act to protect Jewish students in accordance with the law, and David Miller was fired within a month. Universities across the country should be warned that we will do whatever it takes to defend Jewish students from racists on campus by upholding their rights in court where necessary.”
The case was the latest step by Campaign Against Antisemitism to defend the rights of individual Jewish students. We believe that universities and students’ unions must be robustly held to account when they fail to defend Jewish students or when they allow their lecturers to discriminate against or harass them.
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].
The Labour Party’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) has proscribed the Labour Left Alliance, reportedly due to the faction’s stance on antisemitism.
Labour Left Alliance is a member-based group with close links to Labour Against the Witchhunt and Labour In Exile Network, which were among four groups banned by the NEC last July. Labour Against the Witchhunt has since disbanded, with its members focusing their energies on other groups instead.
Twenty members of the NEC voted in favour of the proscription of Labour Left Alliance at yesterday’s full meeting, while eleven voted against.
The ban on another group, Alliance for Workers’ Liberty, was divided on the same lines, while the vote to ban Socialist Labour Network was split nineteen to eleven. The latter two groups are not believed to have been proscribed in connection with antisemitism.
A spokesperson for the Labour Party said: “The NEC has decided that these organisations are not compatible with Labour’s rules, or our aims and values.”
The Labour MP and Corbyn ally, Clive Lewis, tweeted: “Proscription lists; mass expulsions; the centralisation of power. It’s naive to think the ‘crisis of democracy’ and the slide to authoritarianism afflicting western polities won’t affect our own political institutions.”
However, the NEC declared that there are no plans to proscribe another controversial pro-Corbyn group, Momentum. It is reported that NEC papers read: “Custom and practice also establishes that the definition of a ‘political organisation’ does not include organisations that are compatible with the aims and values of the Labour Party…This includes networks of members, such as Sikhs for Labour or the Labour Muslim Network; single issue campaigns, such as Labour for a Green New Deal; and ginger groups, such as Labour First, Momentum, and Progress.”
A meeting earlier this month of Labour Left Alliance featured questions from Tony Greenstein and Gerry Downing, both of whom have been expelled from the Labour Party. Mr Downing was a founder of Labour Against the Witchhunt, and at this meeting he referenced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Jewish identity and declared his support for Russia in its invasion of its neighbour. Tina Werkmann, who was chairing the meeting, then said about Mr Downing’s comments: “About Zelenskyy being Jewish I think this is a very dodgy territory to go down it’s not his Jewishness that is the problem it’s that he’s a Zionist and he works with fascists. Zionism and fascists they can work very well together and they have done in the past and they go hand in hand in Britain as well. So that’s not an issue. But I don’t think we need to peddle antisemitism crap here in this section.”
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism: “We commend the NEC for banning Labour Left Alliance, which is another important step in the fight against antisemitism and antisemitism-denial in the Labour Party. It is regrettable that Momentum has been given a new lease on life, however, which risks the Party looking like it only goes after low hanging fruit. We have always been clear that this process would take years, and yesterday’s NEC vote shows that progress is being made, but slowly.”
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’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.
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the first trains taking the country’s Jews to Auschwitz, the National Council of the Slovak Republic has officially denounced the transport and appealed to remaining survivors and their relatives for forgiveness.
Slovakia was originally the eastern province of the first Czechoslovak Republic, formed after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire in 1918. After Hitler annexed the Sudetenland in the wake of the 1938 Munich Agreement, Slovakia seceded from Czechoslovakia, becoming the Slovak Republic.
This state would, in turn, become a Nazi satellite state following the racial policies of the Third Reich, in which Slovakian Jews were robbed of their human and civil rights. Eventually, 70,000 of them were sent to Nazi concentration camps in two waves, the first from March to October 1942 and the second from September 1944 to March 1945. The vast majority of the Jews reported to these camps would be murdered.
Slovak parliamentarians also observed a minute’s silence in honour of the victims.
The only party that did not take part in the vote on the resolution was the openly neo-Nazi People’s Party Our Slovakia. Party leader Marian Kotleba is a vocal supporter of Jozef Tiso, President of the Slovak Nazi puppet state. Mr Kotleba has called Jews “devils in human skin” and promoted the “Zionist Occupied Government” conspiracy theory. Other party members have been charged with Holocaust denial, a criminal offence in Slovakia, on several occasions.
In the 2020 Slovakian parliamentary elections, People’s Party Our Slovakia won seventeen of the 150 available seats with a vote share of 7.97%. The Party reportedly has almost no support in any of the country’s major cities, including the capital Bratislava.
On 5th April 2020, Marian Kotleba was given a six-month suspended sentence for harbouring neo-Nazi sympathies. The appeals court did, however, dismiss an earlier ruling convicting Mr Kotleba of the illegal use of neo-Nazi symbols, for which he had been sentenced to four years and four months in prison.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Community leaders in Sarasota have expressed anger over antisemitic flyers distributed in the Florida town twice in recent weeks.
The flyers – placed in Ziplock bags, weighted with rice – were placed on driveways of Jewish homes. The first batch, in mid-February, blamed the Jewish community for COVID-19. In the second tranche, some flyers again blamed Jews for COVID-19, while, according to the Sarasota Police Department, others blamed Jews for the war in Ukraine, claiming: “Every single aspect of the Ukraine-Russia War is Jewish.”
Speaking at a rally in Sarasota after the first batch of flyers were discovered in February, the Director of the American Jewish Committee said that the hatred in the flyers did not reflect the town. “This group does not speak for Sarasota, which time and again has stood up against all manifestations of antisemitism,” he said. “It makes me feel determined to say hate…against anyone will not win.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A student politician who was forced to apologise for tweeting an Islamist chant threatening Jews has been elected President of the National Union of Students (NUS).
Last week, it was revealed that the then-hopeful NUS candidate Shaima Dallali was forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. In 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, Ms Dallali tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali issued a statement on 23rd March, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
It has now come to light that Ms Dallali’s output on Twitter also included other inflammatory messages, including one last May allegedly saying that “organisations like UJS [the Union of Jewish Students] have a history of bullying pro-Palestine sabbs [sabbatical officers] and activists. You speak one word of solidarity and they’re after you. UJS and their likes need to be called out.”
Another alleged tweet from 2018 read: “So your special forces invade the Gaza Strip, attempt to kidnap a Hamas commander, kill him and others. Then cry about Hamas being the terrorists. Makes perfect sense. #GazaUnderAttack.” Hamas is an antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation that is proscribed in the UK.
Other alleged tweets expressed support for Jeremy Corbyn, the antisemitic former leader of the Labour Party. On 17th November 2020, Ms Dalalli wrote a response to Mr Corbyn’s readmission to the Labour Party, saying that “He should never have been suspended in the first place.” A few months later, on 5th January 2021, Ms Hallami tweeted that “Jeremy Corbyn was too good for this godforsaken country.” At present, these tweets have not yet been deleted, though it has been reported that several others have.
Last week, the Chair of the Education Select Committee, Robert Halfon MP, excoriatedNUS for failing to send a representative to attend his recent hearing, particularly given that the hearing took place just days after a scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline the union’s centenary conference. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdraw from the event.
In an attempt at an apology, NUS grotesquely alleged that “Whilst we welcome genuine political debate, we’ve been sad to see the use of harassment and misinformation against Lowkey.” Swiping at Mr Halfon, NUS has asserted that “MPs and education leaders are accountable to us not the other way round,” declared that “Old school bullying culture is never acceptable including at Government committees [sic],” and that “Elected student leaders aren’t required to take endless levels of abuse in their roles.”
Concerns were also raised about the outgoing President of NUS and one of her Vice Presidents.
NUS’s handling of Jewish concerns over the booking of Lowkey was discussed on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism.
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Shaima Dallali’s election as NUS President only a week after the Lowkey scandal is just the latest indication that this union does not even aspire to represent Jewish students. She has not even taken office and has already had to apologise for one historic antisemitic tweet while rapidly deleting many other inflammatory social media posts. If she wishes to show that she personally has learned a lesson and seeks to lead a truly inclusive union, she should commit to meeting with Jewish students and educate herself on their concerns and also announce that NUS under her leadership will recommit to the International Definition of Antisemitism. If she cannot bring herself to do that in short order, the Government should end its enormous grant to NUS.”
Authorities in California’s Orange County are recommending hate crime charges against a woman who was allegedly dressed as a Nazi SS officer and is alleged to have yelled antisemitic comments at a man who tried to get her to remove her swastika armband.
According to a photo taken by a member of the public, the woman was dressed in an all-black outfit similar to that of a Nazi SS officer and wearing the armband while walking around outside a community centre in Laguna Woods, Orange County.
A man confronted the woman, who allegedly responded with antisemitic comments. According to a spokesperson for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, a “physical altercation” ensued as several people – including a man in his 80s – tried to remove the woman’s armband. Police attended the incident.
Subsequently, the district attorney’s office was asked to recommend that charges against the woman should include hate crime.
The following day, the Mayor of Laguna Woods, Carol Moore, released a statement saying that the city was outraged by the incident. “The city of Laguna Woods stands firmly against antisemitism, bigotry and hate in all its forms, fully and without exception,” the statement read, adding that the conduct “alleged in the disturbance” was “abhorrent, inexcusable, and antithetical to the character and values of our community” and that “any delay” in the public response was intended to “allow the investigation to conclude.”
City Councilman Noel Hatch, who said that he had lived in the area for 25 years and had seen “no indication that there is anything like this brewing,” described it as “a solo act” that was “not germane to any concern” that there was “something brewing here in Laguna Woods village.”
The incident came a month after antisemitic fliers were distributed in the Orange County districts of Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Cypress. A report released in 2021 by the Orange County Human Relations Commission found that, in 2020, hate crimes in the county increased by 35%.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Bill HCR 5030, the short title of the bill named “Recognising the growing problem of antisemitism in the United States”, was adopted unanimously in the Kansas Senate with 38 “Yea” votes.
Gavriela Geller, Executive Director of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau, American Jewish Committee in Kansas is reported to have said: “We can’t fight what we can’t define. The adoption of the definition is a crucial step towards combating rising Jew-hatred.”
The 2014 Pew Religious Landscape Survey showed that less than one percent of Kansas adults identified as Jewish. In 2017, the Jewish population of Kansas was reported to be 17,300. This has not meant, however, that the midwestern state has been free of antisemitic incidents.
In April 2014, 73-year-old Frazier Glenn Miller Jr, a former member of the Ku Klux Klan and known neo-Nazi, was convicted of murder after killing three people in a shooting spree at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Kansas City and the Jewish retirement community Village Shalom, both in Overland Park, Kansas. Mr Miller was sentenced to death, but died in prison in 2021 while awaiting execution.
Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Since then, numerous local councils, universities and sport associations in the United Kingdom have adopted the Definition, as have several national governments and myriad municipalities and associations around the world.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Two Austrian men who publicised myths about coronavirus vaccinations by wearing Stars of David have reportedly been convicted of violating the Alpine republic’s strict anti-Nazi laws.
The two men, who have both refused to be vaccinated, had worn yellow felt stars bearing the word “Ungeimpft” (unvaccinated) at anti-vaccination demonstrations held in Vienna.
A court in Vienna heard that the defendants, known as “Mr K”, 50, and “Mr B”, 34, pled not guilty to infringing upon Austria’s 1947 Verbotsgesetz (Prohibition Act), which not only banned Nazi paramilitary organisations, but made it illegal to publish or broadcast denials or minimisation of the Holocaust. Austria’s Jewish community has recently argued that these laws should be extended to ban the utilisation of Holocaust-related imagery and slogans in order to push anti-vaccination conspiracy theories.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included protesters donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia that Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by the German federal government in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
The judge handed both men fifteen-month suspended sentences and three years’ probation.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The publication of the 2021 Antisemitism Report by the Berlin Attorney General’s Office has reportedly sparked concerns among authorities in the German capital.
The annual report, which has recorded rising antisemitism in recent years, states that there have been two main trends in antisemitic discourse over the last twelve months: coronavirus conspiracy theories and incidents apparently inspired by developments in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included Berliners donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by the German federal government in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
The report also contains a section on antisemitic incidents relating to Israel. It states that these kinds of incidents are inspired by the intensification of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group. Protests and demonstrations against Israel resulted, it says, in “many anti-Jewish and anti-Israel incidents.” In response to the spike in antisemitic incidents, Germany banned the Hamas flag in June.
The report clearly shows a growing antisemitism problem in the German capital. In 2021, Berlin authorities dealt with up to 661 cases motivated by antisemitism, including “antisemitic animosities, insults, threats and physical attacks.” This marks an increase from 417 such incidents in 2020 and 386 in 2019. This follows a similar report put out by the Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism (RIAS), a Berlin-based agency that reports and documents antisemitic incidents throughout Germany. The RIAS study revealed that there had been 522 antisemitic incidents registered in Berlin between January and June 2021 – a period that includes the elevated tensions between Israel and Hamas – marking a seventeen percent year-on-year increase, and the highest number of such incidents since 2018.
Chief Prosecutor Claudia Vanoni said of the most recent report that “In 2021, the year of the 1700th anniversary of Jewish life in Germany, antisemitism was omnipresent as well.”
We reported last year that the German Government will pay €35 million to combat antisemitism. German Education and Research Minister Anja Karliczek said: “This is the highest number [of antisemitic incidents] in the last couple of years. There’s reason for worry that this is only the tip of the iceberg and that the unreported number of daily attacks on Jews is substantially higher.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The defendant in a criminal case that resulted from first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism has been handed an absurdly lenient sentence today at Southwark Crown Court which we are appealing to the Attorney General’s Office, which has the power to refer sentences for certain offences, which she believes to be unduly lenient, to the Court of Appeal.
The eighteen-month sentence, suspended for two years, was the culmination of first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism to unmask an anonymous antisemitic online troll.
When the defendant was unmasked as a result of our litigation, we realised that he was a repeat offender with a long history of obsessive antisemitic harassment. He had committed the offences, for which he was today sentenced, whilst apparently already subject to a suspended sentence for other antisemitic offences. This would appear to demonstrate his contempt for the supposedly deterrent suspended sentences that he had already been handed.
Nonetheless, instead of going directly to prison, the defendant, Nicholas Nelson, 32, was instead ordered to undertake just 30 days of rehabilitation activity and 220 hours of unpaid community service. He must also pay a modest victim surcharge and is subject to a restraining order.
Handing down the suspended sentence, referring to Mr Nelson’s “horrible tirades”, Judge Charles Gratwicke said that the defendant was “not the person you were two or three years ago.” However, he accepted that “Nobody sitting here in this courtroom who has read the newspaper can feel anything but revulsion, sickness and downright anger at the type of hate that you engaged in.”
Mr Nelson had pleaded guilty at Peterborough Crown Court in January to racially aggravated harassment under section 31(1)(b) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and with sending an electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety under 1(1)(a) of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, after he repeatedly sent abusive antisemitic e-mails and messages to Oscar-nominated Jewish writer Lee Kern and hateful messages to communications strategist Joanne Bell, and harassing a staff member at the Board of Deputies, a Jewish charity, over the telephone.
Mr Kern contacted Campaign Against Antisemitism, which funded a case on his behalf led by Mark Lewis, the esteemed lawyer who is also an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The abusive communications came from accounts that Mr Nelson had worked hard to make anonymous. Victims of abuse from anonymous accounts usually have nowhere to go, because only rarely will the police track down the sender, and the cost of private action is usually beyond victims’ means.
However, a new legal initiative devised by Campaign Against Antisemitism together with counsel breaks through that barrier. It has enabled us to identify the anonymous troll by obtaining a special kind of court order which has its origins in the pharmaceutical industry and has never before been used to unmask an anonymous abuser sending antisemitic messages. The court order requires an internet service provider to disclose details of the owner of an online account so that legal proceedings can be issued.
We used this legal device to identify Mr Nelson and criminal proceedings were commenced, leading to him pleading guilty. Mr Nelson had called for another Holocaust, called Mr Kern Shylock, spoke of Jews being used for gun practice, called Jewish women whores, shared obscene sexual fantasies involving Hitler, and glorified the proscribed genocidal antisemitic terror group, Hamas.
Mr Nelson, who lives in Cambridgeshire and was a vigorous supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, also previously sent abusive messages to two Jewish women Labour MPs, branding one a “vile useless c***” and the other a “traitor” who should “end yourself”. At the end of 2018 he pleaded guilty to the same charge and was given a twenty-week suspended sentence for twelve months and ordered to complete 160 hours unpaid work. In 2020, he pleaded guilty to three charges of sending communications of an offensive nature to two other Labour MPs, one of whom is Jewish and the other is an active campaigner against antisemitism. In addition to the charges that Mr Nelson pleaded guilty to today in relation to Mr Kern and Ms Bell, Mr Nelson also pleaded guilty to harassing a member of staff at the Board of Deputies over the telephone.
Mr Kern said: “I have noted the immediacy with which custodial sentences have been handed out for first time offenders who have engaged in other forms of racism. Yet here we have a repeat offender who has embarked upon an unparalleled campaign of hatred against Jews and has been spared prison again and again. Why are antisemitic hate crimes not deemed as criminal as those of other forms of racism? What exactly does it take for a person found guilty of repeated racially motivated crimes against Jews to actually go to prison? This is a disgrace and an embarrassment and sends a clear signal to Britain’s Jews that when it comes to receiving justice, they don’t count.”
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Today’s sentence is deeply disappointing. Nicholas Nelson has, for years, obsessively harassed Jews and sent them violent and obscene messages day after day. Instead of sending him to prison where he belongs, Judge Gratwicke has spared a man who deserves no leniency. We are now referring this absurd sentence to the Attorney General’s Office.
“Though the sentence has been regrettable, the fact that Mr Nelson was convicted proves the efficacy of our new legal device to unmask internet trolls who hide behind anonymous e-mail addresses in order to abuse Jewish victims. This game-changing approach is the most significant development in the legal fight against online hate in years. We have been grateful for the cooperation of the police and prosecutors. We will continue to devise innovative legal mechanisms to protect the Jewish community and deliver justice to victims of antisemitism, including in ways previously thought impossible.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Organisers of this year’s annual St Patrick’s Day parade in Boston were left feeling “disgusted” after it was discovered that a far-right group wearing items featuring neo-Nazi symbolism and holding a banner saying “Keep Boston Irish” had attended.
The twenty-strong group, reportedly the Nationalist Social Club (NSC), who is known for engaging with mainstream public events, was seen wearing green clothes and baseball caps. They remained anonymous through the use of face-masks bearing the number 131 (code for ACA, or anti-communist action) and sunglasses.
Though confined to small, self-organising chapters mostly inside the United States, the organisation is known for spreading white supremacism. They maintain an overtly military theme, regarding themselves as combatants against a “Jewish-controlled” social and political system that aims at “white genocide”.
One member of the group was spotted holding a flag with the Celtic cross (a black flag with a white “plus” sign inside a circle). This Irish Christian symbol is often appropriated by white supremacist groups.
A joint statement co-written by City Council President Ed Flynn, Councillor Michael Flaherty, state Senator Nick Collins, state Representative David Biele, US Representative Stephen Lynch, and Suffolk County clerk of civil courts Michael Donovan said: “We are disgusted by reports of outside hate groups descending into Boston for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade yesterday. Their ideology is repugnant and contrary to an event that celebrates our proud immigrant history and is enjoyed by children, families, and people of all ethnicities and backgrounds.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Woo stated: “It was deeply disturbing to see this display at a local celebration of culture and heritage, as we work to heal and build community through our recovery. With the growing intensity of white supremacist groups nationally, we are working closely with law enforcement at all levels – Boston will not tolerate hate crimes, and we will not be intimidated in our work to build a city for everyone.”
Sergeant Detective John Boyle, a spokesman for Boston police, stated that the police were aware of the group’s presence and that they would be conducting follow-up investigations.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Two teenagers have been found guilty of carrying out a hate crime against a rabbi and sentenced in Bonita Springs, Florida.
Seventeen-year-old Tucker Bachman and fourteen-year-old Case Leckbee have been found guilty of criminal mischief when they defaced Rabbi Mendy Greenberg’s home, spray-painting the word “Jew’s” on his driveway, destroying his mailbox, and smashing his car window.
Mr Bachman and Mr Leckbee were reportedly sentenced to community service and a curfew. They also have to attend a Neighbourhood Accountability Board with their parents or guardian, at which Rabbi Greenberg will be present.
State Attorney Amira Fox said: “These juveniles will face their consequences immediately from the community they injured. They will learn of the impact of their senseless behaviour by meeting with leaders of the Jewish community and, together, the community will determine how best to repair the harm.”
Rabbi Greenberg is reported to have said: “I’m not looking for punishment, I’m looking for rehabilitation. For something to be rectified, for a wrong to be righted.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
A book that claimed to expose the betrayer of Anne Frank has been removed from circulation after its findings were revealed to be unsound.
Prompted by research by Dutch historians, Canadian author Rosemary Sullivan’s The Betrayal of Anne Frank, published by the Amsterdam-based firm Ambo Anthos, will no longer be available.
The Betrayal of Anne Frankalleged that Arnold van den Bergh, a member of Amsterdam’s Jewish council – an administrative body forcibly established by the Nazis as part of their occupation of the Netherlands – led the police to the Frank family’s address at Westermarkt.
Campaign Against Antisemitism reported in February 2022 that Ms Sullivan’s book would no longer be printed until more work could be done to verify Ms Sullivan’s claims. However, after a 69-page report refuting the author’s findings, the publisher has now asked bookstores to return any stock they have already bought.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
After a representative from the National Union of Students (NUS) failed to attend a hearing of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, the controversial union is coming under fire on several fronts.
The Chair of the Committee, Robert Halfon MP, excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend his hearing on Tuesday, particularly given that the hearing took place just days after a scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline the union’s centenary conference. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdraw from the event.
In an attempt at an apology, NUS grotesquely alleged that,“Whilst we welcome genuine political debate, we’ve been sad to see the use of harassment and misinformation against Lowkey.” Swiping at Mr Halfon, NUS has asserted that “MPs and education leaders are accountable to us not the other way round,” declared that “Old school bullying culture is never acceptable including at Government committees [sic],” and that “Elected student leaders aren’t required to take endless levels of abuse in their roles.”
Mr Halfon has expressed his deep dissatisfaction with NUS’s handling of this crisis and its record.
However, fresh revelations about NUS are prompting yet more concern.
An investigation by the Jewish News has concluded that “NUS leaders have quietly dropped a commitment to the International Definition of Antisemitism.” The investigation noted that the outgoing NUS President, Larissa Kennedy, ‘liked’ a tweet celebrating the passage of a resolution calling on Queen Mary University of London and its students’ union to adopt the Jerusalem Declaration, which is a wrecking document intended to undermine the globally-recognised Definition. It also observed that references to the Definition on the NUS website have all but disappeared, despite a statement by the union in 2020 declaring that “NUS is in full support of all efforts to tackle antisemitism and has adopted the [International] Definition of Antisemitism.”
The newspaper also claimed that Sara Khan, an ally of Ms Kennedy’s who was promoted to the new Vice-President Liberation and Equality position, allegedly posted on Twitter: “Is it kind of… antisemitic to homogenise all Jews into an ‘ethnoreligion’? like, both erasing Palestinian Jews, & letting white supremacist/settler Jews off the hook?” In a further post, she allegedly said that she “did some learning” and had concluded that “Judaism as an ethnoreligion refers to the shared heritage of all Jews as identity is passed down through maternal lineage but this is not the same as being a single ethnic group.” She then reportedly wondered: “Imagine thinking the billions of Muslims whether South Asian or Arabic or Eastern European were the same ethnic group. I can’t.” According to the report, Ms Khan also regularly spells “Israel” as “Isra*l”.
Ms Kennedy and Ms Khan allegedly also “played a leading role” in “facilitating” a launch event for last year’s online NUS Decolonialise Education campaign at which Mr Dennis delivered the keynote speech. The report points out numerous inflammatory aspects of this campaign.
Approached by the Jewish News for comment on the allegations in its report and for clarification on whether NUS was still committed to the International Definition of Antisemitism, a spokesperson for the union reportedly said: “Thanks for e-mailing. We won’t be commenting on this.”
Meanwhile, an NUS presidential candidate favoured to win the election to replace Ms Kennedy has been forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. Shaima Dallali tweeted the words ““Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud” in 2012.
The “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud” chant, translated in English as “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning”, is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali, who is the President of the City University London students’ union, issued a statement yesterday, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Last year, prior to Ms Dallali’s enture as President, City University students’ union organised a controversial campus-wide referendum on the International Definition of Antisemitism after reportedly failing to consult Jewish students.
These NUS scandals come after Campaign Against Antisemitism published polling earlier this month in its latest Antisemitism Barometer showing that a staggering 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
“There are some recent controversies on #antisemitism involving the National Union of Students ( @nusuk )…it would have been good to question them on this.” https://t.co/oQfgBWnHxh
— Campaign Against Antisemitism (@antisemitism) March 22, 2022
A member of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, is reported to have tried to hold a Zoom meeting about the relationship between Israel and Jews in the diaspora, only for him to become a target for references to Hitler and the Nazis.
Zoombombing is when people join a Zoom video call with the intention of derailing it. This usually involves spewing antisemitic, racist, or otherwise hateful rhetoric.
Alon Tal, a member of the Blue and White party, organised the open-access online event, entitled “How Israel can better represent Jews around the world?” for the evening of Sunday 20th March.
Soon after the gathering began, however, several people joined in and began filling the screen with offensive language. They also wrote “Hitler was right” and plaudits for other Nazi leaders in Zoom’s chat function. Mr Tal was then forced to cancel the call, which has been rescheduled for the evening of Sunday 27th March.
Quoting the Hasidic Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, Mr Tal is reported to have said: “We will continue to strengthen our partnerships with our friends around the world. And most importantly, we will have no fear at all.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
The Prime Minister has called for “irreversible change” after branding British universities too “tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism”.
Boris Johnson was responding to a question by Andrew Percy MP in the House of Commons during Prime Minister’s Questions.
Mr Percy, who is the co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Antisemitism, said: “Sadly, in my role as chair of the all-party group against antisemitism, the news is not so positive. We have recently heard from Jewish students who are suffering record antisemitic attacks on university campuses, including allegations of their work being marked down by their own professors. This is completely outrageous, and one would expect the National Union of Students to be on their side, but instead of helping the students it has been inviting somebody who is engaged in antisemitic conspiracy theories—a rapper—to a conference. Will the Prime Minister do everything in his power to ensure that campuses are a safe place for British Jewish students?”
Mr Johnson responded: “Our universities have, for far too long, been tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism. I hope that everybody understands the need for change—for rapid and irreversible change—but it is also important that we have an antisemitism taskforce devoted to rooting out antisemitism in education at all levels.”
We commend Mr Percy for drawing attention to this issue, and the Prime Minister for his commitment to tackling the problem.
The exchange comes shortly after Campaign Against Antisemitism published polling in its latest Antisemitism Barometer showing that a staggering 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
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].
“Our universities have, for far too long, been tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism…I hope that everybody understands the need for change…for rapid and irreversible change.”
A controversial councillor infamous for joking about “Jew process” and who was expelled from the Labour Party has now been welcomed to the Green Party.
Jo 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 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 is 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 the Labour Party for her association with the proscribed antisemitism-denial group, Labour Against the Witchhunt. Cllr Bird said on Facebook: “I’m delighted to say that the Labour Party have expelled me today. They say its [sic] for speaking at a meeting (more than three years ago) and signing a petition (early 2020) – organised by Labour Against the Witchthunt, which they banned only four months ago. I’m not free from the Labour Party’s hostile environment, where Jewish people like me are 31 times more likely to be investigated for talking about the racism we face.” She concluded by stating that “this racist Labour party is so different to the Party I joined in 2015. The Labour Party is dying as a vehicle for social justice.”
Cllr Pat Cleary, who leads the now six-strong contingent of Green councillors on Wirral Council, said in a statement this week that “hardworking people like Jo are very welcome in the Green Party.”
The move comes just after Campaign Against Antisemitism published new polling that shows that a majority of British Jews believe that the Green Party is too tolerant of antisemitism, making it only the second party, after Labour, to cross that threshold.
Recently, the controversial former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, was deniedmembership of the Green Party, while inflammatory former Deputy Leader, Shahrar Ali, was dropped as the Party’s Spokesperson for Policing and Domestic Safety, but not over allegations of antisemitism, which have dogged him in the past.
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 who now holds the International Coordinator portfolio, on which the Green Party has failed to act.
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.
When it comes to dealing with antisemitism, @TheGreenParty is in very bad shape, as the only Party not to have adopted the International Definition of #Antisemitism and with an utterly deficient complaints process
The controversial columnist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, has deployed the Livingstone Formulation yet again, asserting that “These days, any criticism of Israel is deemed ‘antisemitic’.”
Ms Brown made the claim in a column this week for the i newspaper on Israel’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The “Livingstone Formulation”, named by sociologist David Hirsch after the controversial former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, is used to describe how allegations of antisemitism are dismissed as malevolent and baseless attempts to silence criticism of Israel. In its report on antisemitism in the Labour Party, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) found that suggestions of this nature were part of the unlawful victimisation of Jewish people in the Party.
Late last year, Ms Brown made a similar claim, arguing in an article that “any criticism of the state [of Israel] is deemed antisemitic by apologists and diehard allies, and suggesting that this is motivating a “purge” of Labour Party members. In the article titled “The UN is warning of spiralling violence, yet the West has forgotten the Palestinians” for the i newspaper, Ms Alibhai-Brown also wrote that “a report from Jewish Voice for Labour accused Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party of purging Jewish members who call Israel to account.”
That was not Ms Alibhai-Brown’s first offence of this nature either. The year before, she replied to journalist Stephen Bush’s reaction to being appointed to lead a Jewish charity’s review of racial inclusivity in the Jewish community by tweeting: “maybe ask them about the Palestinians.” The review was concerned with British Jews and was unrelated to Israel, a distinction that Ms Alibhai-Brown is apparently incapable of apprehending.
Newspapers and television broadcasters who host Ms Alibhai-Brown must think again before giving a platform to someone who takes such positions.
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 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].
The journalist and broadcaster Angela Epstein appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where she revealed that her son was nearly assaulted by three men after they had seen him wearing his skullcap, or kippah.
When Ms Epstein was asked by our host whether she was surprised that polling by Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that a shocking 46% of British Jews said that they do not display visible signs of their Judaism due to antisemitism, she replied that she was not.
“Antisemitism is the oldest hatred documented in terms of people’s disregard, hatred, dislike for cultures that they feel are alien to them,” Ms Epstein said. “I completely understand why in certain circumstances, loathe as we are to admit it considering our history, that people would want to not display their Jewish credentials.”
Ms Epstein went on to reveal that the issue of Jewish visibility was a personal one to her after her son was nearly attacked.
“One of my kids was rounded upon by three Arab-speaking men when he was travelling recently in Europe. They were staying in the same place…the night before they had seen him and he wasn’t wearing his kippah and they were perfectly friendly. And the next day, when they saw him and he was, they rounded upon him,” Ms Epstein said.
She added: “Fortunately, the German police were very good and they have since been arrested.”
Ms Epstein stated that the incident was an example of what happens “when you display your Judaism in certain situations,” adding: “There are lots of people who are amenable and reasonable but equally, it’s an age-old hatred and we still haven’t found out why they don’t like us.”
Throughout the interview, Ms Epstein touched upon a wide variety of topics, including her Jewish Ukrainian heritage, how her last name can sometimes conjure unwanted connotations, and what it means to be a Jewish mother.
The podcast with Ms Epstein can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Delighted to be interviewed by the @antisemitism podcast about my Jewish heritage, culture and the enduring fight to eradicate antisemitism. Why not take a listen? #Antisemitismhttps://t.co/5TirGLE0ZO
A synagogue in Farmington Hills, Michigan, received a telephone call on 18th March from someone who claimed to have planted a pipe bomb at the synagogue.
The Temple Adat Shalom building was evacuated, and police and police dogs sent in to search for the device.No bomb was found, and the incident was described as a “cruel hoax designed to terrorise our communities,” by Rabbi Aaron Bergman in an e-mail to the congregation.
The hoax threat came the day after the conclusion of a Jewish festival that celebrates a biblical attempt to wipe out the Jewish people.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Reports have surfaced that swastikas have been spray-painted on a building in Peterborough.
A Twitter user posted photographs of the graffiti on the social media platform, adding that he tried to report the incident to the police but was not able to because the wall was not his property.
Mr Griffiths speculated that the property may belong to Cross Keys Homes, Peterborough’s largest provider of independent living accommodation tailored to the needs of elderly and vulnerable residents.
In an exchange over Twitter with Cambridgeshire Police, Mr Griffiths was informed that the crime can be reported online, only for him to reportedly find the link broken and himself unable to report damage done to a property that did not belong to him.
This is not the first such incident to be reported in recent months in the area. In December, we reported that local residents had conveyed their outrage after swastika graffiti was found on walls in a nearby shopping centre.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Jewish people in Edgware have reportedly been pelted with eggs in public over the last two weekends.
According to the Community Security Trust, there have been several reports of such incidents.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has previously reported on occupants of a car hurling eggs at recognisably-Jewish Edgware residents, and the words “Hail Hitler, f*** Jews” scrawled on the wheelie bin of an Edgware workplace owned by a Jewish businessman.
CST has asked for witnesses and victims to come forward. Anybody who has any information that might help the investigation is asked to report to the police on 101 and CST on 0800 032 3263.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
West Midlands Police are reportedly looking into a video that appears to show football fans singing a song targeting Jewish people on a Birmingham train.
The video, uploaded to Twitter by Tottenham Hotspur fan @N17_SAUL, appears to show Arsenal supporters singing on their way to a fixture with Aston Villa on Saturday 19th March.
The song, which refers to the Jewish religious practice of circumcision in the context of Arsenal’s rivalry with Tottenham, ends with the words “f****** Jew.”
One fan is then reported as saying “Love that one,” amid the laughter of other members of the group.
A spokesman from Tottenham Hotspur is reported to have said: “Antisemitism in any form is wholly unacceptable and we support all efforts to kick it out of the game. We hope that those individuals conducting this vile chant are identified and dealt with in the strongest way possible.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
On Saturday, @Arsenal fans sang an antisemitic song on a train to a match against @AstonVilla. Arsenal must take action against the individuals in the video.
Following the revelation by LBC’s Theo Usherwood that the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, would be headlining the National Union of Students’ (NUS) centenary conference, Campaign Against Antisemitism and other Jewish groups expressed outrage that a union meant to represent all students, including Jews, would consider the inflammatory activist to be a suitable keynote speaker. NUS has now reportedly confirmed that Mr Dennis will not be appearing at the conference.
Mr Dennis is a patron of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). A month-long investigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism in 2017 exposed extensive antisemitic bigotry amongst PSC supporters on social media. Mr Dennis has previously described Israel as a “racist endeavour” in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as “antisemitic”, spoken of the “Zionist lobby” in the context of global capitalism, has reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson, defended the disgraced academic David Miller, and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn.
More recently, Mr Dennis has reportedly claimed that the “mainstream media” has “weaponised the Jewish heritage” of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “stave off” inquiries about far-right groups in Ukraine. He has also appeared on the disgraced former MP Chris Williamson’s show on Press TV, an Iranian state-owned news network whose British broadcasting licence was revoked by Ofcom in 2012. Mr Dennis has appeared alongside the disgraced academic David Miller.
When Jewish students raised concerns about the choice of act for the union’s conference, NUS reportedly advised them that they could use an “existing safe space” which was to be “designated for students who are sensitive to loud noise” during Mr Dennis’ performance. In response to worries about how Jewish students would react if the performance went ahead, NUS reportedly replied that it was more concerned about the reaction from other students if it were cancelled.
However, after pressure, NUS insisted that Mr Dennis would only be headlining the “Liberation Conference”, due to run for two days immediately following the National Conference and intended to “bring together Black*, Disabled, LGBT+, Trans and Women Students together to build communities of activists and plan our campaigning work.” After further pressure, NUS has reportedly removed Ms Dennis from the programme completely.
The controversial Labour Party MP, Zarah Sultana, will still be appearing at NUS’s National Conference. Labour has yet to investigate an outstanding complaint against Ms Sultana by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
When Mr Dennis’ appearance was first publicised, Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “NUS knows exactly what it is doing by headlining Lowkey. He has previously described Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’ in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as ‘antisemitic’, spoken of the ‘Zionist lobby’ in the context of global capitalism, reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn as well as Jew-baiting conspiracists including David Miller.
“Headlining such a person is bad enough, but telling appalled Jews to go and stand in the corner whilst everyone else dances is segregationist and disgusting. Instead of showing solidarity with Jews, NUS is literally casting Jews aside. This is sickening hypocrisy from a union that proclaims itself to be ‘anti-racist’.”
A Connecticut woman was arrested on 12th March for arson and burglary after being accused of setting fires in a synagogue and a church.
Kimorah Parker, 30, allegedly broke into Tephereth Israel Synagogue on 11th March and started a fire that caused “fairly extensive” damage. She has also been accused of setting fire to St Matthew’s Lutheran Church.
Local police are investigating the arson with the assistance of the FBI.
The FBI released a statement in which it said: “Local police have arrested a suspect well-known to them and retain the lead over the ongoing investigations. No other incidents have been reported since the arrest. The FBI will continue to coordinate with local law enforcement and, pending further evidence collection, will determine whether federal charges are appropriate.”
A Tephereth Israel Synagogue congregation member called the incident “devastating,” adding: “We don’t know why the person who started the fire did this…we know she chose a church and a synagogue, so it wasn’t specifically Jewish; we don’t know a motive.
“It’s devastating, because that building holds a lot of memories for me and my family…I’m hoping that [the] building itself is still structurally sound and that they can repair it.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expressed outrage after it was reported that the National Union of Students (NUS) responded to Jewish complaints about an inflammatory rapper headlining the union’s centenary conference by suggesting that the Jewish students literally segregate themselves.
Jewish students reportedly expressed concern after learning that the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, would be headlining a conference of a union ostensibly meant to represent them.
Mr Dennis is a patron of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). A month-long investigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism in 2017 exposed extensive antisemitic bigotry amongst PSC supporters on social media. Mr Dennis has previously described Israel as a “racist endeavour” in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as “antisemitic”, spoken of the “Zionist lobby” in the context of global capitalism, has reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson, defended the disgraced academic David Miller, and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn.
More recently, Mr Dennis has reportedly claimed that the “mainstream media” has “weaponised the Jewish heritage” of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “stave off” inquiries about far-right groups in Ukraine. He has also appeared on the disgraced former MP Chris Williamson’s show on Press TV, an Iranian state-owned news network whose British broadcasting licence was revoked by Ofcom in 2012. The disgraced academic David Miller has appeared alongside Mr Dennis.
When Jewish students raised concerns about the choice of act for the union’s conference, NUS reportedly advised them that they could use an “existing safe space” which was to be “designated for students who are sensitive to loud noise” during Mr Dennis’ performance. In response to worries about how Jewish students would react if the performance went ahead, NUS reportedly replied that it was more concerned about the reaction from other students if it were cancelled.
The controversial Labour Party MP, Zarah Sultana, will also be appearing at the event, it has been reported. Labour has yet to investigate an outstanding complaint against Ms Sultana by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “NUS knows exactly what it is doing by headlining Lowkey. He has previously described Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’ in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as ‘antisemitic’, spoken of the ‘Zionist lobby’ in the context of global capitalism, reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn as well as Jew-baiting conspiracists including David Miller.
“Headlining such a person is bad enough, but telling appalled Jews to go and stand in the corner whilst everyone else dances is segregationist and disgusting. Instead of showing solidarity with Jews, NUS is literally casting Jews aside. This is sickening hypocrisy from a union that proclaims itself to be ‘anti-racist’.”
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Paris Court of Appeal reduces fine for Dieudonné over videos
A sentence imposed on Dieudonné over videos that he released in 2020 has been reduced by the Paris Court of Appeal to a fine roughly equivalent to £75. However, the Appeal Court upheld a fine of 10,000 euros (£80,000) in another case against him.
Dieudonné, whose real name is Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala, is a French comedian and political activist who has been convicted for hate speech and advocating terrorism, among other offences, in France, Belgium and Switzerland.
At his trial in May 2021, Dieudonné M’Bala M’Bala, 56, was found guilty of antisemitic insults, incitement to hatred and a crime against humanity. He claimed that the videos in question were fake, created through a sophisticated digital technique.
The original custodial sentence of four months’ imprisonment plus a fine was reduced to a fine of 100 euros. However, the Court of Appeal upheld a fine of 10,000 euros plus 3,000 euros in damages against Dieudonné for a video released in September 2020 defaming anti-racism delegate Frédéric Potier, who is involved in the fight against antisemitism and LGBT hatred.
In the summer of 2020, in a move to combat hateful content, Dieudonné was banned from major online platforms, such as YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
In May 2021, he was also sentenced to three years’ imprisonment, only one of which must be served, plus a further fine of 200,000 euros for a string of financial crimes, including tax fraud and money laundering.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Report states that Linfield University violated Jewish professor’s academic freedom after he was fired after accusing University President of antisemitism
It has been reported that an Oregon university that fired a Jewish professor after he accused its president of making antisemitic remarks violated the professor’s academic freedom.
Linfield University in McMinnville, 38 miles south of Portland, fired English professor Daniel Pollack-Pelzner in 2021 after he accused president Miles K. Davis of making comments about the supposed size of Jewish noses and jokes about sending Jews to gas chambers. Prof Pollack-Pelzner also suggested that the university had covered up reports of swastika graffiti and other instances of hate speech, as well as sexual assault allegations.
Prof Pollack-Pelzner also recalls not only that President Davis withheld his reports, fearing that they would bring the University into disrepute and accusing Prof Pollack-Pelzner of “harbouring a secret agenda to grab power”, but that the President warned of “disloyalty from within” in a meeting. Prof Pollack-Pelzner also claims that President Davis said that “people like him were destroying Linfield University from within”.
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.
The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) has now decided that Linfield violated Prof Pollack-Pelzner’s academic freedom when they fired him, stating that the University “contributed to a culture of abuse” in the way it treated the professor.
The AAUP report holds that Linfield forced Prof Pollack-Pelzner out of his job and ensured he was unable to use his e-mail account without holding an initial disciplinary hearing (a requirement for charges against a tenured professor).
Linfield University itself did not take part in the AAUP investigation, and university spokespeople indicated in their interactions with faculty and local media that they did not accept the report’s allegations and were ready to fight them in court.
Prof Pollack-Pelzner is now reportedly a visiting scholar at Portland State University.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Following action by CAA, Solicitor General confirms he is referring Nicholas Nelson’s unduly lenient sentence for antisemitic harassment to Court of Appeal
Following action taken by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the Solicitor General has confirmed that he will refer Nicholas Nelson’s absurdly lenient sentence for antisemitic harassment to the Court of Appeal.
Mr Nelson, the defendant in a criminal case that resulted from first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism, was given an eighteen-month sentence, suspended for two years, at Southwark Crown Court last month. However, given that his campaign of harassment endured for a period of time against multiple victims and came after he had committed several similar offences, we considered this sentence to be inexplicably lenient.
Accordingly, we wrote to the Attorney General’s Office, which has the power to refer sentences for certain offences which are believed to be unduly lenient, to the Court of Appeal.
We have now received confirmation from the Solicitor General that he is referring the case to the Court of Appeal.
Alex Chalk QC MP agreed that “the behaviour of Mr Nelson was truly appalling.”
Offering two reasons for his referral, Mr Chalk wrote: “First, it is arguable that the judge failed sufficiently to have regard to the fact this was multiple offending against three separate victims over a sustained period of time. Given there were three separate victims, the judge arguably ought to have imposed consecutive sentences.”
Providing his second reason, Mr Chalk said that “There were two features in this case that required an immediate custodial sentence,” the first being that “These were serious offences committed against multiple victims over a significant period of time. Given the nature of the offending, and Mr Nelson’s previous convictions, a significant deterrent element was required, together with appropriate punishment.” He also pointed out that “abuse, harassment and antisemitism online and on social media is a significant public issue and of real concern to the wider public.”
Mr Chalk added: “Secondly, Mr Nelson had a poor compliance history with court orders. The offending was committed in breach of two earlier suspended sentences. Such a disregard for the earlier orders of the court required punishment by way of immediate custody, notwithstanding any mitigation or progress made since those earlier sentences.”
The Solicitor General expressed his gratitude that Campaign Against Antisemitism brought this case to his attention. He has a record of referring unduly lenient sentences to the Court of Appeal, including, recently, that of the neo-Nazi teenager Ben John, a review of whose sentence we also called for.
Mr Nelson’s case was the culmination of first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism to unmask an anonymous antisemitic online troll. He pleaded guilty at Peterborough Crown Court in January to racially aggravated harassment under section 31(1)(b) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and with sending an electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety under 1(1)(a) of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, after he repeatedly sent abusive antisemitic e-mails and messages to Oscar-nominated Jewish writer Lee Kern and hateful messages to communications strategist Joanne Bell, and harassing a staff member at the Board of Deputies, a Jewish charity, over the telephone.
Mr Kern contacted Campaign Against Antisemitism, which funded a case on his behalf led by Mark Lewis, the esteemed lawyer who is also an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The abusive communications came from accounts that Mr Nelson had worked hard to make anonymous. Victims of abuse from anonymous accounts usually have nowhere to go, because only rarely will the police track down the sender, and the cost of private action is usually beyond victims’ means.
However, a new legal initiative devised by Campaign Against Antisemitism together with counsel breaks through that barrier. It has enabled us to identify the anonymous troll by obtaining a special kind of court order which has its origins in the pharmaceutical industry and has never before been used to unmask an anonymous abuser sending antisemitic messages. The court order requires an internet service provider to disclose details of the owner of an online account so that legal proceedings can be issued.
We used this legal device to identify Mr Nelson and criminal proceedings were commenced, leading to him pleading guilty. Mr Nelson had called for another Holocaust, called Mr Kern Shylock, spoke of Jews being used for gun practice, called Jewish women whores, shared obscene sexual fantasies involving Hitler, and glorified the proscribed genocidal antisemitic terror group, Hamas.
Mr Nelson, who lives in Cambridgeshire and was a vigorous supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, also previously sent abusive messages to two Jewish women Labour MPs, branding one a “vile useless c***” and the other a “traitor” who should “end yourself”. At the end of 2018 he pleaded guilty to the same charge and was given a twenty-week suspended sentence for twelve months and ordered to complete 160 hours unpaid work. In 2020, he pleaded guilty to three charges of sending communications of an offensive nature to two other Labour MPs, one of whom is Jewish and the other is an active campaigner against antisemitism. In addition to the charges that Mr Nelson pleaded guilty to today in relation to Mr Kern and Ms Bell, Mr Nelson also pleaded guilty to harassing a member of staff at the Board of Deputies over the telephone.
He had committed the offences whilst apparently already subject to a suspended sentence for other antisemitic offences. This would appear to demonstrate his contempt for the supposedly deterrent suspended sentences that he had already been handed. Nonetheless, instead of going directly to prison, the defendant, Nicholas Nelson, 32, was instead ordered to undertake just 30 days of rehabilitation activity and 220 hours of unpaid community service. He must also pay a modest victim surcharge and is subject to a restraining order.
Handing down the suspended sentence and referring to Mr Nelson’s “horrible tirades”, Judge Charles Gratwicke said that “Nobody sitting here in this courtroom who has read the newspaper can feel anything but revulsion, sickness and downright anger at the type of hate that you engaged in.” Nevertheless, he insisted that the defendant was “not the person you were two or three years ago.”
On the day of the sentencing, Mr Kern said: “I have noted the immediacy with which custodial sentences have been handed out for first time offenders who have engaged in other forms of racism. Yet here we have a repeat offender who has embarked upon an unparalleled campaign of hatred against Jews and has been spared prison again and again. Why are antisemitic hate crimes not deemed as criminal as those of other forms of racism? What exactly does it take for a person found guilty of repeated racially motivated crimes against Jews to actually go to prison? This is a disgrace and an embarrassment and sends a clear signal to Britain’s Jews that when it comes to receiving justice, they don’t count.”
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We are grateful that the Solicitor General has readily acceded to our request for a review of Nicholas Nelson’s absurdly lenient sentence. To all but let off a defendant who committed racist offences over a sustained period against multiple victims, apparently whilst serving suspended sentences for similar offences, is a staggering miscarriage of justice and mocks not only the direct victims of this campaign of harassment but the whole Jewish community and all those who suffer at the hands of online trolls. We hope that the Court of Appeal will impose a more fitting punishment on someone who has brought such harm to the targets of his racist bile.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Image credit: JC
Singer who called Hitler a “good guy” and the Holocaust a “profitable hoax” disinvited from benefit concert
It has been reported that a rock concert in Tucson, Arizona has dropped a band from its bill due to an antisemitic website run by its frontman.
The “Whole Enchilada” benefit concert, held on 16th April at the Hotel Congress in downtown Tucson, was supposed to feature a number of popular local bands, including veteran outfit Chuck Wagon and the Wheels.
However, the attention of the organisers was drawn to the band’s lead singer, Chuck Maultsby, whose website allegedly contains numerous antisemitic posts, including examples of Holocaust denial, posts supporting Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, and rationalisations for the concentration camps in which millions of Jews were interned and murdered.
Mr Maultsby’s material consists of over 250 pages of conspiracy theories blaming the coronavirus pandemic on Jews, claims that the Jews planned the 9/11 attacks on New York City, and celebrations of Adolf Hitler, who Mr Maultsby says was a “good guy”.
Along with justifications for the actions of notorious Auschwitz doctor Josef Mengele, who, according to Mr Maultsby, saved the lives of tens of thousands of “inmates” at the death camp through his “tireless efforts”, the website explains how Jews are responsible for the deaths of former American President John F. Kennedy and US Army General George S. Patton, as well as announcing that the diary of Anne Frank is a “hoax”.
Mr Maultsby also describes the Holocaust in such terms, asking in one post from 2017: “Is the Holocaust a Hoax? Short Answer: OF COURSE. Within five minutes, any intelligent, open-minded person can be convinced that the Holocaust gassings of World War II are a profitable hoax.”
Mr Maultbsy’s website is reportedly no longer available at its original location, but has apparently been archived in several places. The site does still, however, show memes with Hitler’s photograph, myths about a “white genocide” orchestrated by Jews, and a self-published book that its author claims to have been banned on Amazon. One such meme reads: “If you think I am evil, it means you have never did any research but you are fully brainwashed by the Jewish written History [sic].”
Chuck Wagon and the Wheels were subsequently disinvited from the concert, and some members of the Tucson music scene denounced the singer.
David Slutes, the entertainment director for Hotel Congress, said: “It’s harder than you think to move quickly on something like this, even when it’s obviously the right thing to do. Everyone feels embarrassed, guilty and bad about it. But learning about the depth of Chuck’s insanity was rough. I have worked for this Jewish-run business for 25 years and they are like extended family. This was not going to work for any of us.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
“F**k Jews”: two antisemitic incidents in Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh over the first weekend of Passover
It has been reported that the neighbourhood of Squirrel Hill in eastern Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has seen two separate antisemitic incidents over the last week.
On 15th April, the first night of the Jewish festival of Passover, more than twenty families had antisemitic flyers tossed into their driveways by a hate group who have also been known to work in California, Florida, New York, Colorado, and other American states.
Residents reported finding the antisemitic flyers inside a plastic bag filled with rice. This fits the profile of other similar incidents in Palo Alto, Beverly Hills, and elsewhere, though the Squirrel Hill victims did not disclose the precise wording of the material.
On 17th April, a male reportedly shouted “F**k Jews” as he walked past the Shaare Torah Congregation on Murray Avenue, a long street that connects the two communities of Squirrel Hill North and Squirrel Hill South.
In October 2018, Squirrel Hill, where 40 percent of the more than 26,000 residents are Jewish, saw the most violent antisemitic incident in American history, when 46-year-old Robert Bowers entered the Tree of Life synagogue and opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle and three handguns, murdering eleven and wounding seven members of the congregation.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Jail for mosque leader who called for violent Jihad
A mosque leader who called for “Jihad by sword” while making a stabbing gesture and wearing a black top emblazoned with the words “Free Palestine, resistance is existence” has been jailed after being found guilty of intending to encourage terrorism.
Abu Bakr Deghayes’ twenty-minute sermon a congregation of around 50 at Brighton Mosque and Muslim Community Centre in November 2021 was caught on CCTV. The audience reportedly included teenagers and young men in their twenties, as well as older members, and it is understood that several in the audience began to fidget as the speech went on, with some walking out.
The Old Bailey heard that Mr Deghayes, 53, from Saltdean, Sussex and originally from Libya, spoke in English and Arabic, urging the congregation to ignore the British Government and its Prevent programme. He is claimed to have said: “Allah is more powerful than you. You, idiots. You non-believers, idiots. Allah is more powerful than you. The non-believer…is an idiot; he’s stupid. Jihad is compulsory upon you, you, you and you until the Day of Resurrection, whatever the British Government thinks, whatever Prevent thinks, whatever Israel thinks.
“Send to the sea. They can go and drink from the sea, Allah curse their fathers, OK? Jihad, jihad, jihad! Jihad is compulsory. Jihad by fighting by sword that means this jihad is compulsory upon you, not jihad is the word of mouth but jihad will remain compulsory until the Day of Resurrection. And my livelihood is under the shadow of my spear.”
He added that anyone who did not like what he said was an enemy of Allah, declaring: “Go fight Allah! Go Fight Allah!”
Mr Deghayes, who denied wrongdoing, has been handed a sentence of four years’ imprisonment, plus a further year on licence.
Two of Mr Deghayes’ sons were killed fighting in Syria (a third died in a stabbing incident in Sussex). Abdul, who was reportedly involved with drugs and was murdered by a dealer in 2019 aged 22, was the twin brother of Abdullah, who was killed in 2016 fighting in Syria. Their brother Jaffar was killed in 2014 aged seventeen while fighting to overthrow the Syrian dictator, Bashas Al-Assad. Both were apparently fighting for the al Qaida-affiliated Al-Nusra Front. Yet another son, Amer, is believed still to be fighting in Syria.
In 2017, a serious case review reportedly identified missed opportunities to prevent the sons from being radicalised, as well as noting failures to understand the role of religion in their lives. The report also alleged that Mr Deghayes would wake the boys up at 04:30 in the morning to study the Koran and would whip them with electrical wire.
The boys’ uncle, Omar Deghayes, was arrested in Pakistan in 2002 and spent five years in Guantanamo Bay.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that over eight in ten British Jews consider the threat from Islamists to be very serious.
Image credit: Google and Sussex Police
Following mental health assessment, man who allegedly punched Jewish men to the ground deemed unfit to give plea
During a court hearing that was held today for a man who was arrested after visibly Jewish men were punched to the ground in January, the defendant was deemed unfit to give his plea due to his mental ill health.
Police in Haringey arrested a man after two visibly Jewish men were viciously punched to the ground in Stamford Hill in January in an assault that was widely publicised. CCTV footage showed a man striking blows to the two Jewish men’s faces and bodies.
The victims, Israel Grossman and Erwin Ginsberg, were promptly treated by Hatzola, a volunteer-run emergency medical service, and were hospitalised. It is understood that one victim sustained severe bruising, a broken nose and a fractured wrist, while the other also suffered bruising and injuries to his wrist and eye.
The incident took place on Cadoxton Avenue and was reported by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
Malaki Thorpe, 18, of Fairview Road N15, appeared in Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court shortly after the incident and was charged with two counts of racially aggravated ABH and one count of possession of an offensive weapon.
He was remanded in custody, and did not attend a hearing at Wood Green Crown Court in March, when the court determined that he was to undergo a mental health assessment to determine his fitness to stand trial.
Today, at the hearing in the same court, Mr Thorpe’s lawyer, David Lyons, stated that the defendant was unfit to plead as he was “suffering from psychotic illness”.
Mr Thorpe is currently remanded in custody and is awaiting transfer to Chase Farm Hospital to receive medical treatment. The court will reconvene in June for a case management hearing where, depending on a doctor’s assessment, Mr Thorpe may have an opportunity to state his plea.
Mr Lyons also disclosed that there is no dispute that Mr Thorpe hit these men, but he requested that the court reconsider whether the racially motivated element is applicable, to which Judge Aaronberg responded that the comment had been noted.
“Imagine my surprise, I found out the founder’s Jewish”: Florence Schechter speaks on the crossover between antisemitism and LGBTQ+ phobia
Florence Schechter, a comedian and presenter who is also the founding Director of the Vagina Museum, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where, speaking from first-hand experience, she provided an insight into the crossover between antisemitism and LGBTQ+ phobia.
“The Museum shared a post which was about International Women’s Day, and we were talking about some trans women from history,” Ms Schechter said, “and somebody replied to that post saying ‘Imagine my surprise, I found out the founder’s Jewish’, and there was this weird, like, ‘Look at the Jews, trying to destroy society.’”
Agreeing with an assertion made by Pink News’ CEO Benjamin Cohen, who appeared on Podcast Against Antisemitism in February, that antisemites also tend to be homophobic, racist, misogynistic and transphobic, Ms Schechter explained: “What’s really interesting is there’s a current narrative at the moment that in particular, trans people, but the LGBT community in general, are trying to control society and influence it, and I saw a tweet recently where somebody was like, ‘Isn’t it weird that this tiny minority of trans people have infiltrated all our big organisations and are changing the rules in their favour, isn’t that weird?’ And I was like, oh, that’s just an antisemitic argument wrapped up against trans people instead.
“And because there’s this exact style of argument happening, I think there’s a lot of people who have the overlap of ‘Whose the person with the strings? It’s the Jews and it’s the queers.’”
Ms Schechter also revealed that she has also received large amounts of online antisemitism outside of Twitter. “On my YouTube videos, for a few of them, I had to shut off comments because people were making rape threats and death threats towards me because I was Jewish. I found myself listed on an antisemitic website once…I won’t name the website but it was a website that listed people who are a threat to white supremacy.
“They had all these pages of all these famous people, Jews and non-Jews, who were a threat to white supremacy…it had links to my website, links to my Twitter so that people could find me really easily…it was really scary.”
The podcast with Ms Schechter can be listened to here, or watched in its entirety here.
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, writer Eve Barlow and actor Eddie Marsan.
Emptiness of Leeds University’s adoption of International Definition of Antisemitism laid bare as it fails to act over professor’s tweets
The emptiness of the University of Leeds’ adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism has been laid bare, after the institution failed to take any meaningful action against a professor with a record of tweets that breach the Definition.
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote to the University regarding Ray Bush, who was then a Professor of African Studies and Development Politics. Prof. Bush appeared to have tweeted from the Twitter handle “@raymondobush” a large number of tweets that breach the Definition. Prof. Bush’s profile page on the University’s website links to the offending Twitter handle.
There were three types of breaches.
First, the tweets stated that Israel’s existence itself is unacceptable, using the exact language of the Definition in referring to Jewish self-determination as “a racist endeavour”. The Definition states that “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 antisemitic. This claim was repeated on numerous occasions:
Second, the tweets breached the Definition by comparing Israelis and Zionists to Nazis. According to the Definition: “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis” is antisemitic. For example, the following was tweeted:
Third, the tweets contravened the Definition by claiming that concerns about institutional antisemitism in the Labour Party, which were vindicated by the report of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, were due to a campaign run by the “Israeli embassy.” The tweets thus supported one of the oldest tropes used to justify acts of antisemitism: the discredited myth of a Jewish conspiracy in which Jews are disloyal and act as a fifth column against the interests of their home countries. The Definition states that: “Making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as a collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions” is antisemitic. This was done in tweets including:
The University acknowledged receipt of our letter and pledged to revert to us, but not only did the institution fail to do so, but there is no evidence that any investigation into Prof. Bush and the Twitter account bearing his name ever took place. In the meantime, Prof. Bush has retired, and now holds the prestigious position of Emeritus Professor of African Studies and Development Politics, which means that he is still connected to the University. Indeed, his profile page on the University’s website links to his offending Twitter account.
Neither the University of Leeds nor Prof. Bush responded to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “We have always been clear that adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism is only a first step. What is vital is that universities actually apply the Definition when allegations of antisemitism arise. In this case, not only has the University of Leeds apparently failed to do so, but there is no indication that it launched any investigation at all. Instead, it has allowed Ray Bush to retire quietly and assume the prestigious position of emeritus professor, while continuing to advertise the offending Twitter account on its website.
“These tweets are clearly in breach of the International Definition of Antisemitism. Anyone airing and disseminating dangerous antisemitic views is not fit to be entrusted with the responsibility of teaching young people. For this reason, it was important for the matter to be properly investigated and for consequences to follow. Leeds missed this opportunity to demonstrate that it takes the safety of its Jewish students seriously. Now, the University must explain why it failed to take action.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Incoming NUS President insists it’s “absolutely not true” that “I don’t like Jewish people,” but says “as a black Muslim woman, it is something that I expected”
The incoming President of the National Union of Students (NUS) has again stirred controversy, claiming in an interview published today that, although it is “absolutely not true” that “I don’t like Jewish people,” nevertheless, “as a black Muslim woman, it [the allegation] is something that I expected.”
Shaima Dallali’s comments were reported in The Guardian, which interviewed the union’s already embattled President-elect.
Last week, NUS announced that it was launching an independent investigation into antisemitism, including allegations facing Ms Dallali. Ms Dallali, 27, told the newspaper that “The investigation is the right thing to do,” adding: “I know quite a few Jewish students feel alienated. This is the first step to start bridging the gap and reaching out to Jewish students and ensuring that Jewish students feel like they have a place in NUS, so I do welcome it.”
Ms Dallali, who has a history of inflammatory tweets, including one for which she apologised, reportedly compared herself to a notorious former NUS President, Malia Bouattia. According to the newspaper, Ms Dallali said that “the backlash against her election was part of pattern, seen with previous student leaders including Malia Bouattia, who in 2016 became the first black Muslim woman to become NUS president.”
“Unfortunately, as a black Muslim woman, it is something that I expected because I’ve seen it happen to other black Muslim women when they take up positions in the student union or the NUS, where they are attacked based on their political beliefs or their pro-Palestinian stance,” Ms Dallali said.
She also claimed that she had received a lot of racist and anti-Muslim abuse online: “I’ve had private messages of people calling me a raghead, people telling me to go and kill myself, calling me a Jew hater and an antisemite. That has been difficult to read. And so many threats as well – if I continue to do this then things will happen to me. I just try to delete, to block, I try not to let it get to my head. It’s something I receive every day and I’m continuing to receive. It’s affected me mentally and physically. Sometimes I don’t feel safe.”
Ms Bouattia was also investigated by NUS during her tenure and found to have made antisemitic statements, but no action was taken against her in what was one of many instances of the union appearing to brush racism against Jews under the carpet.
During her election campaign, Ms Dallali, who will assume her position as President in July, was forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. In 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, Ms Dallali tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.” Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE. She also had a history of other inflammatory tweets, and last week, it also emerged that Ms Dallali had been in a group shouting aggressively at Jewish students attending an Israel Society event at King’s College London in 2018, at which it was reported that the “Khaybar” chant was heard.
Ms Dallali reportedly told The Guardian that, as the newspaper put it, “Muslims were not allowed room for growth.” She said: “It genuinely is really difficult to have to see these horrible things being said about me. They are not true. This idea that I don’t like Jewish people, or I’m hateful towards the Jewish community is absolutely not true. During my time as a sabbatical officer, I’ve worked with the Jewish community to support them, for example to commemorate Holocaust memorial day. My door has always been open to all students regardless of who they are. I want to reiterate my willingness to work with Jewish students to combat antisemitism, to address their concerns. I want to represent all students and their concerns are important. I may at times disagree with people politically. Everyone has the right to have their own political ideas, but I don’t hate anyone. I definitely don’t hate the Jewish community. I do believe I can bridge the gap and build bridges.”
NUS’s announcement of an investigation into antisemitism came after Robert Halfon MP wrote together with Campaign Against Antisemitism to the Charity Commission calling for an investigation into the union’s charitable arm. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here.
In addition, over twenty former NUS Presidents wrote a letter expressing their “serious concerns about antisemitism”, and another letter, organised by the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and signed by over 1,000 Jewish students and allies, called for NUS to launch an independent investigation.
The Universities Minister also called for an investigation into NUS by the Charity Commission, and it has been further suggested that the Government’s grant to NUS should be withdrawn, and that the Government should cease to recognise NUS as the voice of British students, if concerns over antisemitism are not addressed.
It has also been reported that the Department for Education is looking at its relationship with NUS and at its charitable status, after Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi reportedly accused the union of “systemic antisemitism”.
The calls came following revelations about Ms Dallali and the recent Lowkey scandal, where Jewish concerns were reportedly brushed aside as the controversial rapper and activist was invited to headline the union’s centenary conference. He eventually withdrew as NUS came under media pressure.
After the circulation of the letter by former NUS Presidents, another letter has reportedly been published in support of Ms Dallali and calling for a simultaneous NUS investigation into Islamophobia and racist, as well as antisemitism.
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].
State of Ohio adopts the International Definition of Antisemitism
The State of Ohio has reportedly adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.
Executive Order 2022-06D, called “Defining and Combating Antisemitism”, describes anti-Jewish hatred and prejudice as a “persistent, pervasive, and disturbing problem in American society, including…in Ohio.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has ordered all state agencies, departments, boards, and commissions, including public colleges and universities, to adopt the Definition, and encouraged “all federal and local governments and governmental agencies and entities to adopt it as well.”
There has been a steadily growing Jewish presence in Ohio since 1817. According to a 2020 study, the Jewish population was 151,615, making up 1.3 percent of a total state population of nearly twelve million.
The Executive Order points out, however, that Ohio’s Jewish population has been the target of several examples of antisemitic terrorism plots. These include an attempted attack on two synagogues in Toledo in December 2018, and another incident in white a white nationalist was arrested for threatening to attack a Jewish community centre in Youngstown with firearms in August 2019. The perpetrators behind these incidents are now serving prison sentences.
More recently, a professor at Ohio State University avoided long-term disciplinary consequences after using the term “Jew down” in one of her classes while referring to haggling about prices in a market. There have also been instances of antisemitic graffiti on the side of a Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), a zoombombing during an online careers fair at Ohio’s Miami University, and one example where a Jewish couple received antisemitic abuse and threats, and had rocks thrown at their home.
Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Since then, numerous local councils, universities and sport associations in the United Kingdom have adopted the Definition, as have several national governments and myriad municipalities and associations around the world.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Over two hundred signatories endorse letter to Nicola Sturgeon calling for clarity on whether Scottish Green ministers back International Definition of Antisemitism
Over 200 Scots have signed a letter to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in connection with the lack of clarity over whether the two Scottish Green ministers in her Government endorse the International Definition of Antisemitism or not.
Ms Sturgeon, who is the leader of the SNP, has repeatedly stated that all members of the Scottish Government must endorse the Definition as a prerequisite for being part of her devolved administration. However, it remains to be clarified whether or not Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater of the Scottish Greens, which has yet to adopt the Definition but on whose support Ms Sturgeon’s Government depends, support the Definition of not.
In response to these revelations, Sammy Stein, a founder member of the Scottish National Party’s Friends for Peace in the Middle East and Chair of Glasgow Friends of Israel, wrote a letter to Ms Sturgeon which has so far received 213 signatures.
The letter reads: “I was disappointed that you did not provide a clear answer to the matter of the two Scottish Green ministers as, to the best of my knowledge, neither of them has signed up to the IHRA [international] Definition of Antisemitism. I would thank you on behalf of the Scottish Jewish community for continuing to support the IHRA Definition and your strong stance against antisemitism. You have also made your position abundantly clear by stating that ‘I do speak for and am accountable for all the members of my Government, which is a signatory to the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism, and every minister before being appointed to my Government has to be clear that they sign up to and accept it. That includes the two Green Party members. It is my understanding however that with regards to your statement above, neither of the Green Party ministers has as yet signed up to the IHRA Definition despite the fact that they were invited by you to join the Government in August 2021. It would be helpful to know if this is correct and if it is, how is it possible that the two Green Party ministers were appointed to your Government BEFORE they signed up to the IHRA Definition.
“I would be grateful if you can advise the steps you plan to take in order to ensure that these two ministers comply with your guidance and how long it may be before you consider the appropriate steps to exclude them from your Government. I would suggest that this is a matter by which your commitment to continuing to actively support your stance against racism in general and antisemitism, in particular, will be judged and I do hope and expect that you will stay true to your publicly stated position.”
Mr Stein said: “There appears to be a clear discrepancy between what Nicola Sturgeon says about combating antisemitism and waht she decides to do about it. I believe she is very sincere in her support for adopting the IHRA definition, but she is clearly concerned about upsetting the Greens and losing control of her majority in Parliament. The fact that so many people felt compelled to sign this letter shows the strength of feeling within the community and I hope she takes notice of this and resolves this matter.”
Ms Sturgeon recently addressed a gathering of Scottish Jews, reiterating her Government’s commitment to the Definition but coming under pressure over the position of the Scottish Greens.
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.
Cloned children’s game, Club Penguin Rewritten, becomes hotbed of antisemitic abuse
Three people have been arrested over their alleged involvement in an unofficial version of the Disney game Club Penguin, after users were said to be exchanging messages full of antisemitic abuse.
City of London police say that they detained the trio for alleged copyright offences in connection with their role in running ‘Club Penguin Rewritten’. The suspects have been released on bail.
The arrests come two years after the BBC launched an investigation into another unauthorised clone of the popular children’s game, where users also exchanged antisemitic material.
The original, authorised Club Penguin was launched in 2005 as one of the first social networks aimed at children. During the peak of its popularity, the Disney platform had over 200 million users. Anybody was free to join, but content filters and human moderators prevented any inappropriate material from being shared.
Disney closed the website in 2017, after which unofficial fan-operated clones were launched using stolen or copied source code. Such clones became increasingly popular during pandemic lockdowns.
In a BBC video explaining the earlier scandal, users were shown writing things like “due to all my fans and support I will be ***** the jews [sic]”.
Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police, confirmed the seizure of the site and arrests. He said: “Following a complaint under copyright law, PIPCU have seized a gaming website as part of an ongoing investigation into the site. Three people were arrested on 12th April on suspicion of distributing materials infringing copyright, and searches were carried out.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
Image credit: YouTube screenshot
Jewish children reportedly assaulted and stolen from by teenage gang in Stamford Hill
Jewish children have been abused and stolen from by teenagers in Stamford Hill according to two reported incidents.
In one such incident, teenagers reportedly broke into a block of flats where they found children between the ages of four and six playing amongst themselves before pouring water on them and proceeding to steal their toys. It has been alleged that the teenagers also stole other residents’ belongings from the communal area of the building.
The assailants were believed to have been a mixture of young men and women and video footage appears to show two people running out of the building.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 1809 13/04/22
In a separate incident, the same gang of teenagers is believed to have assaulted an eleven-year-old and one-year-old baby in a play area. The perpetrators, who were said to have been young-looking women of Black ethnicity, reportedly poured yoghurt over the infant and buggy and threw ice lollies at them whilst hurling verbal abuse.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 2621 13/04/22
Additional CCTV appears to show, in a third incident, a Jewish-owned shop where the premises have been vandalised, reportedly by the same assailants behind the previous incidents.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 3374 13/04/22
All three incidents took place last week in Stamford Hill and were reported on Friday by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Jewish leaders in Rome speak out against cartoon depicting Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy with a hooked nose
Jewish leaders in Rome have spoken out against a cartoon depicting Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, with a hooked nose, which is a classic antisemitic stereotype.
The image, by satirical cartoonist Vauro Senesi, shows profiles of Mr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin side-by-side surrounded by the words “No alla guerra…senza ze e sensa vla!” (“No to war without Zes and Vlas”, a pun on the phrase ‘No ifs or buts’). While Mr Putin is represented with a stern, square visage, Mr Vauro’s representation of the Ukrainian President gives him a very prominent hooked nose.
In a tweet, President of the Comunità Ebraica di Roma (Jewish Community of Rome), Ruth Dureghello, said that “It is not a coincidence, but a habit that a certain gentleman depicts Jews with hooked noses in the style of the Defence of the Race. Not for this reason is it less serious and no one can get used to shame.”
Ms Dureghello was referring to the fortnightly Italian publication Difesa della razza (Defence of the Race) that ran from 1938 to 1943. It is widely regarded as the main tool for promoting antisemitism by the Italian fascist regime headed by Benito Mussolini, which ended in 1945 with the Allied victory in World War Two. Difesa began publication shortly after the 1938 Manifesto della razza (Manifesto of Race), which stripped Italian Jews of their citizenship and Government and professional positions.
This is not the first time that Mr Senesi has been accused of drawing inflammatory cartoons. In 2012, an Italian court fined Italian journalist Peppino Caldarola €25,000 for allegedly slandering Mr Senesi, after Mr Caldarola produced a satirical version of one of Mr Senesi’s cartoons that allegedly depicted Jewish Italian politician Fiamma Nirenstein in a classic antisemitic form. The President of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald S. Lauder, called the ruling “a travesty”.
Mr Senesi has denied any allegations of antisemitism, describing himself as an “anti-Nazi communist”. He said: “In this drawing there is no reference to the Jewishness of Zelenskyy, something which is wholly meaningless to me. If I draw a caricature (it’s called that because it ‘charges’ the facial features) it is obvious that I exaggerate his features so that it resembles him: Zelenskyy has a major nose not because he is Jewish but because it is his nose. I have never thought that Jews necessarily have a hooked nose, also because I know very many who have noses of various kinds. I would have preferred not to answer all those cretins who have commented on Zelenskyy’s nose. I’m only doing so because it is bad faith unless it is imbecility.”
Italian Senator Andrea Marcucci took to Twitter to denounce Mr Senesi, writing: “Re-proposing Nazi propaganda on the Jews to draw President Zelenskyy is literally a disgusting operation.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Swastikas discovered and removed from trees in New York park
Swastika graffiti was discovered on trees in Forest City Community Park in Wantagh, Nassau County, on 14th April, the eve of Passover and Easter.
A pentagram Satanic symbol was also discovered at the New York park.
In response to the incident, the swastikas will be scrubbed off and the Parks and Public Safety departments will conduct more patrols and additional check-ups of the park and its facilities, according to authorities.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: Google
Antisemitic graffiti under investigation at elementary school
School staff discovered two swastikas painted on a utility room at Landels Elementary School, Mountain View on 11th April.
Police said that they were not able to find any footage to help them in their investigation and have therefore issued a press release to seek the community’s help in finding the perpetrator.
This incident comes after graffiti that included the N-word was found at Amy Imai Elementary School. Similarly, graffiti has been discovered at both Bubb and Monta Loma elementary schools, including swastikas.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
image credit: Google
Labour Party candidate in Vale of Glamorgan suspended after referring to Ukrainian President as a “Zionist” and “fascist”
The Labour Party has suspended a candidate in the upcoming local elections after he reportedly referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, as a “Zionist”, questioning why he had so much support.
Ziad Alsayed, a candidate for the Baruc ward in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, allegedly wrote the tweet in Arabic on 26th February, saying “How could we side with a country that has a Zionist president?” He has since deleted the tweet.
Alun Cairns, Conservative MP for the Vale of Glamorgan, expressed his concern about another tweet written by Mr Alsayed, in which the Labour candidate calls Mr Zelenskyy a “fascist”. Mr Alsayed is understood to have responded to an expression of solidarity for Ukraine written by London Mayor Sadiq Khan with the words: “If you mean the Ukrainian people that’s OK, but not the fascist president.”
Although the Labour Party has suspended Mr Alsayed pending an investigation, he will remain on the ballot for the election, nominally as the Party’s candidate, because nominations have already closed.
A spokesperson for Labour said: “The Labour Party takes all complaints seriously. They are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures, and any appropriate action is taken.”
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’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.
Two subject of manslaughter investigation following death of French Jewish man, but prosecutors say antisemitism plays no role in his death
It has been reported that two men have been charged with causing the death of a French Jewish man who was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram.
The two suspects, reported to be aged 27 and 23, are now the subject of a manslaughter investigation by police in Bobigny, six miles north-east of the centre of Paris. However, though the alleged antisemitism behind the crime has been widely reported, the public prosecutor said: “There is currently no evidence to establish the discriminatory nature of this attack.”
The suspects are instead being investigated for “intentional violence resulting in death without the intention of causing it.”
While the death of Mr Cohen, 31, was at first treated as a traffic accident, his family went on to release video footage that appears to show him being attacked by a group of men, leading him to flee for safety without noticing the oncoming tram. Mr Cohen was taken to hospital but did not survive his injuries.
Mr Cohen is believed to have been wearing a kippah, or skullcap, during the attack, and the family called upon the police to reopen the investigation into his death as they felt his visible Jewish identity played a role in his attackers’ motivation.
It was reportedly only when the family started asking questions, handing out fliers in post boxes throughout the neighbourhood and urging witnesses to come forward, that someone eventually came forward with the crucial video footage that showed that the victim was being attacked moments before his death.
The victim’s father, Gerald Cohen, said: “Why is the family the one who needs to bring the evidence to police investigators? If we hadn’t done that we wouldn’t have known the truth. We want justice for our son Jeremy.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Scrutiny mounts over alleged antisemitism and other concerning claims among Bury Conservatives
Scrutiny is mounting over numerous allegations of antisemitism and other concerning claims among Conservatives in Bury.
Shaf Mahmood, who was due to stand as a Conservative candidate in the Redvales ward, saw his endorsement from the Party reportedly revoked last week after it emerged that he has tweeted, in 2017, that “Jews r at it again”. According to a report in the Jewish News, Mr Mahmood, who had backed George Galloway’s Workers’ Party in the Batley and Spen by-election last year, had allegedly also shared a social media post which labelled Sir Keir Starmer a “Zionist”.
That revocation came a day after another Conservative candidate, Sham Raja, who was the Conservatives’ candidate in the Sedgley ward, was also dropped after numerous historic and inflammatory social media posts were uncovered, including one allegedly comparing Israeli footballers to “assassins”. The tweets were reported in the Jewish Telegraph.
Another Conservative, Shahbaz Mahmood Arif, the candidate for Bury West, reportedly shared an inflammatory article from the controversial far-left website, The Canary. He had been selected by the local party after a young Jewish councillor had been – apparently inexplicably – deselected a few weeks ago. Another prospective Conservative candidate who was unsuccessful in his bid for selection feared that he was blocked due to his sympathies for the Jewish community and pro-Israel views, which Bury Conservatives denied.
Concerns have also been raised about Mazhar Aslam, another Conservative candidate in Sedgley, over his social media activity.
In a statement, Bury Conservatives said: “Following certain social media posts being brought to our attention yesterday made by two of the candidates for Sedgley Ward the Association has investigated the matter and spoken to both candidates. Mr. Sham Raja no longer has the endorsement of Bury Conservative Party in this election. Mr Mazhar Aslam continues to be a Conservative Candidate. His explanation was that the single post complained of was not antisemitic in nature although he understood some would not agree with the contents of his post. He apologised and undertook to be more careful with the use of his language in this sensitive area in the future. His explanation and apology were accepted. We also wish to make clear that Dr Shadman Zaman was not confirmed as a Besses Ward candidate because of his failure to comply with instructions regarding electoral law and Party guidance and not because of any of his expressed views.”
Nick Jones, the leader of Bury Conservatives, said: “I am appalled at such ignorance regarding the State of Israel and I have asked the Conservative Association to investigate these matters immediately. As a Party we accept different views but it’s how these views expressed when the line is crossed is our challenge and investigation must be robust. As these statements have come to the attention of the association, I welcome that they have been dealt with robustly and on the day of them arising. The Conservative Council Group on Bury Council are friends of Israel and we fully support the IHRA [International] Definition of Antisemitism.”
Last year, a Conservative councillor in Bury who had the Party whip removed after he allegedly made antisemitic comments in a job interview was reinstated by the Party. Cllr Robert (Bob) Caserta was found to have breached the Code of Conduct for Councillors and Other Voting Representatives four times when he appeared before the Standards Sub-Committee over comments apparently made during an interview to recruit a senior officer at the Council in July 2019, when Cllr Caserta is alleged to have referred to “grot spots” in Sedgley and said that it would be difficult to communicate with residents “unless you are able to speak Hebrew”.
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: Google
CAA offers £10,000 reward for information leading to conviction in connection with “life-or-death” antisemitic attack in West Hampstead
Campaign Against Antisemitism has announced on ITV News that it is offering a £10,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in connection with a violent antisemitic attack in West Hampstead.
You can watch the ITV segment here.
Over Chanukah, a Jewish man was allegedly violently attacked by a man carrying what appeared to be a knife in an antisemitic attack in the north London neighbourhood. The alleged assailant said that he wanted to “Kill my first Jew” but has not been traced.
Police released a CCTV image of a man whom they need to speak with. The photograph that has been released may not be of the assailant.
Following the attack, police faced criticism for their initial slow response, which they had said would take an hour to respond to, however the police investigation was upgraded following intervention by CST. Nevertheless, the investigation has stalled, and we are now again appealing to the public to provide information so that justice can be done for the victim.
The incident took place on 2nd December at around 19:20, when the victim was returning from work. He exited West Hampstead Underground Station and walked to the nearby Marks and Spencer supermarket located in West Hampstead Square.
He saw the alleged attacker desecrating a 4-metre high public Chanukiah that was erected on West Hampstead Square to celebrate the Jewish festival of Chanukah, pulling the object down before proceeding to stamp on in and shout antisemitic abuse.
With no prior interaction, the attacker approached the victim and aggressively said: “You look Jewish” and that he was “looking for a Jew to kill” after singling out the victim among other pedestrians, despite there being no visible indication of his Jewish background.
He allegedly asked threateningly: “Are you Jewish?” The victim, understandably wishing to avoid a confrontation, said “No,” to which the man replied: “Good, I want to find a Jew to kill.”
The victim entered a nearby Marks and Spencer supermarket and the man remained outside. The victim was worried for the safety of other Jews and their families in the neighbourhood where the man was loitering, which has a sizeable Jewish population. The victim approached a supermarket employee, who said that the man had been in the store earlier.
The victim decided to call the police, explaining the situation to them over the course of about eight minutes.
Officers told the victim that they did not consider the case urgent enough for a priority response and would come within an hour, despite the attacker threatening to kill Jews.
After a short period of time, the victim spotted the man again, outside the shop, pulling down the public Chanukiah which someone had put back up in the intervening time. The victim also said that the man was shouting aggressively at a young woman, aged 18-25 who fled the square. He then returned to pulling the Chanukiah to the ground.
Fearing for the young woman, the victim and the supermarket employee confronted the man from a ten-metre distance. The attacker allegedly shouted at him in response: “I knew you were Jewish, you lied to me” and began walking towards his victim while shouting: “You are Jewish. I am going to kill you.” He said something in Arabic before allegedly declaring: “I want to kill my first Jew.”
The victim ran back into Marks and Spencer and turned to see if the man had followed him, which he had, having put on a facemask in the meantime.
As the assailant walked into the shop, he shouted at the victim again: “You are Jewish.”
The man reached the victim, allegedly squaring up to him aggressively with barely a metre between them. Within seconds, the man allegedly pushed the victim as hard as he could with both hands on the victim’s chest, forcing the victim to take a step backwards, all the while repeating: “You are Jewish. I am going to kill you.”
The attacker then allegedly punched the victim violently with force towards the head around five times, the victim had to guard himself from the attacks using his forearms and elbows.
After the first attack, the victim again told the man to back away and pushed the attacker away. The attacker allegedly replied: “I am not leaving until you are dead.” Taking steps backwards with his coat and heavy bag restricting his movement, the victim found himself cornered at the edge of an aisle with nowhere else to move backwards to.
He turned his head around to see what was blocking him, at which point the attacker took advantage of the victim’s shift in concentration and allegedly threw a strong punch which connected with the victim’s head. The victim tried to move his head backwards in an attempt to limit the impact. Had he not done this, the victim believes that his injuries would have been even more severe and he would have been knocked unconscious onto the floor of the supermarket.
Again, the victim told the man to “back away” to which the attacker repeated “I am not going away until you are dead.”
By this point, the victim began to fear for his life. He had no inclination to fight the man and wanted to defuse the situation. He managed to extricate himself and head towards the self-service checkout machines, with the man following him and allegedly shouting more antisemitic abuse and death threats. He was also heard shouting in Arabic.
The victim dropped his bag and jacket to make it easier to run from the man, but the man kept walking faster and faster, eventually reaching for his right jacket pocket.
He grabbed what was apparently a knife and allegedly said “I will kill you now, you Jew.” The victim ran to the back of the shop before the man had the chance to reveal the weapon fully. He turned to see that the man remained by the checkout machines, still staring at the victim and allegedly performing a slit-throat gesture.
The man then allegedly picked up the victim’s jacket and bag and walked calmly out of the shop. The victim remained where he was, terrified for his life. He did not see the man thereafter. A staff member then approached the victim to tell him that the man had left. The victim called the police for a second time, as did the shop employee, and spoke to operators for an extended period. Another staff member then brought over the victim’s bag, which had been discarded, and he later found his jacket in the shop. None of the contents of the bag or jacket had been taken.
Finally, the police arrived. Despite the duration of the incident and the proximity of a police station only half a mile up the road.
The victim called the CST, which provided support to the victim and pressed the police to upgrade their investigation. Police mounted extra patrols in the area in subsequent days and CST adapted its operations to take account of the incident. Campaign Against Antisemitism has subsequently provided legal and other assistance to the victim.
The assailant is described as being black and possibly of Somali ethnicity, aged between 25 and 30 and between 6’0” and 6’1” in height. He had a slender build and bad teeth, and wore a dark green beanie hat, a dark puffer jacket with large pockets, dark trousers and no gloves. He wore a dark facemask when in the shop. He spoke in English, with a mixed East London and foreign accent, and spoke Arabic.
If you have any information, please e-mail us at [email protected] or call us on 0330 822 0321.
You may contact us in confidence or provide details so that we can contact you if your information leads to a conviction and you are eligible for the reward. Your reward will be payable upon Campaign Against Antisemitism determining, at its discretion, that there has been a successful conviction as a result of the information that you provide, and only after the deadline to appeal such conviction has passed.
Alternatively, you can contact the police directly on 101, quoting reference: CRIS 2328674/21. Please note that if you choose to contact the police directly and do not also contact us, you may be ineligible for the reward, given that we may be unable to contact you.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “What this victim has suffered is unspeakable, and it is only thanks to his quick thinking that he survived the ordeal without even worse injury than he endured. The delayed response of the police, despite the close proximity of a police station just up the road, and subsequent police failures, mean that the investigation is now stalled. We are calling on the public for help to ensure that justice is done and a dangerous assailant is taken off our streets. If you have any information, please contact us.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Jewish man finds antisemitic graffiti sprayed onto felled tree
A Jewish resident of Thornhill, Ontario, has expressed his dismay after finding antisemitic graffiti while out for a walk.
On 11th April, Dennis Kalish was on one of his favourite walks around “picturesque” Bond Lake in the Richmond Hill area, around twelve miles north of the centre of Toronto, when he found antisemitic symbols daubed in blue and black spray paint on a downed tree.
Mr Kalish said this is not the first time that he has seen such graffiti in his local area. He said that not only that he has seen his synagogue defaced and heard antisemitic slurs yelled at visibly Jewish people, but that he thinks antisemitism is becoming more common in Canada.
Mr Kalish said: “There’s no shame, no accountability. This is what’s happening over here; it’s becoming so prevalent.”
Mr Kalish has reported the incident to York Regional Police, who released a statement saying they are looking into the incident.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz sentenced to jail once again after action by CAA
The notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz has been sentenced to jail today once again, after being found guilty of a communications offence following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
Last week’s two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court concerned a video of the scene in the classic Oliver Twist film when Fagin, a fictitious Jewish criminal (a character that has come under significant criticism over the past century for its antisemitic depiction), is explaining to his newest recruit how his legion of children followers pick pockets. Ms Chabloz uploaded the video and sings an accompanying song of her own about how Jews are greedy, “grift” for “shekels” and cheat on their taxes.
The video appeared to be either a bizarre fundraising effort for her mounting legal costs due to numerous charges she has faced, including several ongoing prosecutions in which Campaign Against Antisemitism has provided evidence, or an attempt at mockery of Campaign Against Antisemitism for pursuing her in the courts.
At court, Ms Chabloz tried to suggest that the video was part of a personal quarrel and that her racism is directed not at “Jews” but at “Zionists”. She expressed scepticism about the facts of the Holocaust on the stand, and replicated a racist Quennelle gesture, which she has performed in the past. She rather insightfully observed that “antisemitism is not a crime. If it was, the prisons would be full.”
Summing up, Judge Nina Tempia said that the defendant “was making up evidence” as she went along, and she did not accept Ms Chabloz’s claim that her song was about the controversial activist Tommy Robinson, describing that suggestion as “ludicrous”. Instead, Judge Tempia said, “I have not doubt” that the song related to Jews. She further noted that, given Ms Chabloz’s previous convictions, she “knew exactly what she was doing” and that she had a propensity to commit these types of offences.
The prosecution asked the court to take into account that the whole Jewish community was a victim in this crime and that Ms Chabloz had an incomplete report of her previous sentences.
Sentencing Ms Chabloz today, Judge Tempia reiterated her comments of last Friday and sentenced Ms Chabloz to 22 weeks’ custody – because the matter is, Judge Tempia said, “so serious” – of which she will serve half and then be under post-sentence supervision. She has also been ordered to pay £1,058 in costs by 30th September. She will not have bail pending any appeal.
Ms Chabloz is a virulent antisemite and Holocaust denier who has an extensive record of using social media to publicise her hatred for Jews and to convert others to her views about Jewish people. Following a private prosecution by Campaign Against Antisemitism, which was later continued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Ms Chabloz became the first person in Britain to be convicted over Holocaust denial in a precedent-setting case.
Ms Chabloz is fixated on the idea that the Holocaust did not occur, and that it was fabricated by Jews and their supporters as a vehicle for fraudulently extorting money in the form of reparations. This forms the basis for her second obsession, that Jews are liars and thieves who are working to undermine Western society. Ms Chabloz is also connected to far-right movements, at whose meetings she gives speeches and performs her songs, in the UK and North America. She is currently banned from entering France, where Holocaust denial is illegal.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “We welcome this sentence, in view of Alison Chabloz having dedicated herself to spreading her hateful and dangerous views about Jews. She is a repeat offender who has never shown any sign of remorse for the damage that she causes. It is right that she now will have to serve another prison sentence.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Police officer on administrative leave after accusations of racism and antisemitism
Drew Matthews, a police officer at the University of Colorado Boulder has been put on administrative leave following accusations of racism and antisemitism.
Safe Access for Everyone (SAFE), which has been described as “an anti-police organisation”, found tweets allegedly posted by Mr Matthews under the account /u/BocoRam18 on the Boulder and CUBoulder subreddit boards, as well as on the ProtectandServe board for police officers, on which he reportedly verified his identity as a campus police officer.
According to SAFE, Mr Matthews is alleged to have compared a private business’ vaccine mandate to the Holocaust, reportedly writing: “If people told you to wear a star on your shirt you’d do it.” In a post referencing homeless people, Mr Matthews is claimed to have written: “I say call in fire with the police and just spray the hoses at them till they leave”. Mr Matthews also allegedly wrote, in another comment, that he stopped “every black male” at a house party that he broke up after receiving a report of sexual assault, where the suspect was black with an average height and build wearing a white T-shirt and jeans.
Mr Matthews was placed on paid administrative leave on 11th April due to allegedly “offensive and reprehensible” posts.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Creator of first ever video game about the Holocaust aims to educate future generations on the Shoah
Luc Bernard, a video game developer and the creator of the first video game about the Holocaust, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about how video games could be an instrumental resource in teaching young people about the Shoah.
Mr Bernard, whose grandmother assisted children who arrived in the United Kingdom on the Kindertransport, an initiative in 1938-39 to rescue nearly 10,000 Jewish children from Europe, described his motivation in the creation of his game, The Light in the Darkness.
“Some don’t believe video games can be educational. That’s something I disagree with,” he said. “The problem is, no one has thought about what is the next step, or how do we continue education in new ways? Because I think education is trying to get the digital generation to adapt to them, rather than trying to adapt to the digital generation.”
Pointing to the successes of previous artforms in providing Holocaust education after meeting initial resistance, Mr Bernard said: “Comic books were viewed as insane at one point until Maus came out. Films were kind of viewed like, ‘I don’t know, man,’ until Shoah came out, and Schindler’s List. Video games need to be able to tackle the subject because we’re the number one form of entertainment, and I think rather than discourage game developers towards doing it, we should actually be able to guide game developers and encourage them to make these games, because then there would be more awareness.”
The story of the game revolves around Polish Jews in France during the Holocaust, Mr Bernard told our host. “You follow a Polish Jewish family in France, so you get to play, more like interact and experience, the story from France before the occupation, up to the occupation, antisemitism rising…we’re kind of going through every single step.
“What I really wanted to do is actually have you become attached to these characters, get to see who they were, get to live their life, rather than just go automatically into the bad things, because you know how film is, you want people to become attached emotionally so it has a bigger impact on the viewer, or on the player…also, in between scenes, you will have an option to listen to survivor testimonies, French survivors. You’ll be able to see the similarities to compare what they went through to what that current scene is showing.”
Asked whether ‘video game’ is an accurate title for The Light in the Darkness, Mr Bernard said that “it could be called several things,” including “an interactive story” or “an educational video game.”
Despite Mr Bernard referring to The Light in the Darkness as a ‘game’, he clarified that he has removed the player’s ability to make choices within the game to mirror the reality of the Holocaust for Jewish people. “If I made choice-based things, it would make it seem like Jews could have saved themselves. There’s so many factors to the Holocaust [and] why it happened. The fact that loads of countries closed their doors, didn’t allow refugees in. How, as the Jews were trying to get to what was British Palestine back then, Britain closed it down. How Britain only allowed 10,000 children on the Kindertransport. All those things are pretty much out of everyone’s control and I know some people [whose] mothers had to give them up just so they could live. If I made it choice-based so that it could affect the story, it would just make it seem like people had a choice and that’s why I really just had to eliminate that, and that’s again what makes it very weird for a video game. It’s very different to anything else I’ve ever done before.”
Mr Bernard chose to set the game in France under the Vichy Government. “What makes the Vichy government so interesting is that it was France that deported the Jews, it was France that decided to deport the children. France went full-on collaboration and they weren’t Nazis – they were bad people, and they had the same intent as the Nazis – and setting it in France shows how it wasn’t just the Nazis that did this, and how everyday people can become hateful.
“I think when people will play it, they’ll be like ‘wait, this was the French Government that did this? It was the French policeman that rounded them up?’, then they’ll actually realise the extent to how bad the Holocaust was because a lot of people just think it was just the Nazis. And, no, it was Europe. Europe did this.”
Mr Bernard, who is himself French, said “I actually love France, but it also means you have to address the dark, historical past of your country.”
The Light in the Darkness is expected to be released later this year for Xbox and Windows, with other platforms also under consideration.
Throughout the interview, Mr Bernard touched upon a wide variety of topics which included his own Jewish background, why the far-right has infiltrated video games, and how other video games have traditionally fallen short in how they depict Nazis.
The podcast with Mr Bernard can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Following string of controversies, NUS announces independent investigation into antisemitism allegations
Following a string of controversies surrounding the National Union of Students (NUS) and its leadership, the union has called for an independent investigation into recent antisemitism allegations raised by concerned members of the Jewish community and its allies.
The announcement comes after Robert Halfon MP wrote together with Campaign Against Antisemitism to the Charity Commission calling for an investigation into the union’s charitable arm. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here. In addition, over twenty former NUS Presidents wrote a letter expressing their “serious concerns about antisemitism”, and another letter, organised by the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and signed by over 1,000 Jewish students and allies, called for NUS to launch an independent investigation.
The Universities Minister also called for an investigation into NUS by the Charity Commission, and it has been further suggested that the Government’s grant to NUS should be withdrawn, and that the Government should cease to recognise NUS as the voice of British students, if concerns over antisemitism are not addressed.
In its statement today, NUS said that it is “very concerned about the pain and hurt being expressed” and has revealed that an independent investigation will be launched, which will “cover all public allegations made between March – April 2022 about NUS and the President Elect.” Regarding President-elect Shaima Dallali, the statement confirmed that the investigation would cover “a range of comments and actions that are alleged to have taken place over the last decade.”
It added that the investigation would also specifically examine the concern surrounding NUS’s booking of Lowkey for its centenary conference and would also include “a review of allegations of a wider culture of antisemitism within NUS.”
NUS has said that the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) would be consulted in arranging the investigation and that regular meetings with UJS would be taking place.
The announcement comes in the wake of numerous controversies involving NUS. In one recent scandal, the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event. As the scandal erupted, Robert Halfon MP excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by the Education Select Committee, which he chairs.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
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].
Chair of Enfield Southgate Conservative Association suspended after photo emerges of him dressed in full Nazi uniform
The Chair of the Enfield Southgate Conservative Association has been suspended pending an investigation after a photograph emerged apparently showing him dressed in full Nazi military regalia.
The image appears to show Colin Davis, a former Head of Military Law at London-based firm Carters Solicitors, dressed in full Nazi uniform, in a back garden. It was apparently taken during the 1980s and was reportedly found at a property that Mr Davis and his former wife used to live in.
Mr Davis is said to be “well connected” with the British Armed Forces and claims that he may have been a member of the British Army Reserves at the time that the photograph was taken.
It has been reported that Mr Davis was meant to stand in the May 2022 local elections as a Conservative candidate, and had been tipped potentially for the Oakwood ward – which has many Jewish potential voters – in the north London council.
Enfield Southgate Conservatives have since removed Mr Davis’s profile from its website. A similar action seems to have been undertaken by Carters Solicitors.
Mr Davis told Jewish News: “I have a long history of representing all the principles for which the Conservative Party stands. I’m not familiar with the photograph you are referring to. I have in the past served as a councillor. I have done all sorts of things. I have exposed extremism wherever it is to be found. On the other hand like Voltaire, I have tended to defend those whose own extremism has sometimes manifested itself in extreme types of intolerance. That doesn’t include defence of Nazism.”
Leader of the Enfield Southgate Conservatives, Cllr Joanne Laban said: “Mr Davis has been suspended from the Party by Enfield Southgate Conservative Association pending investigation. The Conservative Party takes allegations of this nature extremely seriously and the swift action taken reflects this.”
Concerns have also been raised about Bury Conservatives in Manchester, where a candidate has been dropped by the local Party after inflammatory social media posts emerged following other controversies. Campaign Against Antisemitism is continuing to monitor developments.
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: Jewish News
Former NUS Presidents say union has “serious and significant problem”
Following a string of controversies surrounding the National Union of Students (NUS) and its leadership, over twenty former Presidents of the union have written to its current President to press her to deal with the concerns of Jewish students.
Signatories to the letter include Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, former Education Secretary Charles Clarke, former Labour MP Stephen Twigg and columnist David Aaronovitch.
In their letter to current NUS President Larissa Kennedy, they express their “serious concerns about antisemitism”.
“We are writing to you privately as former presidents with serious concerns about antisemitism, the safety and treatment of Jewish students at NUS events and within your democracy, and the way in which NUS is responding to these concerns,” the letter says.
It is clear, the letter observes, that NUS has “a serious and significant problem.”
The letter comes as NUS faces scrutiny over its record in relation to Jewish students and amidst a series of controversies in connection with antisemitism. In one recent scandal, the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event. As the scandal erupted, Robert Halfon MP excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by the Education Select Committee, which he chairs.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
Earlier this week, Mr Halfon wrote to the Charity Commission calling together with Campaign Against Antisemitism for a statutory inquiry into NUS. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here.
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].
Russian karting driver, representing Italy, loses racing contract after appearing to perform Nazi salute on podium
The global governing body behind the international motor sport, The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), has launched an investigation after the winner of a karting race appeared to make a Nazi salute while celebrating his victory on the podium.
Russian driver Artem Severiukhin, fifteen, who was competing under the Italian flag due to sanctions against the country of his birth since its invasion of Ukraine, seemed to thump his chest and raise his right arm with a flat palm before laughing after winning the first round of the European Championship in Portugal on 10th April.
Following the incident, Mr Severiukhin has had his contract with Swedish team Ward Racing terminated. The team said that it condemned the driver’s behaviour in the “strongest possible terms” and is “deeply in shame”.
In a tearful video account of the incident, Mr Severiukhin said: “Standing on the podium I made a gesture which many perceived as a Nazi salute. I have never supported Nazism and consider it one of the most terrible crimes against humanity. I know it’s my fault, I know I’m stupid, and I’m ready to be punished. But please understand that I did not support Nazism or fascism with this gesture.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Complaints raised after Canadian hockey fans reportedly shout antisemitic slurs at child players
A minor level ice hockey organisation in Canada is facing complaints after it was reported that some fans who were attending games had targeted young Jewish players with antisemitic slurs.
The Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) has reportedly hired a private investigator to deal with three sets of allegations from 31st October 2021, 11th November 2021, and 6th March 2022.
Each incident took place before or during an under-thirteens game between the Avenue Road Ducks and the Don Mills Mustangs, with the slurs apparently being made by parents of the Mustangs’ teenage players.
Vice President of Toronto’s Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, Noah Shack, said: “No one should be subjected to hate when they are going to a rink to play hockey.”
With 2,800 and around 40,000 players, the Greater Toronto Hockey League is the largest youth ice hockey organisation in the world. In March 2022, the League published the findings of an independent committee which stated that racism and discrimination were endemic in the GTHL, though the report said nothing specific about antisemitism.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Jewish shopper has kippah “snatched” from head in alleged antisemitic incident
It has been reported that a Jewish shopper was the victim of an allegedly antisemitic attack after his kippah (skullcap) was “snatched” from his head in a supermarket near Manchester.
It has emerged that, at around 01:10 on 3rd March, the unknown assailant advanced on a male victim by the self-service checkout area, before grabbing the kippah from the victim’s head and running away onto Pilsworth Road in the direction of the M66 motorway.
It was reported that, before the incident, the alleged offender was with two other men who left in a taxi.
Police were alerted to the incident, which took place in a branch of supermarket chain Asda in Pilsworth, Bury, and are now appealing to the public for help in finding the perpetrator. The police have now released a CCTV image of a person to whom they would like to speak.
Greater Manchester Police said that the taxi apparently then headed towards the Darnhill area of Heywood.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Image credit: Greater Manchester Police
CPS betrays Jewish victims after dropping antisemitism element of assault charges in plea bargain
A man charged with attacking five religious Jews in the North London neighbourhood of Stamford Hill has pleaded guilty to two criminal charges, but the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has outrageously dropped the religiously/racially aggravated element of the charges as part of a plea bargain.
Last Thursday, Abdullah Qureshi, 28, from Dewsbury in West Yorkshire, pleaded guilty at Thames Magistrates’ Court to one count of assault by beating and one count of grievous bodily harm with intent. But it has emerged that the CPS dropped the religiously/racially-aggravated element of the charges, despite Mr Quershi having attacked only visibly Jewish people — including a child and a 64-year-old man — that day in one of Britain’s most diverse neighbourhoods.
In one incident at 18:41, an Orthodox Jewish man was struck in the face with what appeared to be a bottle. In another at 19:10, a child was slapped on the back of the head, and in yet another at 20:30, a 64-year-old victim was struck and left unconscious on the ground, suffering facial injuries and a broken ankle. It is understood that two further incidents have been alleged.
The incidents received significant media attention at the time, and the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, condemned “this appalling attack,” adding: “Let me be clear, racist abuse and hate crime, including antisemitism, have absolutely no place in our city.”
Mr Qureshi had originally been charged with in connection with a series of assaults in Stamford Hill in August, with one count of racially or religiously aggravated wounding or grievous bodily harm, four counts of racially or religiously aggravated common assault and one count of racially or religious aggravated criminal damage. The charges related to five incidents on 18th August investigated by Metropolitan Police’s Central East Command Unit. Groups including Campaign Against Antisemitism and Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol, put out witness appeals following the incidents, as three of the five alleged incidents were caught on video.
He is due to be sentenced in May, but the guilty pleas will come as little consolation for his victims or the wider Jewish community.
Recent polling by Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that a record 59% of British Jews do not believe that the CPS does enough to protect them. This failed prosecution will be viewed by many in the Jewish community as another failure of the CPS to protect them.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “In a violent spree, Abdullah Qureshi attacked innocent Jews as he came across them in the street, from a young child to an elderly man. We applaud the Shomrim for reporting these incidents and the police for identifying the perpetrator. It is disgraceful that, once again, the CPS has proved to be the weak link in our collective effort to secure justice and protection for British Jews. Polling shows that a majority of British Jews do not believe that the CPS does enough to protect them. This failed prosecution will only reinforce that eminently reasonable conclusion.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Five Jewish pupils sue Australian school over alleged antisemitic culture
Five former pupils are suing Brighton Secondary College in Victoria, Australia, reportedly accusing it of tolerating an antisemitic culture.
News reports in 2020 about allegations of antisemitism at the school were followed by the launch of an investigation by the Victorian Department of Education. The 124-page resulting report included eighteen recommendations to improve the reporting and the monitoring policies at the school, and other mechanisms to deal with racist and antisemitic behaviour.
Now, five former pupils are suing the school, reportedly alleging that it tolerated an antisemitic culture that “robbed them of their right to be educated in safety”. Twenty other students are involved in the legal action as well.
One pupil described the school as a “prison culture” and how reporting bullying to staff would only increase its severity. Knife assault is among the incidents that the boy claims to have faced.
The pupils also claim that they were discriminated against by the school’s administration. One student alleges that he was criticised by a teacher because he had “started growing facial hair in accordance with Jewish tradition and law”. The boys claimed that the school’s efforts to address antisemitism were poor, including one class where the Holocaust graphic novel Maus was taught, and teachers were unable to stop laughter and Jewish pupils being called “rats”.
The school has denied legal liability but has reportedly admitted that there were some acts of antisemitism. However, the school has claimed that “the antisemitic acts were small in number and done by a small number of students”. The school also rejected the accusation that it tolerated swastika graffiti.
The case comes as the Jewish Community Council of Victory launches a professional learning programme and a bystander training programme at Brighton Secondary College to give teachers training for how to deal with Antisemitism.
A case against the State of Victoria was launched last year.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: Google
Boston Couple to Create “Powerful Museum” About the Holocaust in the City
A couple from Boston say they have bought a building with the aim of creating the city’s first museum dedicated to the Holocaust.
Co-founders of the Holocaust Legacy Foundation, Jodi Kipnis and Todd Ruderman, explained that they have bought a building on Tremont Street in the centre of the city to house the project.
Though Boston already hosts the New England Holocaust Memorial, erected in the centre of the city in 1995, just one mile from Ms Kipnis and Mr Ruderman’s proposed museum, this new venture would be the city’s first indoor museum about the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany and its collaborators.
The announcement comes after a rise in antisemitic incidents in and around Boston, including swastika graffiti found at a Boston high school, amongst other incidents in schools across Massachusetts, and the presence of the neo-Nazi group Nationalist Social Club at the recent St Patrick’s Day parade.
Ms Kipnis and Mr Ruderman have expressed their concern about young people’s lack of knowledge about the Holocaust.
Ms Kipnis said: “The timeless and timely lessons of the Holocaust have never been more urgently needed. In order for the Holocaust to remain relevant to new generations, Holocaust Legacy Foundation is taking the opportunity to create a powerful museum for all of New England.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
“I Am a Nazi” teenage terrorist who encouraged violence against Jews is imprisoned for two years
A neo-Nazi terrorist who encouraged acts of violence against Jews has received a two-year sentence in a young offenders institution.
Thomas Leech, 19, promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories about the nefarious “global influence” of Jews and the “Great Replacement”, a far-right conspiracy theory which claims that Jews are responsible for mass immigration and the supposed extinction of white Europeans, as well as posting examples of Holocaust-denial.
He also glorified neo-Nazi terrorists, including Norwegian mass shooter Andrers Breivik, Pittsburgh Tree of Life Synagogue shooter Robert Bowers, and Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof.
Mr Leech confessed to being a Nazi when taken into custody by counter-terrorism operatives, but continued to post extreme antisemitic content even while on bail.
He first came to police attention when he claimed to be planning a shooting at his West Yorkshire school in 2017, but insisted that it was merely a “prank”. He received a caution and was referred to Prevent but eventually “dropped off the radar” when he moved to Kent later that year. He later moved to Preston, and his online activity was uncovered by CST.
The prosecution said that “the cumulative effect of the [social media] posts is a call to arms by Mr Leech, inciting others who shared his world view to commit mass murder.”
At Manchester Crown Court, Mr Leech pleaded guilty to three counts of encouraging acts of terrorism and stirring up religious or racial hatred.
Judge Alan Conrad QC called Mr Leeches actions “deeply disturbing”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has been monitoring and acting against the threat from the far-right for years and continues to support the authorities following suit.
Image credit: Lancashire Police
Canada set to ban Holocaust denial
It has been reported that Canada plans to criminalise Holocaust denial in a bid to deal with increasing antisemitism.
The Canadian government is said to be debating a law that would make it illegal to either publicly deny that the Holocaust took place at all or to justify it or trivialise details about it, including the number of Jews killed. The law will not, however, apply to what people say in private conversations.
According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “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 an example of antisemitism.
Canada now follows a number of mainly European countries that have passed laws banning Holocaust denial including Austria in 1947 (amended 1992), Belgium in 1995, the Czech Republic in 2001, France in 1990, Germany in 1985, and Greece in 2014.
There is, however, no mention of the penalties to be faced by perpetrators of Holocaust denial, though one version of the bill proposes a two-year jail sentence.
Other countries have imposed harsh penalties on those who violated these laws, including well-known Holocaust deniers and revisionists like French presidential candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen (fined three times between 1987 – 2016), French Holocaust revisionist Robert Faurisson (fined €7,500 and given three months’ probation), and Ernst Zündel, Horst Mahler, and David Irving, who were all handed lengthy jail terms by German courts.
The bill is justified as Canadian MPs and anti-hate groups have expressed their concerns about rising antisemitism in the country.
Vice-President of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs Richard Marceau said: “Jewish Canadians comprise one per cent of the Canadian population yet are the target of 62 percent of all religiously motivated hate crimes. We live in a time of rising antisemitism.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
University of Essex inexplicably finds no antisemitism in students’ “From the River to the Sea” chant
The University of Essex has inexplicably determined that protestors who chanted the “from the river to the sea” slogan as part of campus anti-Israel protests were not engaging in antisemitic conduct.
The slogan was chanted by activists opposed to a speaking engagement in October 2021 at the University’s Conservative Society by the former head of British armed forces in Afghanistan, Col. Richard Kemp.
Joe Wigoder, a third year politics student at the University of Essex, lodged an official complaint with the University about the chanting outside the event, but his complaint was rejected. University Registrar and Secretary Bryn Morris, on behalf of the Office of the Vice-Chancellor, wrote in an e-mail to Mr Wigoder that “it was not found that antisemitic behaviour took place” during the protest, and that “no evidence was found that chants had been used to specifically deny the state of Israel…or express hatred of Jews.”
The chant of “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.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi has previously said that the slogan “from the river to the sea” is antisemitic and, given its popularity with Hamas and its supporters, its use could be reported to the police.
Mr Wigoder said: “It is incredibly disappointing to read this disheartening news and see the University yet again abandoning their promises to Jewish students. Time after time, the university attempts to sweep antisemitism under the rug, and it leaves us feeling completely unsafe on campus. I have been chasing this complaint for months and this is an upsetting conclusion.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Ohio State University Professor alleged to have used “Jew down” slur avoids long-term disciplinary consequences
An investigation into the conduct of an Ohio State University professor who allegedly used an antisemitic slur in one of her classes has resulted in no long-term disciplinary consequences for the academic.
Jackie Buell, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences specialising in sports nutrition, was accused of using the phrase “Jew down” in an October 2021 class discussion about haggling over prices while making purchases in Mexico. The phrase alludes to an antisemitic stereotype of Jewish people as excessively frugal.
Though the University suspended Prof. Buell from teaching classes in the Spring 2022 semester and directed her to take anti-discrimination training for the next twelve months, the investigation found that she did not breach the University’s non-discrimination and harassment policy. Her conduct has instead been officially described as “inappropriate”.
The University’s Office of Institutional Equity reportedly found Prof. Buell’s behaviour “offensive, concerning and inappropriate,” but decided that her comments did not interfere with or deny any student’s ability to access educational facilities at the University.
Prof. Buell is expected to demonstrate a certain level of growth following her training before she is permitted to begin teaching again.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Lawyer fined after reportedly writing that Scottish town is like Auschwitz “but without the social problems”
It has been reported that a solicitor from Ayrshire has denied posting allegedly antisemitic comments on social media, but has been handed a fine by the Law Society of Scotland.
Criminal defence lawyer Neil McPherson, 64, is reported to have compared Auschwitz to Paisley, thirteen miles west of Glasgow. Mr McPherson is alleged to have written in a Facebook post that the concentration camp was like the Scottish town “but without the social problems.”
Mr McPherson is said to have claimed that the posts were written by someone else. The Law Society of Scotland’s professional conduct committee, however, found that it was “more likely than not” that the solicitor made the comparison, posted under another Facebook user’s photograph of a visit to Auschwitz.
Mr McPherson has been fined £2,000 and ordered to pay a further £100 to Arnon Nachmani, a Scottish-Israeli lawyer who was born in Paisley and who lost family in the Holocaust, who stumbled across the comments some months after they were posted.
Mr Nachmani said he would donate the money to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem.
Campaign Against Antisemitism continues its robust engagement with social media companies over the content that they enable to be published, and we continue to make representations to the Government in this connection.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
Man charged with attempted murder following spree of antisemitic incidents in New Jersey
The Police Department in Lakewood, New Jersey, has released details of an allegedly antisemitic attack that took place on Friday 8th April.
Dion Marsh, 27, is accused of taking part in a series of incidents throughout Lakewood. All of Marsh’s alleged victims are said to be Orthodox Jews.
Mr Marsh reportedly assaulted a driver and stole his car before running over someone else, stabbing a third victim in the chest, and striking a fourth with the vehicle in nearby Jackson Township.
All four victims are reported to have been injured in the incident, the latter two critically. Mr Marsh has been charged with three counts of attempted murder and bias intimidation, as well as carjacking and weapons charges.
The ADL’s New York/New Jersey Regional Director is reported to have said: “More needs to be done to prevent violence against the Jewish community, and in particular visibly identifiable Jews in Ocean County and across our region. Jews should not be afraid to go about their business without living in fears that they will be targeted for violence.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: Lakewood Police Department
New York Police Department reveal 92% rise in antisemitic hate crime during March
New data published by the New York City Police Department shows that antisemitic hate crimes rose by 92% in March 2022 compared to a year ago.
23 antisemitic hate crimes were reported in New York in March 2022. In March 2021, the police recorded eleven such incidents.
These findings reflect those of previous months: February 2022 saw a 400% increase in antisemitic incidents compared to February 2021 (56 compared to eleven the year before), while January showed almost 300% additional antisemitic hate crimes year on year.
While the NYPD recorded increases in hate crimes aimed at Muslims, people based on their ethnic origin in general, and based on the victim’s sexual orientation, the number of incidents with Asian or Hispanic victims went down.
Taking all reported incidents into account, the data reveals that there were more antisemitic hate crimes than those experienced by any other group except Asian-Americans.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Union of Jewish Students of France condemns antisemitic graffiti at Paris Nanterre University
The Union of Jewish Students of France (UEJF) has condemned antisemitic messages discovered written in the bathroom of the law building at the Paris Nanterre University.
The graffiti includes a Star of David with “MEDIA” written on top, phrases such as “Hitler, you’re the best”, and other slogans that evoke the concept of Jewish control over the media.
“This antisemitism, unabashed, assumed, in front of thousands of students and in the total indifference, it is every day,” reported the UEJF president Samuel Lejoyeux to Le Figaro Étudiant. “It’s complicated to be a Jewish student…we are constantly brought back to the question of Israel, to the conspiracy that whites dominate everything, and that Jews are ‘super whites”.
“We condemn in the strongest terms and in an absolute manner”, responded Philippe Gervais-Lambony, president of the university “any antisemitic and racist act”. The university then reported that it was cleaning the graffiti and launching an investigation.
According to a survey commissioned by UEJF in 2019, 45% of Jewish and non-Jewish respondents have witnessed antisemitism at school.
In February, a report by France’s Jewish Community Security Service said that antisemitic incidents in France had skyrocketed by 75% in 2021.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Robert Halfon MP and CAA refer NUS to Charity Commission for statutory inquiry
Robert Halfon MP, Chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, has today written to the Charity Commission calling together with Campaign Against Antisemitism for a statutory inquiry into the National Union of Students (NUS).
In his letter, Mr Halfon wrote to “voice my dismay at the actions and behaviour of the National Union of Students and its trustees, in regards to their treatment of Jewish students and the Jewish community’s concerns regarding antisemitism. Together with Campaign Against Antisemitism…I politely request that the Commission launch a Section 46 inquiry, pursuant to the 2011 Charities Act into the NUS and look forward to receiving your response.”
Mr Halfon enclosed a dossier of evidence by Campaign Against Antisemitism detailing how NUS has failed Jewish students. He wrote that he is “particularly concerned about the enclosed dossier of antisemitic events that have taken place within the NUS over the past several years — and which come following decades of concerning trends — which was prepared by CAA.”
The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read below.
Mr Halfon made particular reference in his letter to the recent scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event.
As the scandal erupted, Mr Halfon excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by his committee.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts. Prior to the election, she apologised for one such tweet.
As the dossier produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism observes, “Despite [its] ostensible and much-vaunted commitment to anti-racism, NUS has a long record of controversy in relation to Jewish students and antisemitism, dating back decades.
The dossier notes that antisemitism on campus has surged to record levels, with CST recording a 191% increase in antisemitic incidents on campus in 2021, and that Campaign Against Antisemitism’s latest Antisemitism Barometer found that an overwhelming 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
“NUS’s blind spot when it comes to inclusion of Jewish students and openness to their concerns is significant, giving rise not only to a failure of representation but also to a toleration of hostility to the needs of Jewish students within NUS and even instances of outright antisemitism. The result is tangible harm to Jewish students,” the dossier explains. “As an organisation, NUS is failing in its objective to represent and advocate for all students, and, as a charity, it is failing to act for the benefit of the public.”
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Shaima Dallali’s election as NUS President only a week after the Lowkey scandal is the last straw. It follows decades of similar indications that this union does not even aspire to represent Jewish students. At a time of surging racism against Jews on campus and almost universal concern in the Jewish community about antisemitism in universities, we are grateful to Robert Halfon for referring NUS to the Charity Commission for a statutory inquiry on the strength of our dossier of evidence. NUS must now answer for failing to represent Jewish students and failing to live up to its legal commitment to act for the public benefit.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
New York Jewish man has arson conviction vacated after 39 years due to jurors’ antisemitism
A Jewish man who was wrongfully convicted of arson in 1983 and has spent the last 39 years trying to clear his name has been vindicated.
Barry Jacobson’s lawyers, who were supported by the ADL and the Innocence Project, announced on Tuesday 5th April that a court ruled that the jury was biased, and that the case has been dismissed.
Mr Jacobson was sentenced to six months in prison and received a fine of $10,000 after being found guilty of setting a fire at his home in Richmond, Massachusetts in 1983, though only served one month. The conviction caused him to lose his real estate licenses in Massachusetts and New York, which proved to be detrimental to his job in the commercial real estate business.
Mr Jacobson stated that “for nearly 40 years I have been haunted by this wrongful conviction.”
He continued: “Time and again it has affected my career, my business, my family and my community. It has been beyond painful. It is an experience I would not wish on anyone.”
Bob Cordy, Mr Jacobson’s attorney, said that the prosecution and jury deliberations were both affected by antisemitism. The prosecution, Mr Cordy said, relied on a racist stereotype where they believed that Mr Jacobson set the fire for insurance money.
In a sworn statement from one juror, he referred to Mr Jacobson as “one of those New York Jews who think they can come up here and get away with anything.”
Mr Jacobson’s lawyers were aware of antisemitism on the jury months after the verdict, but despite mentioning it in their appeals, there was no vindication.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: ADL via The Times of Israel
Notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz found guilty of communications offence after action by CAA
The notorious antisemite Alison Chabloz has been found guilty of a communications offence after action by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The two-day trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court concerned a video of the scene in the classic Oliver Twist film when Fagin, a fictitious Jewish criminal (a character that has come under significant criticism over the past century for its antisemitic depiction), is explaining to his newest recruit how his legion of children followers pick pockets. Ms Chabloz uploaded the video and sings an accompanying song of her own about how Jews are greedy, “grift” for “shekels” and cheat on their taxes.
The video appeared to be either a bizarre fundraising effort for her mounting legal costs due to numerous charges she has faced, including several ongoing prosecutions in which Campaign Against Antisemitism has provided evidence, or an attempt at mockery of Campaign Against Antisemitism for pursuing her in the courts.
At court, Ms Chabloz tried to suggest that the video was part of a personal quarrel and that her racism is directed not at “Jews” but at “Zionists”. She expressed scepticism about the facts of the Holocaust on the stand, and replicated a racist Quennelle gesture, which she has performed in the past. She rather insightfully observed that “antisemitism is not a crime. If it was, the prisons would be full.”
Summing up, Judge Nina Tempia said that the defendant “was making up evidence” as she went along, and she did not accept Ms Chabloz’s claim that her song was about the controversial activist Tommy Robinson, describing that suggestion as “ludicrous”. Instead, Judge Tempia said, “I have not doubt” that the song related to Jews. She further noted that, given Ms Chabloz’s previous convictions, she “knew exactly what she was doing” and that she had a propensity to commit these types of offences.
The prosecution asked the court to take into account that the whole Jewish community was a victim in this crime. Sentencing is due to take place next week, and Ms Chabloz’s incomplete report of her previous sentences may be considered an aggravating factor.
Ms Chabloz is a virulent antisemite and Holocaust denier who has an extensive record of using social media to publicise her hatred for Jews and to convert others to her views about Jewish people. Following a private prosecution by Campaign Against Antisemitism, which was later continued by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Ms Chabloz became the first person in Britain to be convicted over Holocaust denial in a precedent-setting case.
Ms Chabloz is fixated on the idea that the Holocaust did not occur, and that it was fabricated by Jews and their supporters as a vehicle for fraudulently extorting money in the form of reparations. This forms the basis for her second obsession, that Jews are liars and thieves who are working to undermine Western society. Ms Chabloz is also connected to far-right movements, at whose meetings she gives speeches and performs her songs, in the UK and North America. She is currently banned from entering France, where Holocaust denial is illegal.
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “We welcome this verdict against Alison Chabloz, who has dedicated herself to spreading her hateful views about Jews. As a repeat offender, she must face a sentence with real teeth in order to bring an end to her rampage of anti-Jewish racism which has continued relentlessly for far too long, paused only by stints in prison that our effortsbrought about.”
Ms Chabloz was originally facing a charge of incitement to racial hatred under the Public Order Act, but this was reduced to an offence under s.127 of the Communications Act.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Waves of protest after Prime Minister of Peru praises Hitler
The Prime Minister of Peru has claimed that remarks appearing to praise Hitler were misunderstood and has offered to apologise in person to the Israeli ambassador.
Anibal Torres reportedly praised the Nazi leader for turning Germany into the “first economic power in the world”, a comment met with protest by both the Israeli and German embassies.
The 79-year-old Prime Minister made the remark in Huancayo, an Andean town at the centre of ongoing protests over the economic situation in the country. Mr Torres praised Hitler’s and Mussolini’s infrastructure policies, saying: “On one occasion Hitler visited the north of Italy, and Mussolini shows him a highway built from Milan to Brescia, Hitler saw this and went to his country and filled it with highways, airports and turned Germany into the first economic power in the world. We have to make an effort, make sacrifices to improve our roads.”
The Israeli Embassy said that “Regimes of death and terror cannot be a sign of progress,” adding: “Hitler was responsible for the death of six million Jews, to praise him is an offense to the victims of that world tragedy.”
The German embassy said: “Adolf Hitler was a fascist and genocidal dictator, in whose name the worst war of all time was carried out from Germany and the genocide of six million Jews was committed. Against this backdrop, Hitler is not the right reference as an example of any kind.”
A Peruvian legislator who had lived in Germany for two decades demanded that Mr Torres apologise to the German people, while Peru’s Jewish Association observed that this was not the first time that politicians in the country had comments of this sort, insisting that “the seriousness of these expressions do not merit explanations or half apologies.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Sir Keir Starmer apologises again for Corbyn years following numerous expulsions and suspensions of Labour officeholders at the local level
Sir Keir Starmer has apologised again for how Jewish members of the Labour Party and the community more generally were treated under his antisemitic predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn.
In his first interview with a Jewish newspaper since his election as Labour leader exactly two years ago, Sir Keir did not apologise for his own role backing Mr Corbyn. Sir Keir also declined to tell the JC whether he believed that Mr Corbyn is antisemitic.
The interview came following numerous expulsions and suspensions of Labour officeholders at the local level.
In Plymouth, Cllr Chaz Singh, the Chair of the Council’s Equalities Working Group, has come under fire for allegedly retweeting a post by a local firm of beekeepers directed at the local ward councillors, which said: “You’re lucky, if you get to see yours! We have three, and they’re as much use as Anne Frank’s drum kit!” The tweet was in reference to a local dispute about sewage. Cllr Singh was criticised by his colleagues for apparently using social media to amplify an offensive analogy to a victim of the Holocaust, and in particular for doing so given his position at the Council and purported status as a champion of diversity.
In Dudley, Cllr Zafar Islam was reportedly suspended from Labour after months of inaction by the Party following a complaint.
The complaint by Labour Against Antisemitism, submitted in September 2021, detailed Cllr Islam’s social media activity, where he claims a “witch-hunt” has taken place against Labour politicians critical of Israel, among other inflammatory remarks.
In London, the former Chair of the Hampstead and Kilburn Constituency Labour Party, Pete Firmin, has reportedly been automatically expelled from Labour over alleged support for factions that have been proscribed by the Party.
In Wales, a former leader of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, has been revealed not to have left Labour after 46 years of his own accord, but rather because he was expelled following disciplinary action. Cllr Hedley McCarthy had reportedly been accused of ‘liking’ antisemitic posts on social media, which he denied, saying that he has “a proven track record of opposing racism of all forms, including antisemitism.”
However, a Labour Party spokesman reportedly said: “Hedley McCarthy was expelled from the Labour Party in January 2022 following the conclusion of an internal disciplinary investigation into antisemitic social media activity. It is therefore incorrect for Hedley McCarthy to claim that he resigned from membership of the Labour Party.”
The local Constituency Labour Party (CLP) reportedly claimed that it had not been aware of the expulsion, relying instead on Cllr McCarthy’s claim that he had left of his own accord. Cllr McCarthy said in response: “I want to apologise to my former colleagues in the Labour group and the CLP for not informing them of the suspension or the eviction letter.” He added that he had been concerned about the confidentiality of the disciplinary process, apparently having been warned that any breach could result in further disciplinary action. “In any case, I left the group in November and didn’t see that the letter was relevant to them by then,” he said, adding: “I am sorry now that I didn’t speak out about these ridiculous accusations.”
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’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.
Students’ unions at Lancaster and Durham courageously act to sustain pressure on NUS
Students’ unions at Lancaster University and Durham University have taken action to sustain pressure on the National Union of Students (NUS) after a series of scandals rocked the national student body.
In an open letter to the NUS leadership this week, the Lancaster University Students’ Union said that it was “deeply disappointed and hurt by the way the Jewish community have been engaged with and treated this year,” making specific reference to the recent scandal involving the inflammatory rapper and activity Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey.
The letter went on to say that “Our Jewish students have legitimate issues and questions about decisions made by the NUS leadership, which we feel need to be addressed,” in regard to the Lowkey affair, in which the controversial figure was invited to headline the NUS’s centenary conference and the concerns of Jewish students’ were dismissed before media pressure brought about Mr Dennis’ withdrawal from the event.
The letter further noted that “NUS has an uncomfortable history with antisemitism,” and that it is “disconcerting” that individuals who have in the past been “embroiled in allegations of antisemitism” and were disqualified from office “ever felt welcome at all.”
Observing that “Antisemitism is a major issue within the student movement” and that NUS “keep[s] failing the Jewish community,” the letter lamented that “Too many Jewish activists have been pushed out of the student movement, from fear, anxiety, hostility, an environment that encourages antisemitic dialogue, and blatant antisemitic comments and/or actions.”
“The Jewish community,” the letter continued, “has been let down time and time again,” and its authors “look forward to seeing a clear communication of the changes you will make,” as “the Lancaster University Students’ Union Full Time Officer team will not sit back and watch the community go through endless trauma caused by NUS.”
Meanwhile, at Durham University, the Students’ Union put out a statement at the end of March affirming that “Jewish students have legitimate questions about decisions made by NUS in planning their National Conference, and the poor response that came when those decisions were challenged. There has been, unambiguously, a failure to recognise the risk and the reality of antisemitism.”
The statement insisted that “We can only bring about the changes we want to education and society if we do it collectively, through NUS. We’re stronger together. But when some students are excluded from NUS, we are all made weaker.” It concluded by saying that “When we’re at NUS Conference this week, we’ll insist that the NUS leadership recognise the problems they’ve created. We trust in their ability to reflect, and to make changes in partnership with Jewish students and their representatives. We’ll hold them accountable for making our national student movement welcoming for Jewish students.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
“You have to be annoyed about something to joke about it. What annoys me? Antisemitism”: Comedian Elon Gold on using comedy as a weapon against Jew-hatred
The comedian and actor Elon Gold appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he spoke about how he uses comedy to tackle antisemitism.
Speaking on his approach to discussing antisemitism in his comedy, Mr Gold stated that his priority is to consider whether his material is funny and whether he is making “the right point”.
Describing what constitutes “the right point”, Mr Gold clarified: “If it comes from my heart and from my anger about antisemitism.”
“All of comedy is complaining, and I realised that a few years ago. You have to be annoyed about something to joke about it and to want to deride it, mock it, ridicule it, but first, it has to annoy you. So what annoys me? Antisemitism. It annoys the crap out of me and I’m angry about it because it’s not funny at all, but now I have to find the funny because that’s my job and I happen to be obsessed with finding the funny in hate, because when you do that, when you find the funny in hate, you get to expose the ignorance of bigotry. And you get to mock these bigots.”
Mr Gold outlined what this approach looks like by providing an example of one of his comedy routines that touches upon the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally. “One of my favourite new bits that I’ve been doing lately is mocking those idiots who went to the rallies with the tiki torches going around going ‘the Jews will not replace us.’” Mr Gold joked: “‘And I’m like, ‘the Jews will not replace you? We don’t want to replace you, we just want to put braces on you. Replace you? We just want to manage your portfolio.’”
Discussing why he feels the routine is so impactful, he says that it’s because “It’s got these funny jokes but it’s making a point. Here are these groups of morons walking around with tiki torches going ‘the Jews will not replace us’…what is that message, even? As it turns out, it’s about immigration and it’s a whole thing that it’s their farkakta (nonsense) brains that they think there’s some global conspiracy of the Jews trying to replace them, but it’s all just nuts.
“So it’s my job now to mock these nut-jobs. And I do it from the right place. I know I’m in the right and they’re dead wrong. You can’t justify any sort of racism, homophobia…you’re not right.”
Turning to the subject of offence, Mr Gold has clearly given careful consideration to this issue. “There are bits that I do where I literally do a German accent. And that, you know…you talking about something that’s triggering. The last thing I ever want to do is… let’s say a Holocaust survivor is in the audience, or even the son or grandson of one. And to offend one of them would hurt me deeply. So of course, it’s not my intention to offend, but it is my intention to mock Nazis.”
Mr Gold went on to explain how he differentiates those who may take offence at different types of jokes, for example a dirty joke. “If you’re offended by that, that’s your problem. With antisemitism, with an area as sensitive as that, now we’re not talking about sex, we’re talking about something that people are getting killed over, to this day, and for thousands of years. And I do make it a point not to do any Holocaust jokes. There’s nothing funny about it, and that’s not even a topic I would ever want to bring up.
“However, if Whoopie Goldberg brings it up and says something idiotic like ‘the Holocaust isn’t about race,’ I’m gonna do jokes like ‘oh, the Holocaust isn’t about race? Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s what my great-grandparents heard in the camps.’” In a German accent, Mr Gold jokes: “By the way, this is not about race. This has nothing to do with race, you Jews are always jumping to conclusions!”
Mr Gold goes on to explain his thought behind the joke, saying: “I’m doing the accent, I’m mocking Nazis, but the joke isn’t, God-forbid on the victims. It’s not even on the Holocaust. It’s on Whoopie, and it’s on the Nazis. It’s on the bad guys. Whoopie’s not bad, she said something bad and wrong and it’s my job to correct it with jokes.”
“So to me, I have to say something about this. It’s an impulse, I can’t just ignore it. And by the way, when she said it, again, I wasn’t offended by it. I just said to myself ‘Oh, I have to correct that error.’ And my only weapon is jokes.”
Throughout the interview, Mr Gold touched upon a wide variety of topics which included opening up about an encounter of antisemitism that his family experienced, why he refuses to work on the Sabbath, and his recurring role in the most recent season of Curb Your Enthusiasm.
The podcast with Mr Gold can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Conservative councillor who claimed America, Israel and Saudi Arabia are a “trilogy of Zionists” and that “Zionism is one of the worst afflictions on the world” resigns from Thomas Deacon Education Trust
A Conservative councillor who was suspended from the Party last year over social media posts, before being permitted to re-join, has resigned from the Thomas Deacon Education Trust.
The Trust has confirmed to Campaign Against Antisemitism that Ishfaq Hussain was appointed a trustee of the Thomas Deacon Education Trust on 20th September 2021 and that he subsequently stepped down as a trustee on 3rd March 2022. The reasons for his resignation are not spelled out.
Cllr Hussain had apologised for sharing antisemitic tropes on Facebook. In one Facebook post, he accused the “Saudi regime” of being “long standing puppets of America and Israel,” and went on to label them “a trilogy of zionists.” He then remarked that “Islam doesn’t breed terrorists the zionist trilogy do.” Mr Hussain also shared a video that was captioned: “The Jews in Israel are not true Jews.”
Cllr Hussain had also captioned his profile picture: “This person does not recognise the State of Israel.” He also reportedly claimed that “Zionism is one of the worst afflictions on the world” and made other inflammatory comments about “Zionists”.
In his apology, Mr Hussain said: “I recognise Israel’s right to exist and wholeheartedly support a two-state solution. I deeply regret that my frustration at events in Israel and Palestine led me to suggest otherwise. Some of my previous language was ill-judged and offensive. It also echoed antisemitic tropes in ways I had not fully understood. However strongly we feel, we should never let our emotions get the better of us. By doing so, I allowed myself to become part of the problem. I am truly sorry.”
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.
Nicola Sturgeon reiterates her Government’s commitment to International Definition of Antisemitism while SNP candidate comes under fire for allegedly breaching it
Nicola Sturgeon has reiterated her Government’s commitment to the International Definition of Antisemitism, even as one of her Party’s candidates in upcoming local elections has been accused of breaching it.
Responding to a comment that her Government included two ministers from the Scottish Greens (the Scottish branch of the Green Party), which was described as having “out-Corbyned Corbyn”, the First Minister and SNP leader told the assembly of 250 Scottish Jews: “I am not able to speak for another political party. But I do speak for and am accountable for every minister in my Government. My Government is a signatory to the IHRA [International] Definition of Antisemitism and all ministers have to be clear that they sign up to that and accept that — and that includes the two Green ministers. There is no tolerance in my government for antisemitism or discrimination, prejudice, racism of any kind. I want to assure you of that very, very clearly.”
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism helped to expose the Scottish Greens’ controversial record in relation to antisemitism.
Ms Sturgeon also praised Jewish students, whom she had met recently, for their frankness in discussing the discrimination that they had faced on campus. “I want to make this point very forcibly,” she said, “So long as anyone feels discriminated against, we as a Government have more work to do.”
The First Minister also spoke about Holocaust education, saying: “As generations pass, it is vital that future generations understand what happened. However, understanding the Holocaust is not the same as understanding what it’s like for Jewish communities in countries across the world today.”
On the subject of antisemitism in politics, Ms Sturgeon conceded that the SNP had faced problems. Indeed, Campaign Against Antisemitism’s latest Antisemitism Barometer has shown that 39% of British Jews believe that the SNP is too tolerant of antisemitism.
As it happened, at around the same time, her Party was being urged to fire an SNP candidate in the upcoming local elections after it emerged that he had allegedly tweeted that it was “sickening that Israeli Jews bring up their kids to hate and kill,” using a photo of an American-Jewish family.
The picture in the seven-year-old post is of Bill Bernstein, a kippah-wearing former gun shop owner from Nashville, posing with his daughter Gertrude, both with guns.
Wullie Graham, who is standing in Pollok ward in south Glasgow, was accused by political rivals of having published an antisemitic post and his Party was called on to remove him as a candidate.
In a statement, the SNP said: “Mr Graham has apologised for a post in 2015 that he readily admits was stupid and indefensible. He has taken steps to reach out to the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities as he seeks to make amends and learn from this.”
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.
Teenagers threaten Jewish boys with a sword and crowbar in New York
Three teenagers armed with a sword, a crowbar and a knife allegedly threatened a group of Jewish boys on New York’s Upper West Side.
The teenagers, ranging in ages from twelve to sixteen, allegedly threatened the group of six Jewish boys on the evening of Saturday 2nd April. The teenagers reportedly said that they wanted to “get them” because they were Jewish and proceeded to follow the boys home before running away.
Gale Brewer, the NYC Council Member who represents the district, condemned the incident as a “horrible antisemitic attack” on a Facebook post.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Jewish woman wearing Ukrainian pin badge confronted with Nazi salute on the London Underground
It has been reported that a man performed a Nazi salute at a Jewish woman on the London Underground when he saw that she was wearing a Ukrainian pin-badge.
Charlotte Saloman, 37, was travelling between Paddington and Baker Street on 5th April when the incident took place. Ms Saloman was first alerted to the potential danger when she noticed a man whom she believes to have been in his early 30s boarding the train and who soon began staring at her and her badge.
Ms Salomon said: “He sat opposite me and stared at my pin. Then he stood up, did a halfway-up arm salute, and moved further down the carriage. At first, I was puzzled, then I realised what the gesture was. I made eye contact with another passenger. They looked confused as well.”
Ms Salomon, Deputy Chair of the Saffron Walden Conservatives Association, was on her way to the House of Lords to take part in an event about women fighting antisemitism.
After sharing her account of the incident on Twitter, Ms Salomon received messages of support, but others contained offensive sentiments, including one that read “Heil Hitler” followed by a swastika.
It has been reported that the police are now investigating this incident.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Far-right ‘Our Homeland’ Party becomes third-largest party in Hungarian Parliament
A far-right political party has won seven seats in Hungary’s general election.
Mi Hazánk (Our Homeland) won 6.7% of the vote in the election, which means that it is now not only in Parliament for the first time, but it has also become Hungary’s third-largest party.
Our Homeland was founded in 2018 after a split with the nationalist Jobbik party, which first came to Europe-wide attention in the 2009 European Parliament elections. The President of the European Jewish Congress has described Jobbik as an “unashamedly neo-Nazi party” and, elsewhere, the Party has been referred to as an “antisemitic organisation”. Jobbik’s use of well-known antisemitic canards about Jewish financial control has been called “overt antisemitism” and antisemitic rhetoric has even been described as Jobbik’s “trademark”.
The Party has, however, spent the last seven years recasting itself as a moderate conservative party. Our Homeland was formed by former Jobbik members unhappy with this rebranding exercise.
Though Rabbi Shlomó Köves, Chief Rabbi of the Orthodox EMIH-Association of Hungarian Jewish Communities, has described Hungary as one of the safest places for Jews to live in Europe, the emergence of Our Homeland as an electoral force has drawn concern from Hungary’s 100,000-strong Jewish community.
However, Rabbi Köves also made a point of saying that in the past, both Jobbik and Our Homeland “openly had racism and antisemitism on their agenda.”
“Both at this point are not openly making antisemitic statements, but they’re very dangerous. And the real problem that I see is that since the left joined Jobbik [to oppose Fidesz], if in the future anyone else in the government would want to cooperate with Mi Hazank — not that it seems necessary for any reason — but it would be very hard to argue why they shouldn’t do it.
“Throughout this whole [opposition building] process there’s been a legitimisation of these extreme-right neo-Nazi groups.”
Our Homeland’s criticisms of globalisation have been described as being “spiced up” with antisemitic conspiracy theories, including references to a “global elite”, the Jewish Hungarian financier George Soros, and the Rothschild banking dynasty.
Hungary’s controversial long-time Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, and his national-conservative Fidesz Party, won Sunday’s election, increasing its vote by about twenty points and gaining two parliamentary seats. This marks Mr Orbán’s fourth successive term as Prime Minister, his fifth in total.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Family of French Jewish man killed by tram says antisemitism played a role in his death
The family of a French Jewish man who was fatally wounded after being hit by a tram has said that antisemitism may have played a role in the incident.
While Mr Jeremy Cohen’s death in February was initially treated as a traffic accident, new video footage released by the family appears to show a gang of men attacking Mr Cohen, 31, prompting him to flee for safety without noticing the tram.
Mr Cohen is believed to have been wearing his kippah, or skullcap, during the attack, and the family have now called upon the police to reopen the investigation into his death as they feel his visible Jewish identity played a role in his attackers’ motivation.
It was reportedly only when the family started asking questions, handing out fliers in post boxes throughout the neighbourhood and urging witnesses to come forward, that someone eventually came forward with the crucial video footage that showed that the victim was being attacked moments before his death.
The victim’s father, Gerald Cohen, said: “Why is the family the one who needs to bring the evidence to police investigators? If we hadn’t done that we wouldn’t have known the truth. We want justice for our son Jeremy.”
The footage of Mr Cohen was released to the public this past Monday, which was also the anniversary of the murder of Sarah Halimi, a 74-year-old Jewish woman living in Paris who was murdered in 2017 by her twenty-seven-year-old Muslim neighbour, Kobili Traoré. Mr Traoré tortured Ms Halimi before throwing her out of a window, yelling “Allah Akbar,” “I killed the shaitan,” which is an Arabic word for ‘devil’ or ‘demon’, along with antisemitic vitriol.
In a disgraceful decision last year, France’s Court of Cassation ruled that Ms Halimi’s killer could not stand trial due to being high on cannabis whilst committing the murder.
Last year, Campaign Against Antisemitism held a rally outside of the French Embassy in solidarity with French Jews opposing the Court of Cassation’s unjust ruling, joining simultaneous rallies around the world.
The speeches can be watched in full on our YouTube channel.
A few months later, it was announced that a French Parliamentary commission of inquiry would be established in order to investigate the murder of Sarah Halimi. However, in January of this year, the inquiry was closed. The results of the 67,000 word report found that police had arrived on the scene before Ms Halimi was killed but waited outside of her apartment during the entire incident, apparently unable to hear her screams. The report shockingly concluded that the officers, judges and psychiatrists involved in the case had done everything by the book.
This led to a disagreement between those on the committee itself, with the report only being passed on a seven to five vote, with Meyer Habib, the French Parliamentarian who formed the commission, accusing police and fellow lawmakers of lying and engaging in a cover-up.
In February, a report by France’s Jewish Community Security Service said that antisemitic incidents in France had skyrocketed by 75% in 2021.
Last year, the murderer of French Holocaust survivor Mireille Knoll was sentenced to life in prison.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Far-right Austrian rapper sentenced to ten years in jail for glorifying Nazi ideology
A neo-Nazi activist and rapper from Austria has been handed a ten-year jail sentence by a Vienna court.
The 37-year-old artist, who recorded music under the name ‘Mr Bond’, was found guilty of glorifying Nazi ideology. This is a crime in Austria under the country’s 1947 Verbotsgesetz (Prohibition Act), which not only banned the far-right paramilitary organisations that flourished even after the defeat of the Nazi regime, but made it illegal to deny, condone or try to justify the Holocaust.
Mr Bond’s music was based on the appropriation of existing rap songs, to which he gave new lyrics with Nazi and antisemitic themes. One such song was used by the assailant of the October 2019 attack outside a synagogue in the eastern German city of Halle, in which two people died. The murderer, Stephan Balliet, filmed his crime and put it on the internet, soundtracked by Mr Bond’s song.
Mr Bond was described as “particularly dangerous” by the court. In the same trial, his brother was sentenced to four years in prison for running an antisemitic website.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Ukrainian Jewish community leader stabbed in apparent antisemitic attack
It has been reported that the director of the Jewish community in the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk has been stabbed by an attacker shouting antisemitic statements.
Igor Perelman was reportedly stabbed three times while out for a walk in the centre of the city.
Vitaliy Kamozin, Chief Operating Officer of the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, stated that Mr Perelman’s wounds have been treated and he is recovering from the attack. Mr Kamozin said: “There were antisemitic statements, but the motive is not yet clear.” The incident is apparently being examined by the police.
The Russian war on Ukraine has elicited a plethora of Nazi comparisons and is witnessing actual neo-Nazi soldiers on the battlefield.
President Putin of Russia justified his war on Ukraine in part by claiming that he needed to “denazify” the country, a stance that was reinforced by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and apparently also adopted by China. Mr Lavrov also compared the United States to Hitler, stating: “Napoleon and Hitler, they had the objective to have the whole of Europe under their control…Now Americans have got Europe under their control. And we see the situation has really demonstrated what role the EU is playing in the context of the global situation. They are just fulfilling a role. So we see, like in Hollywood, there is absolute evil and absolute good and this is unfortunate.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Streets once named after prominent antisemites in Bayreuth given new names
Councillors in the northern Bavarian town of Bayreuth have voted to give new names to two streets once dedicated to noted antisemites.
One was named after the bishop, Hans Meiser, the first Landesbischof (Regional Bishop) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria from 1933 to 1955. Bishop Meisner, boasting a huge following among Bavarian Protestants, was said to have had Nazi ties and once wrote that there was something “corrosive, caustic, dissolving about the Jewish mind”. It has been renamed Dietrich-Bonhoeffer-Straße in honour of the anti-Nazi theologian.
Hans-von-Wolzogen-Straße, named after the friend and biographer of the antisemitic composer Richard Wagner, is now to be called Friedelind-Wagner-Straße. Friedelind Wagner, the composer’s granddaughter, escaped Nazi Germany to the United States in 1941 after being implicated in anti-Nazi propaganda. Baron von Wolzogen, believed to have shared the composer’s antisemitic views, was the editor of the publication Bayreuther Blätter, which published antisemitic material, from 1878-1938.
Richard Wagner lived in Bayreuth from 1873 until his death in 1883. The Bayreuth Festspielhaus (Opera House) was constructed especially for the purpose of showing Wagner’s operas. His villa, Wahnfriend, was converted into a museum dedicated to his life and work after the Second World War.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
After pressure, YouTube finally removes channel that allegedly inspired Texas hostage-taker as platform accused of ignoring warnings by moderator
YouTube has bowed to pressure and finally removed a channel from its platform that allegedly inspired the Texas hostage-taker, as the platform is accused by a moderator of ignoring his warnings.
After weeks of pressure, including in particular from the JC, the social media network has removed the channels belonging to Israr Ahmed and Wagdy Ghoniem, which boasted 3.5 million subscribers between them.
Malik Faisal Akram, the Briton who took four hostages at the Beth Israel Synagogue in Colleyville before being shot dead by the FBI, was reportedly obsessed with two hardline Pakistani clerics popular on YouTube, one of whom was Israr Ahmed. Mr Ahmed had 2.7 million subscribers on the social media network and was particularly popular with Mr Akram, according to the JC. On his videos, he reportedly called Jews “the ultimate source of evil [and] the biggest agents of Satan”, adding that they “control the banking system of the world.” In another video, entitled “History of the Jews”, Dr Ahmed claimed that Jews had been acting against humanity for over 2,000 years. “The name of Jews became an expletive,” he said. “They became akin to pigs.”
Testimony from moderator-turned-whistleblower and counter-terrorism expert, Khaled Hassan, reportedly prompted the company to act. Mr Hassan, who worked for Crisp, a content moderation firm contracted to YouTube, repeatedly raised the issue of antisemitism on YouTube, according to the JC. This included flagging Mr Ahmed’s channel and that of the Egyptian Jihadist and Muslim Brotherhood leader Wagdy Ghoniem, who is banned in the UK.
Mr Hassan’s report to YouTube warned that Mr Ahmed’s videos “pose[d] a serious risk of inciting hatred against Jews [and] a realistic possibility of leading to real-world violence” and was submitted in October last year, but was reportedly ignored. In January, Mr Akram targeted the Colleyville synagogue after watching Mr Ahmed’s videos, according to his friends and acquaintances.
YouTube reportedly said that, “upon review, we removed the channels belonging…to Israr Ahmad for violating our hate speech policies, and a further eleven videos have been removed as either a result of this circumvention or for violating our Violent Extremism and hate speech policies.”
Mr Ghoniem’s channel had been taken down “for circumvention of our terms of service,” according to the technology company. This came after Mr Hassan’s report had pointed out that he “has been on the list of extremists banned from entering the UK for inciting terrorism since 2009,” has been wanted on terrorism charges in America since 2004, and an Egyptian court had convicted him for leading a terrorist cell in 2014.
Mr Hassan’s report recounted how Mr Ghoneim had falsely claimed that Egypt’s President “is secretly a Jewish person working on advancing the interests of Israel while causing harm to Egypt’s economy and national security”. Mr Hassan claimed that the failure to remove Mr Ghoneim’s videos amounted to “promoting radical ideologies and enabling radical/terrorist groups to recruit members into their ranks.”
Although YouTube’s publicly-stated policy is that all “hate speech” that promotes “violence or hatred against individuals or groups” based on race or religion “is not allowed” and will be “removed,” Mr Hassan told that JC that he believed this policy to be a “sham”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has long called for tougher regulations on social media sites and that social networks proactively search for and remove hate speech from their platforms.
Justice Minister Lord Wolfson defends the International Definition of Antisemitism, saying that it’s “Calumny to say that the fight against antisemitism shuts down free speech”
Justice Minister Lord Wolfson has defended the International Definition of Antisemitism against claims that it shuts down free speech.
Speaking at a conference held at the Tottenham Hotspur Football Stadium, Lord Wolfson said that there is no conflict between the British Government’s embrace of the Definition and its commitment to freedom of speech, maintaining that “It’s calumny to say that the fight against antisemitism in some way shuts down free speech, it simply doesn’t.”
Lord Wolfson said that the Definition had no implications for freedom of speech, making a clear distinction between free speech and hate speech. He said that “Antisemitism is hate speech, and all democracies have drawn a line between free speech and hate speech. There are things you cannot say because they are defamatory, and there are things you cannot say because they are racist.”
The Under-Secretary for Justice even said that he disapproves of the word “antisemitism”, preferring “anti-Jewish racism”. There are, he said, some people who fail to see that antisemitism is a problem, despite their vocal commitment to anti-racism in all its forms.
He also explained that those who have attempted to claim that the Definition prevents criticism of Israel are wrong because there is a difference between criticising the policies enacted by the Israeli government and applying a double standard to Israel, singling it out for criticism in a way that would not be done to another country.
In July 2017, Campaign Against Antisemitism published an opinion of expert counsel on the adoption of the Definition. David Wolfson QC (now Lord Wolfson) and Jeremy Brier, who acted pro bono, drew up the nine-page opinion. The opinion includes a detailed assessment of the definition itself, considers the application of the Definition in difficult cases, and contains useful advice for politicians and public bodies, such as universities, which are considering using the Definition.
The opinion states that: “The Definition is a clear, meaningful and workable definition. The Definition is an important development in terms of identifying and preventing antisemitism, in particular in its modern and non-traditional forms, which often reach beyond simple expressions of hatred for Jews and instead refer to Jewish people and Jewish associations in highly derogatory, veiled terms (e.g. ‘Zio’ or ‘Rothschilds’). Public bodies in the United Kingdom are not ‘at risk’ in using this Definition. Indeed, this Definition should be used by public bodies on the basis that it will ensure that the identification of antisemitism is clear, fair and accurate. Criticism of Israel, even in robust terms, cannot be regarded as antisemitic per se and such criticism is not captured by the Definition. However, criticisms of Israel in terms which are channels of expression for hatred towards Jewish people (such as by particular invocations of the Holocaust or Nazism) will in all likelihood be antisemitic.”
The full opinion can be accessed here.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has also produced a primer on the relationship between the International Definition of Antisemitism and freedom of speech.
Jewish community is “top target for hate crimes” says security organisation after surge in bomb threats
An “alarming number” of recent bomb threats directed at Jewish community centres and synagogues in one month across the United States was a sharp reminder that “the Jewish community remains a top target for hate crimes in the United States.”
The warning came from the Secure Community Network (SCN), a Jewish communal security organisation, which noted in a press release issued in late March that since the beginning of the month there had been eighteen reported bomb threats directed at Jewish community centres (JCCs) and synagogues in nine states.
SCN said that it was “actively working with community leaders and law enforcement agencies” over the “recent wave of bomb threats against Jewish facilities nationwide.”
FBI officials have stated that investigations into the threats were active and remained a high priority.
The SCN comments came as the New York Jewish Week reported that the Staten Island JCC had briefly evacuated its premises following a bomb threat, while the JCC of Indianapolis also revealed that it had recently received a bomb threat.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
“Even though you’re a Jew, you still have to respect us”: University of Connecticut student subjected to antisemitic abuse
The University of Connecticut has been forced to deal with an incident in which a Jewish student received antisemitic abuse for removing anti-Zionist material that she found in the University library.
Natalie Shclover discovered a series of illustrations of the map of Israel contrasted with the image of a strangled child and a photograph of University President Radenka Maric placed on the walls and strewn on the floor of the Homer Babbidge Library at the University’s Storrs campus.
The flyers were reportedly produced as part of ongoing criticism of Ms Maric for taking a trip to Israel to support Connecticut’s collaboration with higher education institutions there. Soon after the trip was announced, the University’s social media channels were overwhelmed with comments calling Israelis “greedy” and calls for “another Intifada”.
When Ms Shclover and her boyfriend Zacharia El-Tayyeb learned that, because the flyers were on the ground, they are legally thought of as “public property”, the couple went back to the library to dispose of them. This led to an altercation with four other students.
One of the students filmed the exchange on her cellphone and is reported to have said “Even though you’re a Jew, you still have to respect us.” It is alleged that the other students called her a “f***ing b****”, a “f***ing Zionist”, and a “white supremacist”.
Both Ms Shclover and Mr El-Tayyeb were harrassed on the University’s Yik Yak feed – a social media platform that allows users to post messages anonymously to anyone within a five mile radius – and Ms Shclover was dismissed from The Chordials, a student a capella society of which she was President.
Radenka Maric condemned the antisemitic remarks and wrote a message to the University community contextualising the incident in terms of “the combustible combination of religion, cultural identity, politics, history, and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.”
Ms Shclover said: “I think it fell painfully short of addressing the harassment that Zach and I endured, and calling it the ‘library incident’ is very arbitrary. We’ve had emails and communications from administrative bodies at UConn condemning acts of racism, Islamophobia, and even acts of antisemitism in years past, and I don’t understand why an issue surrounding Israel or Palestine would be treated any differently.
“I know that this is a greater issue, one that the Jews and Zionist on this campus are afraid to talk about because they fear what happened to me might happen to them, and I don’t blame them. UConn is not going to thrive if every Jewish student on this campus feels the way they do now, which is unsafe, unprotected, and unheard. UConn will not thrive as a space that is inclusive for everyone but the Jews.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Borussia Dortmund football club take a stand against antisemitism in football
German football club Borussia Dortmund has hosted a conference aimed at tackling antisemitism in world football.
The club organised the event in collaboration with the German Football League, the Central Council of Jews in Germany and the World Jewish Congress.
Problems with the far-right loom large in Borussia Dortmund’s history. Though it does not distinguish the club from many other German organisations at the time, the club’s chairman in the 1930s was a member of the Nazi Party. During the 1980s, the club’s fanbase included the Borussenfront, a far-right faction who would regularly target Dortmund’s Turkish population and sing songs about sending fans of arch-rivals Schalke to Auschwitz.
During a 2013 Champions League match with Ukraine’s Shaktar Donetsk, a group of far-right Dortmund fans launched themselves at fan representative Jens Volke and Thilo Danielsmeyer, the leader of the Dortmund Fan Project, a group founded in 1988 to combat xenophobia and racism and promote tolerance and inclusion. Mr Volke was struck in the face when he confronted three neo-Nazis chanting far-right slogans. Mr Danielsmeyer was followed into a toilet and then beaten.
For some time, Borussia Dortmund appeared reluctant to recognise the problem of far-right activism and antisemitism among a minority of its fans.
Recently, however, the club has made strenuous efforts to challenge this culture, and reach out to the Jewish community. The club’s Head of Corporate Responsibility, Daniel Lörcher, said that making “clear statements against antisemitism” had a huge impact on the city’s Jews, who now feel that their home town is “against antisemitism and is open for Jewish people.”
Tottenham Hotspur also hosted a conference this week that includes tackling antisemitism on its agenda, after the event was moved from Chelsea Football Club in light of recent events.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
New Zealand survey reveals majority of public believe at least one antisemitic statement and widespread ignorance about the Holocaust
A new survey has revealed a “concerning” level of antisemitism among New Zealanders.
The Antisemitism Survey of New Zealand, conducted online by Curia Research and published by the New Zealand Jewish Council, asked more than 1,000 citizens whether or not they agreed with eighteen statements deemed to be antisemitic. 63 percent of those asked agreed with at least one statement while six percent agreed with nine or more statements.
The survey charted four broad trends: the New Zealand public’s knowledge about the Holocaust; reception of “classical” antisemitic statements relating to Jewish power, money, and loyalty; “anti-Israel” antisemitism, such as comparisons between the policies of the Israeli Government and those of the Nazis; and what the report characterised as miscellaneous antisemitism, comprising statements about how societies should treat “Zionists”, the relationship between Jews and “white privilege” and Jewish indigeneity to Israel.
The survey found that 21 percent of people believed two or more “classical” antisemitic statements, such as “Jews have too much power in international financial markets”, while six percent held a staggering nine or more antisemitic views.
Seven percent agreed with the assertion that Israel does not have the right to exist as a majority Jewish state. Questions regarding the Holocaust revealed that only 42 percent correctly identified that six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust, but that seventeen percent confessed to knowing “virtually nothing” about it, while six percent thought that the Jews brought the Holocaust on themselves.
Deborah Hart, Board Chair of the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand, said: “Misinformation about the Holocaust – or Holocaust distortion – is a form of antisemitism. It minimises the suffering of a great number of Jewish families and the murder of their loved ones.”
Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: Sussex Friends of Israel
Further concerns raised after revelation that newly-elected NUS President reportedly praised cleric who called for Jews to be killed
Further concerns have been raised after more troubling tweets from the newly-elected President of the National Union of Students (NUS), Shaima Dallali, have surfaced.
This most recent batch of tweets has come to light mere days after we reported that Ms Dallali was forced to apologise when, in 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, the then-hopeful NUS candidate tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali issued a statement on 23rd March, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Shortly after her apology, it came to light that Ms Dallali’s output on Twitter reportedly included other inflammatory messages as well, including one from 2018 in which she said: “So your special forces invade the Gaza Strip, attempt to kidnap a Hamas commander, kill him and others. Then cry about Hamas being the terrorists. Makes perfect sense. #GazaUnderAttack.” Hamas is an antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation that is proscribed in the UK.
Other alleged tweets expressed support for Jeremy Corbyn, the antisemitic former leader of the Labour Party. On 17th November 2020, Ms Dalalli wrote a response to Mr Corbyn’s readmission to the Labour Party, saying that “He should never have been suspended in the first place.” A few months later, on 5th January 2021, Ms Hallami tweeted that “Jeremy Corbyn was too good for this godforsaken country.” At present, these tweets have not yet been deleted, though it has been reported that several others have.
However, a new set of historic tweets from Ms Dallali has now come to light, one of which includes the antisemitic “From the river to the sea” chant. The chant of “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.
Additionally, Ms Dallali reportedly referred to a preacher who condemned actions taken by Hamas as a “dirty Zionist” and has also raised money for the controversial activist group CAGE which, while it does not advocate violence, has previously been criticised for promoting problematic or extreme views, which they deny.
Ms Dallali also allegedly said that the cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who has been described as an “Islamist theologian”, was the “moral compass for the Muslim community at large”. In January 2009, Mr al-Qaradawi said on Al-Jazeera TV that he would “shoot Allah’s enemies, the Jews.” In a sermon that took place in that same month, he again spoke of Jewish people and called upon God to “kill them, down to the very last one.”
In a 2010 interview on BBC Arabic, Mr Yusuf al-Qaradawi reportedly said: “Throughout history, Allah has imposed upon the [Jews] people who would punish them for their corruption. The last punishment was carried out by Hitler. By means of all the things he did to them – even though they exaggerated this issue – he managed to put them in their place. This was divine punishment for them. Allah willing, the next time will be at the hand of the believers.”
Replying to UJS’s tweet about the “bridges broken” over the past few weeks in regard to NUS’ booking of the controversial rapper Lowkey, Ms Dallali said that her hands “are outstretched to all students and staff that work in our movement, including Jewish students, and would love to arrange a meeting once I’m in office,” though in the past, she has lashed out at UJS over Twitter, accusing them of having “a history of bullying pro-Palestine sabbs [sabbatical officers] and activists.” In that same tweet, she added: “You speak one word of solidarity and they’re after you. UJS and their likes need to be called out.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Neo-Nazi gang members who shared antisemitic material convicted of terror and firearm offences
It has been reported that four members of a neo-Nazi gang who shared antisemitic material with each other via the social media platform Telegram have been convicted under anti-terrorism and firearms legislation.
Concerns have previously been raised over the alleged increase in neo-Nazi content on Telegram. Last year, the far-right group Patriotic Alternative was found to have created neo-Nazi channels dedicated to sharing vile messages, antisemitic conspiracy theories, and images glorifying Hitler.
Samuel Whibley, 29, Daniel Wright, 29, Liam Hall, 31, and Mr Hall’s girlfriend Stacey Salmon, 29, were convicted of fifteen offences, including counts relating to the encouragement of terrorism and the publication and dissemination of materials related to it, as well as firearms offences.
The jury at Sheffield Crown Court heard that all four defendants shared antisemitic videos, memes, and images, including material celebrating Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. Ms Hall confessed to finding material online in which Jews were alleged to control the media and banks, as well as to watching videos made by neo-Nazis in an attempt to see “both sides of the argument” about Hitler.
The court heard that the group communicated with each other using a public Telegram channel set up by Mr Whibley under the name Oaken Hearth. This was, jurors heard, used as “a gathering place for British white nationalists.” Mr Whibley then audited prospective members, who had to prove they were white by taking a selfie before answering questions about their involvement in neo-Nazi groups.
Mr White joined the chat using the name “Gott Mit Uns”, words found on the belts of Nazi soldiers during the Second World War.
The group also shared racist material aimed at Black people, while Mr Whibley reportedly praised Christchurch mosque shooter Brenton Tarrant, Norwegian neo-Nazi terrorist Anders Breivik, and Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.
Mr Justice Spencer will sentence all four defendants at a later date.
In October, a teenage neo-Nazi was been jailed for eleven years after using Telegram to plot terrorist acts.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has been monitoring and acting against the threat from the far-right for years and continues to support the authorities following suit.
In 2020, members of the proscribed National Action group were sentenced to prison, having engaged, amongst other activities, in far-right stickering and recruitment campaigns.
Campaign Against Antisemitism continues to monitor and report on far-right stickering campaigns, including by the far-right Hundred Handers group.
Image credit: Counter Terrorism Policing Northeast
Jewish lawyer owed £26,500 payout in religious discrimination case reportedly “desperate” after still not being paid after four months
A Manchester-based Jewish lawyer who won £26,500 in compensation on the grounds of religious discrimination has still not been paid, reportedly leading to a severe decline in his mental health.
According to court documents, NNE Law Limited, run by Ali Nazokkar, dismissed litigation executive Philip Bialick after he took a pre-arranged break for the Passover festival in April 2020.
Mr Bialick began his employment at the firm in January 2020, booking annual leave a month later in anticipation of the festival in April. In March, the UK entered its first pandemic lockdown, but the firm claimed that, “since the courts are not closed…our line of work is considered essential,” and therefore that he should attend work. Two days later, Mr Bialick fell ill and self-isolated, in accordance with NHS guidance.
His isolation period ended on 8th April, when he expected to go on leave to observe the festival. But NNE reportedly said that he should return to work on 9th April, the second day of Pesach.
Mr Bialick explained that he had booked time off for religious reasons and could not come to work but, the next day, the firm asserted that it had no alternative but to terminate his contract.
Though it is reported that Mr Bialick and Mr Nazzokar were friends of long-standing, their relationship is said to have deteriorated due to these events.
However, it is understood that Mr Bialick has still not received the financial compensation owed to him. Mr Bialick is reported to have said that his mental health has declined and that he has faced serious financial difficulties since his dismissal, though he has since been hired by a rival firm. This has been compounded by the fact that he has not yet received any of the money that he is owed.
A spokesperson for NNE Law said: “I would like to advise that the reason the judgement has not yet been satisfied is due to an application having been made for a stay of execution of the order as there are grounds for appeal which are currently being pursued.”
Speaking frankly about the state of his mental health, Mr Bialick said: “It was really bad. I had no money at all. I went pretty much off the rails. My mental health deteriorated massively. I didn’t know where to turn.
“I was really upset and angry about how they treated me. I was desperate at the time as there was no work so I applied for an employment tribunal straight away. Since then I’ve been chasing them and instructed bailiffs.”
“I have lost a lot of money. I’m getting to the point now where I’m desperate. I’m waiting for this money to come through and if it doesn’t I’m in trouble,” he said.
Image credit: Google
Anti-vaccination protesters trivialise the Holocaust by wearing yellow stars, says Nazi-hunter Dr Efraim Zuroff
Dr Efraim Zuroff, the Chief Nazi Hunter at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where he said that he believes anti-vaccination protesters who wear yellow Stars of David are trivialising the Holocaust.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included protesters donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by governments and other administrative bodies in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
“It’s Holocaust trivialisation,” Dr Zuroff said. “In other words, to, in a sense, turn the Holocaust into a far more trivial event than it was in fact.”
He continued: “It’s very ironic but in a certain sense, I have to say that there’s a small silver lining here which goes to prove the success of the people who have devoted their lives to promoting Holocaust education, Holocaust research, Holocaust commemoration. In other words, the Holocaust has become the ultimate tragedy, and that’s why everyone who has a cause wants to connect that cause or to claim that it’s similar to the Holocaust…related to the Holocaust, because that’s the most effective tool.”
However, Dr Zuroff went on to lament the negative effect that wearing the yellow star has on the Holocaust.
“It’s a horrible thing because it basically turns the Holocaust into something much, much more minor than it actually was.”
Throughout the interview, Dr Zuroff touched upon a wide variety of topics which included highlights from his storied career, the details of ongoing trials of alleged Nazi war criminals, and explained the difference between Holocaust denial and distortion.
The podcast with Dr Zuroff can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Glasgow museum displays works looted from Jews by the Nazis but refuses to identify which works
It has been reported that items displayed in the collection of a Glasgow museum may have been looted from their Jewish former owners by the Nazis.
The Burrell Collection, which dates back to acquisitions made by the wealthy shipowner Sir William Burrell in 1944, already knew that two works on display were stolen from their Jewish owners by the Nazis in the 1930s. Glasgow City Council even paid out a large amount of money in compensation to the works’ would-be heirs.
However, Glasgow Museums curator Martin Bellamy has recently published a book, A Collector’s Life: William Burrell, which maintains that even more works than previously acknowledged can be proven to have belonged to Jewish owners who relinquished their treasures as part of the practice known as “forced sale”.
This was part of the wider policy of “Aryanisation”, in which Jews in Germany and Austria were forced to register property or assets – including life insurance, stocks, furniture and works of art – valued above a certain amount. They also lost favourable financial incentives available to non-Jews, and were forced to be part of the highest tax bracket irrespective of their actual income. If they chose to leave the country, they were forced to hand over half of their assets and exchange what remained at the least favourable rate of exchange of their destination.
Glasgow Life, a charity that administers the 9,000-piece collection, has admitted that works acquired under these circumstances are on display. They do not, however, identify precisely which works were acquired in this manner.
Scottish historian Sir Tom Devine said: “As long as the provenance of these items is established by experts and curators, it should always be made public. The question the public will ask is, ‘What do they have to hide?’ I find the refusal rather curious. Curators of museums always want the truth to be out, and unvarnished at that.”
Speaking on behalf of the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities, Ephraim Borowksi said: “I suggest that the point to be made is that this isn’t a question of law, but morals. Given the scale of the Holocaust, there may be no surviving family members to make a formal legal claim. It’s up to public galleries to acknowledge the dubious history of items in their collection.”
The Burrell Collection, which has recently undergone a £70 million renovation, will open to the public on 5th April.
Russian journalist’s apartment vandalised with pig’s head and antisemitic slur
A pig’s head and an antisemitic epithet were reportedly left outside the Moscow apartment of a respected Russian journalist.
Alexei Venediktov, the Editor of the Echo of Moscow radio station, took to social media to report the incident, posting one photograph of a pig’s head with a wig on, lying on the floor by his front door, and another picture of a Ukrainian coat of arms fixed to the door itself with an antisemitic slur attached to it.
Echo of Moscow was formed towards the end of the Soviet Union, and since then has been a significant representative of the new freedoms granted as part of the policy of Glasnost (openness) instituted by Mikhail Gorbachev, the last President of the Soviet Union, as part of a campaign to increase government transparency, allowing citizens to publicly discuss problems with the communist system, and potential solutions, for the first time.
Later, Mr Veneditkov, who has Jewish heritage, revealed a still from CCTV footage outside his apartment building. It appears to show a figure posing as a food delivery worker arriving at his front door. However, Mr Venediktov said that the food company in question contacted him and explained that the uniform seen in the video has been out of use for several years.
Mr Venediktov expressed his concern on the social media platform Telegram, writing: “This in the country that defeated fascism. Why not just fix a six-pronged star to my apartment door?”
In addition to the antisemitic element, this incident is also the latest example of the Russian Government’s crackdown on independent media.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
“I will kill you all, Hitler should come back”: Man in Stamford Hill knocks on neighbours’ door yelling abuse at 4am on Jewish Sabbath
It has been reported that a man woke up his Jewish neighbours at 4:00 by knocking on their door and yelling antisemitic abuse.
The man was said to have shouted: “I will kill you all, Hitler should come back.”
The alleged incident took place on 19th March and is understood to have occurred in the Stamford Hill area of North London on the morning of the Jewish Sabbath and lasted for approximately one hour.
It was also alleged that, yesterday, the same man told a six-year-old girl: “Get inside, I will kill you”, before threatening to burn her house down.
Both incidents were reported yesterday by Stamford Hill Shomrim, the Jewish volunteer neighbourhood watch patrol.
If you have any more information, please contact the police on 101 or Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number: CAD 4735 28/03/22
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
Teenagers throw stones at Jewish homes and children in Stamford Hill
It has been reported that teenagers in Stamford Hill have targeted Jewish homes.
Stamford Hill Shomrim have reported that the vandals had thrown stones at Jewish homes and children playing in gardens from garage roofs on Knightland Road.
Anybody with information should call Stamford Hill Shomrim on 0300 999 0123, quoting reference number 4608254/22.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
Reality TV star Dawn Ward cleared of antisemitism charges
Reality television star and property developer Dawn Ward has been found not guilty after she was accused of shouting antisemitic abuse at two Jewish brothers and slapping one of them in the face.
The 48-year-old Real Housewives of Cheshire star was accused of going on a “rant” at brothers Jake and Sam Jacobs at London Euston station after having “too many glasses of wine” at the Ritz hotel with her agent.
A jury heard that, on 29th October 2019, Ms Ward overheard the brothers asking aloud why their trains were delayed. She is alleged to have demanded of them: “Why do you lot always complain?”
Prosecutor George Wedge acknowledged that Ms Ward was referring to the Jacobs’ Jewish identity. Ms Ward, however, claimed that she had no idea that the Jacobs brothers or Sam Jacobs’s girlfriend Samantha Eisner, were Jewish.
Inner London Crown Court heard that the brothers chose to overlook Ms. Ward’s comments, only for her allegedly to become violent. She is alleged to have called Jake Jacobs a “fat c***” and a “Jewish p***k” and slapped him in the face. She also allegedly referred to Ms Eisner as a “little disease.”
Ms Ward has been cleared of two counts of racially and religiously aggravated harassment, causing alarm or distress.
After being cleared of two counts of causing racially aggravated harassment, alarm or distress and one count of possessing cocaine, Ms Ward is reported to have said: “I am still prone to tears and crying as I write this post. I don’t believe I will ever truly get over this…Anybody who remotely knows me knows I stand for equality of race, religion and sexuality and I will continue to live my life to these values and raise my children to do the same.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Dutch Jewish man claims police are ignoring campaign of harassment despite chants of “Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas” and “Cancer Jew” by assailants
A Jewish man from the Netherlands is reported to have been the victim of multiple antisemitic attacks, but claims that his complaints have been ignored by Dutch authorities.
Kevin Ritstier, 34, from the town of Wijchen in the east of the country, says that he has been repeatedly attacked by a street gang sometimes numbering up to fifteen young men.
Mr Ristier says the harassment originated when the men targeted him after seeing him returning home from a Bar Mitzvah celebration wearing items of traditional Jewish religious clothing, including a kippah and a tallit, or prayer shawl.
This rapidly turned into a campaign of harassment in which the men pounded on Mr Ritstier’s front door and made antisemitic remarks, including “Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas” (a common chant among Dutch football fans) and “Cancer Jew”.
Mr Ristier has also been physically harmed. After one assault, his leg was slashed and he was left bruised and suffering from a split lip.
He added that his numerous formal complaints to the police, lodged after each incident, have led nowhere, claiming that the authorities have ignored each one and that he has been made to feel like he has been bothersome.
The police have reportedly said that criminal proceedings have not been taken against any members of the gang due to lack of evidence, but insist that Mr Ristier’s complaints are being taken “very seriously”.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
University of Bristol’s Appeal Panel upholds termination of David Miller’s employment
It has now been reported publicly that, last month, the University of Bristol’s Appeal Panel upheld the University’s decision last year to terminate the employment of David Miller, which took place one month after Campaign Against Antisemitism brought a lawsuit on behalf of current students against the institution, amidst an outcry from the Jewish community and its institutions.
Our legal case against the University concerned alleged unlawful harassment on the basis of Jewish ethnicity and Judaism, amounting to breaches of the Equality Act 2010, as well as breaches of contract. We launched proceedings in late August and the University swiftly realised that it was putting itself in legal jeopardy by sustaining Prof. Miller’s employment at the institution.
A number of brave students at the University stepped forward to act as complainants in the litigation. We also wish to thank Asserson Law Offices, led by senior partner Trevor Asserson, and barristers Derek Spitz of One Essex Court and Benjamin Gray of Littleton Chambers.
The lawsuit related to Prof. Miller’s speech on a Zoom webinar in February last year 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.
Bristol had come under increasing pressure from the Jewish community, which was united in its disgust at Prof. Miller’s comments and the drawn-out investigation that the University was conducting with no apparent end in sight. But the University failed to act for months. Prof. Miller’s statements and the University’s failure to condemn them and take swift action against him were the subject of a great deal of attention from the Jewish community as well as hundreds of academics and Parliament, including a written question by Lord Austin and an intervention from Robert Halfon MP. Prof. Miller was also defended by an array of controversial ‘usual suspects’ whose interventions did nothing for his collapsing credibility.
We thank others in the Jewish community, MPs and academics for the pressure that they brought to bear on the University of Bristol.
The legal claim that we spearheaded contended that Prof. Miller’s statements sought to create a hostile environment for Jewish students. It further alleged that the University was liable for Prof. Miller’s conduct, and was further liable in its own right, for unlawful conduct in breach of the Equality Act, and for its breach of its contract with students.
Other than a final call for prospective claimants, we minimised the public profile of the case in order to protect the identities of the brave student claimants who not only believed that enough is enough but that, in order for things to change, they must also act on that belief. We are enormously grateful to them for their courage. Despite the lower public profile of the case, the University was in no doubt about our intentions and resolve. A month after the launch of the lawsuit, Prof. Miller was fired for gross misconduct.
In a statement exemplifying just why Prof. Miller has no place on a university campus, the Support David Miller campaign said this week: “Support David Miller – a volunteer-led anti-racism campaign, composed of academics, students and independent researchers – has repeatedly expressed concerns that the University of Bristol’s disciplinary processes have been compromised by assets of a hostile foreign state. The State of Israel and its assets in the UK seek to eliminate all critics of Zionism from UK university campuses. Zionism is the racist ideology that professes a G-d-given right of European and other Jewish colonisers to occupy and seize Palestinian land, homes and resources. Professor Miller has been subjected to this censorship campaign because of his research showing that Zionist campaign groups have funded and promoted Islamophobia in the UK and abroad.”
Prof. Miller, who has indicated his intention to appeal the University’s latest decision to the Employment Tribunal, said: “I’ve been targeted by a pernicious witch-hunt, led by known assets of the State of Israel in the UK and funded by the dirty money of pro-Israel oligarchs. This is an attempt at entryism and political intimidation. The University of Bristol has wilted under this new wave of McCarthyism. The University treated this appeal as a mere formality, with a pre-determined outcome. I’ll be challenging the University’s perverse decision at an Employment Tribunal, to help stop our fundamental rights of free expression and academic freedom being further corroded at the behest of a hostile and illegitimate foreign regime.”
Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “This ruling is a further vindication of the courageous Jewish students on whose behalf we brought proceedings against the University of Bristol last year. Following the launch of our lawsuit and an outcry from across the Jewish community, it was clear to the University that it would be held to account in court and had to act to protect Jewish students in accordance with the law, and David Miller was fired within a month. Universities across the country should be warned that we will do whatever it takes to defend Jewish students from racists on campus by upholding their rights in court where necessary.”
The case was the latest step by Campaign Against Antisemitism to defend the rights of individual Jewish students. We believe that universities and students’ unions must be robustly held to account when they fail to defend Jewish students or when they allow their lecturers to discriminate against or harass them.
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].
Labour’s NEC proscribes Labour Left Alliance, reportedly due to its stance on antisemitism
The Labour Party’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) has proscribed the Labour Left Alliance, reportedly due to the faction’s stance on antisemitism.
Labour Left Alliance is a member-based group with close links to Labour Against the Witchhunt and Labour In Exile Network, which were among four groups banned by the NEC last July. Labour Against the Witchhunt has since disbanded, with its members focusing their energies on other groups instead.
Twenty members of the NEC voted in favour of the proscription of Labour Left Alliance at yesterday’s full meeting, while eleven voted against.
The ban on another group, Alliance for Workers’ Liberty, was divided on the same lines, while the vote to ban Socialist Labour Network was split nineteen to eleven. The latter two groups are not believed to have been proscribed in connection with antisemitism.
A spokesperson for the Labour Party said: “The NEC has decided that these organisations are not compatible with Labour’s rules, or our aims and values.”
The Labour MP and Corbyn ally, Clive Lewis, tweeted: “Proscription lists; mass expulsions; the centralisation of power. It’s naive to think the ‘crisis of democracy’ and the slide to authoritarianism afflicting western polities won’t affect our own political institutions.”
However, the NEC declared that there are no plans to proscribe another controversial pro-Corbyn group, Momentum. It is reported that NEC papers read: “Custom and practice also establishes that the definition of a ‘political organisation’ does not include organisations that are compatible with the aims and values of the Labour Party…This includes networks of members, such as Sikhs for Labour or the Labour Muslim Network; single issue campaigns, such as Labour for a Green New Deal; and ginger groups, such as Labour First, Momentum, and Progress.”
A meeting earlier this month of Labour Left Alliance featured questions from Tony Greenstein and Gerry Downing, both of whom have been expelled from the Labour Party. Mr Downing was a founder of Labour Against the Witchhunt, and at this meeting he referenced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Jewish identity and declared his support for Russia in its invasion of its neighbour. Tina Werkmann, who was chairing the meeting, then said about Mr Downing’s comments: “About Zelenskyy being Jewish I think this is a very dodgy territory to go down it’s not his Jewishness that is the problem it’s that he’s a Zionist and he works with fascists. Zionism and fascists they can work very well together and they have done in the past and they go hand in hand in Britain as well. So that’s not an issue. But I don’t think we need to peddle antisemitism crap here in this section.”
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism: “We commend the NEC for banning Labour Left Alliance, which is another important step in the fight against antisemitism and antisemitism-denial in the Labour Party. It is regrettable that Momentum has been given a new lease on life, however, which risks the Party looking like it only goes after low hanging fruit. We have always been clear that this process would take years, and yesterday’s NEC vote shows that progress is being made, but slowly.”
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’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.
Image credit: Harry’s Place
Slovakian Parliament commemorates victims of the Holocaust
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the first trains taking the country’s Jews to Auschwitz, the National Council of the Slovak Republic has officially denounced the transport and appealed to remaining survivors and their relatives for forgiveness.
Slovakia was originally the eastern province of the first Czechoslovak Republic, formed after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire in 1918. After Hitler annexed the Sudetenland in the wake of the 1938 Munich Agreement, Slovakia seceded from Czechoslovakia, becoming the Slovak Republic.
This state would, in turn, become a Nazi satellite state following the racial policies of the Third Reich, in which Slovakian Jews were robbed of their human and civil rights. Eventually, 70,000 of them were sent to Nazi concentration camps in two waves, the first from March to October 1942 and the second from September 1944 to March 1945. The vast majority of the Jews reported to these camps would be murdered.
Slovak parliamentarians also observed a minute’s silence in honour of the victims.
The only party that did not take part in the vote on the resolution was the openly neo-Nazi People’s Party Our Slovakia. Party leader Marian Kotleba is a vocal supporter of Jozef Tiso, President of the Slovak Nazi puppet state. Mr Kotleba has called Jews “devils in human skin” and promoted the “Zionist Occupied Government” conspiracy theory. Other party members have been charged with Holocaust denial, a criminal offence in Slovakia, on several occasions.
In the 2020 Slovakian parliamentary elections, People’s Party Our Slovakia won seventeen of the 150 available seats with a vote share of 7.97%. The Party reportedly has almost no support in any of the country’s major cities, including the capital Bratislava.
On 5th April 2020, Marian Kotleba was given a six-month suspended sentence for harbouring neo-Nazi sympathies. The appeals court did, however, dismiss an earlier ruling convicting Mr Kotleba of the illegal use of neo-Nazi symbols, for which he had been sentenced to four years and four months in prison.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Antisemitic Florida flyers blame Jews for Ukraine War and COVID-19
Community leaders in Sarasota have expressed anger over antisemitic flyers distributed in the Florida town twice in recent weeks.
The flyers – placed in Ziplock bags, weighted with rice – were placed on driveways of Jewish homes. The first batch, in mid-February, blamed the Jewish community for COVID-19. In the second tranche, some flyers again blamed Jews for COVID-19, while, according to the Sarasota Police Department, others blamed Jews for the war in Ukraine, claiming: “Every single aspect of the Ukraine-Russia War is Jewish.”
Speaking at a rally in Sarasota after the first batch of flyers were discovered in February, the Director of the American Jewish Committee said that the hatred in the flyers did not reflect the town. “This group does not speak for Sarasota, which time and again has stood up against all manifestations of antisemitism,” he said. “It makes me feel determined to say hate…against anyone will not win.”
This is just the latest of many incidents of antisemitic flyers being distributed across the United States.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
NUS elects President who tweeted antisemitic chant and said that Jeremy Corbyn should never have been suspended from Labour Party
A student politician who was forced to apologise for tweeting an Islamist chant threatening Jews has been elected President of the National Union of Students (NUS).
Last week, it was revealed that the then-hopeful NUS candidate Shaima Dallali was forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. In 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, Ms Dallali tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali issued a statement on 23rd March, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Ms Dallali is currently the President of the City, University of London students’ union. Last year, prior to Ms Dallali’s tenure as President, the union organised a controversial campus-wide referendum on the International Definition of Antisemitism after reportedly failing to consult Jewish students.
It has now come to light that Ms Dallali’s output on Twitter also included other inflammatory messages, including one last May allegedly saying that “organisations like UJS [the Union of Jewish Students] have a history of bullying pro-Palestine sabbs [sabbatical officers] and activists. You speak one word of solidarity and they’re after you. UJS and their likes need to be called out.”
Another alleged tweet from 2018 read: “So your special forces invade the Gaza Strip, attempt to kidnap a Hamas commander, kill him and others. Then cry about Hamas being the terrorists. Makes perfect sense. #GazaUnderAttack.” Hamas is an antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation that is proscribed in the UK.
Other alleged tweets expressed support for Jeremy Corbyn, the antisemitic former leader of the Labour Party. On 17th November 2020, Ms Dalalli wrote a response to Mr Corbyn’s readmission to the Labour Party, saying that “He should never have been suspended in the first place.” A few months later, on 5th January 2021, Ms Hallami tweeted that “Jeremy Corbyn was too good for this godforsaken country.” At present, these tweets have not yet been deleted, though it has been reported that several others have.
Last week, the Chair of the Education Select Committee, Robert Halfon MP, excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend his recent hearing, particularly given that the hearing took place just days after a scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline the union’s centenary conference. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdraw from the event.
In an attempt at an apology, NUS grotesquely alleged that “Whilst we welcome genuine political debate, we’ve been sad to see the use of harassment and misinformation against Lowkey.” Swiping at Mr Halfon, NUS has asserted that “MPs and education leaders are accountable to us not the other way round,” declared that “Old school bullying culture is never acceptable including at Government committees [sic],” and that “Elected student leaders aren’t required to take endless levels of abuse in their roles.”
Concerns were also raised about the outgoing President of NUS and one of her Vice Presidents.
NUS’s handling of Jewish concerns over the booking of Lowkey was discussed on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism.
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Shaima Dallali’s election as NUS President only a week after the Lowkey scandal is just the latest indication that this union does not even aspire to represent Jewish students. She has not even taken office and has already had to apologise for one historic antisemitic tweet while rapidly deleting many other inflammatory social media posts. If she wishes to show that she personally has learned a lesson and seeks to lead a truly inclusive union, she should commit to meeting with Jewish students and educate herself on their concerns and also announce that NUS under her leadership will recommit to the International Definition of Antisemitism. If she cannot bring herself to do that in short order, the Government should end its enormous grant to NUS.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Hate crime charge urged for woman in SS-style clothing and swastika armband
Authorities in California’s Orange County are recommending hate crime charges against a woman who was allegedly dressed as a Nazi SS officer and is alleged to have yelled antisemitic comments at a man who tried to get her to remove her swastika armband.
According to a photo taken by a member of the public, the woman was dressed in an all-black outfit similar to that of a Nazi SS officer and wearing the armband while walking around outside a community centre in Laguna Woods, Orange County.
A man confronted the woman, who allegedly responded with antisemitic comments. According to a spokesperson for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, a “physical altercation” ensued as several people – including a man in his 80s – tried to remove the woman’s armband. Police attended the incident.
Subsequently, the district attorney’s office was asked to recommend that charges against the woman should include hate crime.
The following day, the Mayor of Laguna Woods, Carol Moore, released a statement saying that the city was outraged by the incident. “The city of Laguna Woods stands firmly against antisemitism, bigotry and hate in all its forms, fully and without exception,” the statement read, adding that the conduct “alleged in the disturbance” was “abhorrent, inexcusable, and antithetical to the character and values of our community” and that “any delay” in the public response was intended to “allow the investigation to conclude.”
City Councilman Noel Hatch, who said that he had lived in the area for 25 years and had seen “no indication that there is anything like this brewing,” described it as “a solo act” that was “not germane to any concern” that there was “something brewing here in Laguna Woods village.”
The incident came a month after antisemitic fliers were distributed in the Orange County districts of Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Cypress. A report released in 2021 by the Orange County Human Relations Commission found that, in 2020, hate crimes in the county increased by 35%.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: ADL
State of Kansas adopts the International Definition of Antisemitism
The Kansas state Legislature has reportedly adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism.
Bill HCR 5030, the short title of the bill named “Recognising the growing problem of antisemitism in the United States”, was adopted unanimously in the Kansas Senate with 38 “Yea” votes.
Gavriela Geller, Executive Director of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau, American Jewish Committee in Kansas is reported to have said: “We can’t fight what we can’t define. The adoption of the definition is a crucial step towards combating rising Jew-hatred.”
The 2014 Pew Religious Landscape Survey showed that less than one percent of Kansas adults identified as Jewish. In 2017, the Jewish population of Kansas was reported to be 17,300. This has not meant, however, that the midwestern state has been free of antisemitic incidents.
In April 2014, 73-year-old Frazier Glenn Miller Jr, a former member of the Ku Klux Klan and known neo-Nazi, was convicted of murder after killing three people in a shooting spree at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Kansas City and the Jewish retirement community Village Shalom, both in Overland Park, Kansas. Mr Miller was sentenced to death, but died in prison in 2021 while awaiting execution.
Britain was the first country in the world to adopt the International Definition, something for which Campaign Against Antisemitism and Lord Pickles worked hard over many meetings with officials at Downing Street. Since then, numerous local councils, universities and sport associations in the United Kingdom have adopted the Definition, as have several national governments and myriad municipalities and associations around the world.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Austrian anti-vaccination protesters who wore Stars of David sentenced in court
Two Austrian men who publicised myths about coronavirus vaccinations by wearing Stars of David have reportedly been convicted of violating the Alpine republic’s strict anti-Nazi laws.
The two men, who have both refused to be vaccinated, had worn yellow felt stars bearing the word “Ungeimpft” (unvaccinated) at anti-vaccination demonstrations held in Vienna.
A court in Vienna heard that the defendants, known as “Mr K”, 50, and “Mr B”, 34, pled not guilty to infringing upon Austria’s 1947 Verbotsgesetz (Prohibition Act), which not only banned Nazi paramilitary organisations, but made it illegal to publish or broadcast denials or minimisation of the Holocaust. Austria’s Jewish community has recently argued that these laws should be extended to ban the utilisation of Holocaust-related imagery and slogans in order to push anti-vaccination conspiracy theories.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included protesters donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia that Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by the German federal government in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
The judge handed both men fifteen-month suspended sentences and three years’ probation.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Chief Prosecutor’s report shows “omnipresent” antisemitism in Berlin
The publication of the 2021 Antisemitism Report by the Berlin Attorney General’s Office has reportedly sparked concerns among authorities in the German capital.
The annual report, which has recorded rising antisemitism in recent years, states that there have been two main trends in antisemitic discourse over the last twelve months: coronavirus conspiracy theories and incidents apparently inspired by developments in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Much of the rhetoric that has emerged from anti-vaccination conspiracy theorists has compared lockdowns to the Holocaust. These crude and inflammatory comparisons have included Berliners donning yellow stars bearing the word “Unvaccinated”, a comparison that has been made across the world, including in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Such symbolism is reminiscent of the kind of insignia Jews in Germany and occupied Europe were forced to wear by the Nazis. Those wearing such items in 2021 do so in order to compare the persecution of the Jewish people with protective measures sanctioned by the German federal government in order to deal with the pandemic. Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination networks have become known as hotbeds of antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes.
The report also contains a section on antisemitic incidents relating to Israel. It states that these kinds of incidents are inspired by the intensification of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group. Protests and demonstrations against Israel resulted, it says, in “many anti-Jewish and anti-Israel incidents.” In response to the spike in antisemitic incidents, Germany banned the Hamas flag in June.
The report clearly shows a growing antisemitism problem in the German capital. In 2021, Berlin authorities dealt with up to 661 cases motivated by antisemitism, including “antisemitic animosities, insults, threats and physical attacks.” This marks an increase from 417 such incidents in 2020 and 386 in 2019. This follows a similar report put out by the Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism (RIAS), a Berlin-based agency that reports and documents antisemitic incidents throughout Germany. The RIAS study revealed that there had been 522 antisemitic incidents registered in Berlin between January and June 2021 – a period that includes the elevated tensions between Israel and Hamas – marking a seventeen percent year-on-year increase, and the highest number of such incidents since 2018.
Chief Prosecutor Claudia Vanoni said of the most recent report that “In 2021, the year of the 1700th anniversary of Jewish life in Germany, antisemitism was omnipresent as well.”
We reported last year that the German Government will pay €35 million to combat antisemitism. German Education and Research Minister Anja Karliczek said: “This is the highest number [of antisemitic incidents] in the last couple of years. There’s reason for worry that this is only the tip of the iceberg and that the unreported number of daily attacks on Jews is substantially higher.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
CAA appeals to Attorney General as Nicholas Nelson handed absurdly lenient sentence following antisemitic harassment
The defendant in a criminal case that resulted from first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism has been handed an absurdly lenient sentence today at Southwark Crown Court which we are appealing to the Attorney General’s Office, which has the power to refer sentences for certain offences, which she believes to be unduly lenient, to the Court of Appeal.
The eighteen-month sentence, suspended for two years, was the culmination of first-of-its-kind litigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism to unmask an anonymous antisemitic online troll.
When the defendant was unmasked as a result of our litigation, we realised that he was a repeat offender with a long history of obsessive antisemitic harassment. He had committed the offences, for which he was today sentenced, whilst apparently already subject to a suspended sentence for other antisemitic offences. This would appear to demonstrate his contempt for the supposedly deterrent suspended sentences that he had already been handed.
Nonetheless, instead of going directly to prison, the defendant, Nicholas Nelson, 32, was instead ordered to undertake just 30 days of rehabilitation activity and 220 hours of unpaid community service. He must also pay a modest victim surcharge and is subject to a restraining order.
Handing down the suspended sentence, referring to Mr Nelson’s “horrible tirades”, Judge Charles Gratwicke said that the defendant was “not the person you were two or three years ago.” However, he accepted that “Nobody sitting here in this courtroom who has read the newspaper can feel anything but revulsion, sickness and downright anger at the type of hate that you engaged in.”
Mr Nelson had pleaded guilty at Peterborough Crown Court in January to racially aggravated harassment under section 31(1)(b) of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and with sending an electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety under 1(1)(a) of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, after he repeatedly sent abusive antisemitic e-mails and messages to Oscar-nominated Jewish writer Lee Kern and hateful messages to communications strategist Joanne Bell, and harassing a staff member at the Board of Deputies, a Jewish charity, over the telephone.
Mr Kern contacted Campaign Against Antisemitism, which funded a case on his behalf led by Mark Lewis, the esteemed lawyer who is also an Honorary Patron of Campaign Against Antisemitism.
The abusive communications came from accounts that Mr Nelson had worked hard to make anonymous. Victims of abuse from anonymous accounts usually have nowhere to go, because only rarely will the police track down the sender, and the cost of private action is usually beyond victims’ means.
However, a new legal initiative devised by Campaign Against Antisemitism together with counsel breaks through that barrier. It has enabled us to identify the anonymous troll by obtaining a special kind of court order which has its origins in the pharmaceutical industry and has never before been used to unmask an anonymous abuser sending antisemitic messages. The court order requires an internet service provider to disclose details of the owner of an online account so that legal proceedings can be issued.
We used this legal device to identify Mr Nelson and criminal proceedings were commenced, leading to him pleading guilty. Mr Nelson had called for another Holocaust, called Mr Kern Shylock, spoke of Jews being used for gun practice, called Jewish women whores, shared obscene sexual fantasies involving Hitler, and glorified the proscribed genocidal antisemitic terror group, Hamas.
Mr Nelson, who lives in Cambridgeshire and was a vigorous supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, also previously sent abusive messages to two Jewish women Labour MPs, branding one a “vile useless c***” and the other a “traitor” who should “end yourself”. At the end of 2018 he pleaded guilty to the same charge and was given a twenty-week suspended sentence for twelve months and ordered to complete 160 hours unpaid work. In 2020, he pleaded guilty to three charges of sending communications of an offensive nature to two other Labour MPs, one of whom is Jewish and the other is an active campaigner against antisemitism. In addition to the charges that Mr Nelson pleaded guilty to today in relation to Mr Kern and Ms Bell, Mr Nelson also pleaded guilty to harassing a member of staff at the Board of Deputies over the telephone.
Mr Kern said: “I have noted the immediacy with which custodial sentences have been handed out for first time offenders who have engaged in other forms of racism. Yet here we have a repeat offender who has embarked upon an unparalleled campaign of hatred against Jews and has been spared prison again and again. Why are antisemitic hate crimes not deemed as criminal as those of other forms of racism? What exactly does it take for a person found guilty of repeated racially motivated crimes against Jews to actually go to prison? This is a disgrace and an embarrassment and sends a clear signal to Britain’s Jews that when it comes to receiving justice, they don’t count.”
Stephen Silverman, Director of Investigations and Enforcement at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “Today’s sentence is deeply disappointing. Nicholas Nelson has, for years, obsessively harassed Jews and sent them violent and obscene messages day after day. Instead of sending him to prison where he belongs, Judge Gratwicke has spared a man who deserves no leniency. We are now referring this absurd sentence to the Attorney General’s Office.
“Though the sentence has been regrettable, the fact that Mr Nelson was convicted proves the efficacy of our new legal device to unmask internet trolls who hide behind anonymous e-mail addresses in order to abuse Jewish victims. This game-changing approach is the most significant development in the legal fight against online hate in years. We have been grateful for the cooperation of the police and prosecutors. We will continue to devise innovative legal mechanisms to protect the Jewish community and deliver justice to victims of antisemitism, including in ways previously thought impossible.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews almost four times more likely to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Image credit: JC
Neo-Nazi group present at Boston St Patrick’s Day parade
Organisers of this year’s annual St Patrick’s Day parade in Boston were left feeling “disgusted” after it was discovered that a far-right group wearing items featuring neo-Nazi symbolism and holding a banner saying “Keep Boston Irish” had attended.
The twenty-strong group, reportedly the Nationalist Social Club (NSC), who is known for engaging with mainstream public events, was seen wearing green clothes and baseball caps. They remained anonymous through the use of face-masks bearing the number 131 (code for ACA, or anti-communist action) and sunglasses.
Though confined to small, self-organising chapters mostly inside the United States, the organisation is known for spreading white supremacism. They maintain an overtly military theme, regarding themselves as combatants against a “Jewish-controlled” social and political system that aims at “white genocide”.
One member of the group was spotted holding a flag with the Celtic cross (a black flag with a white “plus” sign inside a circle). This Irish Christian symbol is often appropriated by white supremacist groups.
A joint statement co-written by City Council President Ed Flynn, Councillor Michael Flaherty, state Senator Nick Collins, state Representative David Biele, US Representative Stephen Lynch, and Suffolk County clerk of civil courts Michael Donovan said: “We are disgusted by reports of outside hate groups descending into Boston for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade yesterday. Their ideology is repugnant and contrary to an event that celebrates our proud immigrant history and is enjoyed by children, families, and people of all ethnicities and backgrounds.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Woo stated: “It was deeply disturbing to see this display at a local celebration of culture and heritage, as we work to heal and build community through our recovery. With the growing intensity of white supremacist groups nationally, we are working closely with law enforcement at all levels – Boston will not tolerate hate crimes, and we will not be intimidated in our work to build a city for everyone.”
Sergeant Detective John Boyle, a spokesman for Boston police, stated that the police were aware of the group’s presence and that they would be conducting follow-up investigations.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Teenagers in Florida sentenced after spray-painting the word “Jew’s” on rabbi’s driveway
Two teenagers have been found guilty of carrying out a hate crime against a rabbi and sentenced in Bonita Springs, Florida.
Seventeen-year-old Tucker Bachman and fourteen-year-old Case Leckbee have been found guilty of criminal mischief when they defaced Rabbi Mendy Greenberg’s home, spray-painting the word “Jew’s” on his driveway, destroying his mailbox, and smashing his car window.
Mr Bachman and Mr Leckbee were reportedly sentenced to community service and a curfew. They also have to attend a Neighbourhood Accountability Board with their parents or guardian, at which Rabbi Greenberg will be present.
State Attorney Amira Fox said: “These juveniles will face their consequences immediately from the community they injured. They will learn of the impact of their senseless behaviour by meeting with leaders of the Jewish community and, together, the community will determine how best to repair the harm.”
Rabbi Greenberg is reported to have said: “I’m not looking for punishment, I’m looking for rehabilitation. For something to be rectified, for a wrong to be righted.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Image credit: Lee County Sheriff’s Office
Anne Frank betrayal book recalled after being refuted by historians
A book that claimed to expose the betrayer of Anne Frank has been removed from circulation after its findings were revealed to be unsound.
Prompted by research by Dutch historians, Canadian author Rosemary Sullivan’s The Betrayal of Anne Frank, published by the Amsterdam-based firm Ambo Anthos, will no longer be available.
The Betrayal of Anne Frank alleged that Arnold van den Bergh, a member of Amsterdam’s Jewish council – an administrative body forcibly established by the Nazis as part of their occupation of the Netherlands – led the police to the Frank family’s address at Westermarkt.
Campaign Against Antisemitism reported in February 2022 that Ms Sullivan’s book would no longer be printed until more work could be done to verify Ms Sullivan’s claims. However, after a 69-page report refuting the author’s findings, the publisher has now asked bookstores to return any stock they have already bought.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
NUS under fire on several fronts after failing to attend Education Committee hearing in wake of Lowkey scandal
After a representative from the National Union of Students (NUS) failed to attend a hearing of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, the controversial union is coming under fire on several fronts.
The Chair of the Committee, Robert Halfon MP, excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend his hearing on Tuesday, particularly given that the hearing took place just days after a scandal involving the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, who was due to headline the union’s centenary conference. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdraw from the event.
In an attempt at an apology, NUS grotesquely alleged that, “Whilst we welcome genuine political debate, we’ve been sad to see the use of harassment and misinformation against Lowkey.” Swiping at Mr Halfon, NUS has asserted that “MPs and education leaders are accountable to us not the other way round,” declared that “Old school bullying culture is never acceptable including at Government committees [sic],” and that “Elected student leaders aren’t required to take endless levels of abuse in their roles.”
Mr Halfon has expressed his deep dissatisfaction with NUS’s handling of this crisis and its record.
However, fresh revelations about NUS are prompting yet more concern.
An investigation by the Jewish News has concluded that “NUS leaders have quietly dropped a commitment to the International Definition of Antisemitism.” The investigation noted that the outgoing NUS President, Larissa Kennedy, ‘liked’ a tweet celebrating the passage of a resolution calling on Queen Mary University of London and its students’ union to adopt the Jerusalem Declaration, which is a wrecking document intended to undermine the globally-recognised Definition. It also observed that references to the Definition on the NUS website have all but disappeared, despite a statement by the union in 2020 declaring that “NUS is in full support of all efforts to tackle antisemitism and has adopted the [International] Definition of Antisemitism.”
The newspaper also claimed that Sara Khan, an ally of Ms Kennedy’s who was promoted to the new Vice-President Liberation and Equality position, allegedly posted on Twitter: “Is it kind of… antisemitic to homogenise all Jews into an ‘ethnoreligion’? like, both erasing Palestinian Jews, & letting white supremacist/settler Jews off the hook?” In a further post, she allegedly said that she “did some learning” and had concluded that “Judaism as an ethnoreligion refers to the shared heritage of all Jews as identity is passed down through maternal lineage but this is not the same as being a single ethnic group.” She then reportedly wondered: “Imagine thinking the billions of Muslims whether South Asian or Arabic or Eastern European were the same ethnic group. I can’t.” According to the report, Ms Khan also regularly spells “Israel” as “Isra*l”.
Ms Kennedy and Ms Khan allegedly also “played a leading role” in “facilitating” a launch event for last year’s online NUS Decolonialise Education campaign at which Mr Dennis delivered the keynote speech. The report points out numerous inflammatory aspects of this campaign.
Approached by the Jewish News for comment on the allegations in its report and for clarification on whether NUS was still committed to the International Definition of Antisemitism, a spokesperson for the union reportedly said: “Thanks for e-mailing. We won’t be commenting on this.”
Meanwhile, an NUS presidential candidate favoured to win the election to replace Ms Kennedy has been forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. Shaima Dallali tweeted the words ““Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud” in 2012.
The “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud” chant, translated in English as “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning”, is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali, who is the President of the City University London students’ union, issued a statement yesterday, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Last year, prior to Ms Dallali’s enture as President, City University students’ union organised a controversial campus-wide referendum on the International Definition of Antisemitism after reportedly failing to consult Jewish students.
These NUS scandals come after Campaign Against Antisemitism published polling earlier this month in its latest Antisemitism Barometer showing that a staggering 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Israeli Knesset member’s virtual meeting zoombombed with antisemitic abuse
A member of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, is reported to have tried to hold a Zoom meeting about the relationship between Israel and Jews in the diaspora, only for him to become a target for references to Hitler and the Nazis.
Zoombombing is when people join a Zoom video call with the intention of derailing it. This usually involves spewing antisemitic, racist, or otherwise hateful rhetoric.
Alon Tal, a member of the Blue and White party, organised the open-access online event, entitled “How Israel can better represent Jews around the world?” for the evening of Sunday 20th March.
Soon after the gathering began, however, several people joined in and began filling the screen with offensive language. They also wrote “Hitler was right” and plaudits for other Nazi leaders in Zoom’s chat function. Mr Tal was then forced to cancel the call, which has been rescheduled for the evening of Sunday 27th March.
Quoting the Hasidic Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, Mr Tal is reported to have said: “We will continue to strengthen our partnerships with our friends around the world. And most importantly, we will have no fear at all.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Boris Johnson calls for “irreversible change” after branding British universities too “tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism”
The Prime Minister has called for “irreversible change” after branding British universities too “tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism”.
Boris Johnson was responding to a question by Andrew Percy MP in the House of Commons during Prime Minister’s Questions.
Mr Percy, who is the co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Antisemitism, said: “Sadly, in my role as chair of the all-party group against antisemitism, the news is not so positive. We have recently heard from Jewish students who are suffering record antisemitic attacks on university campuses, including allegations of their work being marked down by their own professors. This is completely outrageous, and one would expect the National Union of Students to be on their side, but instead of helping the students it has been inviting somebody who is engaged in antisemitic conspiracy theories—a rapper—to a conference. Will the Prime Minister do everything in his power to ensure that campuses are a safe place for British Jewish students?”
Mr Johnson responded: “Our universities have, for far too long, been tolerant of casual or indeed systematic antisemitism. I hope that everybody understands the need for change—for rapid and irreversible change—but it is also important that we have an antisemitism taskforce devoted to rooting out antisemitism in education at all levels.”
We commend Mr Percy for drawing attention to this issue, and the Prime Minister for his commitment to tackling the problem.
The exchange comes shortly after Campaign Against Antisemitism published polling in its latest Antisemitism Barometer showing that a staggering 92% of British Jews believe that antisemitism in universities is a problem.
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Controversial councillor who joked about “Jew process” and was expelled from Labour Party now joins Greens
A controversial councillor infamous for joking about “Jew process” and who was expelled from the Labour Party has now been welcomed to the Green Party.
Jo 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 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 is 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 the Labour Party for her association with the proscribed antisemitism-denial group, Labour Against the Witchhunt. Cllr Bird said on Facebook: “I’m delighted to say that the Labour Party have expelled me today. They say its [sic] for speaking at a meeting (more than three years ago) and signing a petition (early 2020) – organised by Labour Against the Witchthunt, which they banned only four months ago. I’m not free from the Labour Party’s hostile environment, where Jewish people like me are 31 times more likely to be investigated for talking about the racism we face.” She concluded by stating that “this racist Labour party is so different to the Party I joined in 2015. The Labour Party is dying as a vehicle for social justice.”
Cllr Pat Cleary, who leads the now six-strong contingent of Green councillors on Wirral Council, said in a statement this week that “hardworking people like Jo are very welcome in the Green Party.”
The move comes just after Campaign Against Antisemitism published new polling that shows that a majority of British Jews believe that the Green Party is too tolerant of antisemitism, making it only the second party, after Labour, to cross that threshold.
Recently, the controversial former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, was denied membership of the Green Party, while inflammatory former Deputy Leader, Shahrar Ali, was dropped as the Party’s Spokesperson for Policing and Domestic Safety, but not over allegations of antisemitism, which have dogged him in the past.
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 who now holds the International Coordinator portfolio, on which the Green Party has failed to act.
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.
“These days, any criticism of Israel is deemed ‘antisemitic’,” says inflammatory columnist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown in her latest use of Livingstone Formulation
The controversial columnist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, has deployed the Livingstone Formulation yet again, asserting that “These days, any criticism of Israel is deemed ‘antisemitic’.”
Ms Brown made the claim in a column this week for the i newspaper on Israel’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The “Livingstone Formulation”, named by sociologist David Hirsch after the controversial former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, is used to describe how allegations of antisemitism are dismissed as malevolent and baseless attempts to silence criticism of Israel. In its report on antisemitism in the Labour Party, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) found that suggestions of this nature were part of the unlawful victimisation of Jewish people in the Party.
Late last year, Ms Brown made a similar claim, arguing in an article that “any criticism of the state [of Israel] is deemed antisemitic by apologists and diehard allies, and suggesting that this is motivating a “purge” of Labour Party members. In the article titled “The UN is warning of spiralling violence, yet the West has forgotten the Palestinians” for the i newspaper, Ms Alibhai-Brown also wrote that “a report from Jewish Voice for Labour accused Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party of purging Jewish members who call Israel to account.”
That was not Ms Alibhai-Brown’s first offence of this nature either. The year before, she replied to journalist Stephen Bush’s reaction to being appointed to lead a Jewish charity’s review of racial inclusivity in the Jewish community by tweeting: “maybe ask them about the Palestinians.” The review was concerned with British Jews and was unrelated to Israel, a distinction that Ms Alibhai-Brown is apparently incapable of apprehending.
Previously Ms Alibhai-Brown also expressed her opposition to the Labour Party’s adoption of the International Definition of Antisemitism, describing the fringe minority of Jewish individuals who agreed with her as “good Jews”.
Newspapers and television broadcasters who host Ms Alibhai-Brown must think again before giving a platform to someone who takes such positions.
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 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].
Broadcaster Angela Epstein reveals her son was rounded upon for wearing skullcap
The journalist and broadcaster Angela Epstein appeared on the most recent episode of Podcast Against Antisemitism where she revealed that her son was nearly assaulted by three men after they had seen him wearing his skullcap, or kippah.
When Ms Epstein was asked by our host whether she was surprised that polling by Campaign Against Antisemitism showed that a shocking 46% of British Jews said that they do not display visible signs of their Judaism due to antisemitism, she replied that she was not.
“Antisemitism is the oldest hatred documented in terms of people’s disregard, hatred, dislike for cultures that they feel are alien to them,” Ms Epstein said. “I completely understand why in certain circumstances, loathe as we are to admit it considering our history, that people would want to not display their Jewish credentials.”
Ms Epstein went on to reveal that the issue of Jewish visibility was a personal one to her after her son was nearly attacked.
“One of my kids was rounded upon by three Arab-speaking men when he was travelling recently in Europe. They were staying in the same place…the night before they had seen him and he wasn’t wearing his kippah and they were perfectly friendly. And the next day, when they saw him and he was, they rounded upon him,” Ms Epstein said.
She added: “Fortunately, the German police were very good and they have since been arrested.”
Ms Epstein stated that the incident was an example of what happens “when you display your Judaism in certain situations,” adding: “There are lots of people who are amenable and reasonable but equally, it’s an age-old hatred and we still haven’t found out why they don’t like us.”
Throughout the interview, Ms Epstein touched upon a wide variety of topics, including her Jewish Ukrainian heritage, how her last name can sometimes conjure unwanted connotations, and what it means to be a Jewish mother.
The podcast with Ms Epstein can be listened to here, or watched here.
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, The Sunday Telegraph columnist Zoe Strimpel and actor Eddie Marsan.
Detroit synagogue targeted by bomb threat hoax on day after Jewish festival
A synagogue in Farmington Hills, Michigan, received a telephone call on 18th March from someone who claimed to have planted a pipe bomb at the synagogue.
The Temple Adat Shalom building was evacuated, and police and police dogs sent in to search for the device.No bomb was found, and the incident was described as a “cruel hoax designed to terrorise our communities,” by Rabbi Aaron Bergman in an e-mail to the congregation.
The hoax threat came the day after the conclusion of a Jewish festival that celebrates a biblical attempt to wipe out the Jewish people.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
Swastikas daubed on Peterborough building three months after similar incident
Reports have surfaced that swastikas have been spray-painted on a building in Peterborough.
A Twitter user posted photographs of the graffiti on the social media platform, adding that he tried to report the incident to the police but was not able to because the wall was not his property.
Mr Griffiths speculated that the property may belong to Cross Keys Homes, Peterborough’s largest provider of independent living accommodation tailored to the needs of elderly and vulnerable residents.
In an exchange over Twitter with Cambridgeshire Police, Mr Griffiths was informed that the crime can be reported online, only for him to reportedly find the link broken and himself unable to report damage done to a property that did not belong to him.
This is not the first such incident to be reported in recent months in the area. In December, we reported that local residents had conveyed their outrage after swastika graffiti was found on walls in a nearby shopping centre.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Jewish people in Edgware reportedly pelted with eggs
Jewish people in Edgware have reportedly been pelted with eggs in public over the last two weekends.
According to the Community Security Trust, there have been several reports of such incidents.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has previously reported on occupants of a car hurling eggs at recognisably-Jewish Edgware residents, and the words “Hail Hitler, f*** Jews” scrawled on the wheelie bin of an Edgware workplace owned by a Jewish businessman.
CST has asked for witnesses and victims to come forward. Anybody who has any information that might help the investigation is asked to report to the police on 101 and CST on 0800 032 3263.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Police investigate football fans’ “f****** Jew” chant on train
West Midlands Police are reportedly looking into a video that appears to show football fans singing a song targeting Jewish people on a Birmingham train.
The video, uploaded to Twitter by Tottenham Hotspur fan @N17_SAUL, appears to show Arsenal supporters singing on their way to a fixture with Aston Villa on Saturday 19th March.
The song, which refers to the Jewish religious practice of circumcision in the context of Arsenal’s rivalry with Tottenham, ends with the words “f****** Jew.”
One fan is then reported as saying “Love that one,” amid the laughter of other members of the group.
A spokesman from Tottenham Hotspur is reported to have said: “Antisemitism in any form is wholly unacceptable and we support all efforts to kick it out of the game. We hope that those individuals conducting this vile chant are identified and dealt with in the strongest way possible.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis of Home Office statistics shows that an average of over three hate crimes are directed at Jews every single day in England and Wales, with Jews more than four times likelier to be targets of hate crimes than any other faith group.
Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Antisemitism Barometer 2020 showed that three in five British Jews believe that the authorities, in general, are not doing enough to address and punish antisemitism.
Success for Jewish students after Lowkey removed from NUS conference programme following outrage from CAA and other Jewish groups
Following the revelation by LBC’s Theo Usherwood that the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, would be headlining the National Union of Students’ (NUS) centenary conference, Campaign Against Antisemitism and other Jewish groups expressed outrage that a union meant to represent all students, including Jews, would consider the inflammatory activist to be a suitable keynote speaker. NUS has now reportedly confirmed that Mr Dennis will not be appearing at the conference.
Mr Dennis is a patron of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). A month-long investigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism in 2017 exposed extensive antisemitic bigotry amongst PSC supporters on social media. Mr Dennis has previously described Israel as a “racist endeavour” in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as “antisemitic”, spoken of the “Zionist lobby” in the context of global capitalism, has reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson, defended the disgraced academic David Miller, and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn.
More recently, Mr Dennis has reportedly claimed that the “mainstream media” has “weaponised the Jewish heritage” of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “stave off” inquiries about far-right groups in Ukraine. He has also appeared on the disgraced former MP Chris Williamson’s show on Press TV, an Iranian state-owned news network whose British broadcasting licence was revoked by Ofcom in 2012. Mr Dennis has appeared alongside the disgraced academic David Miller.
When Jewish students raised concerns about the choice of act for the union’s conference, NUS reportedly advised them that they could use an “existing safe space” which was to be “designated for students who are sensitive to loud noise” during Mr Dennis’ performance. In response to worries about how Jewish students would react if the performance went ahead, NUS reportedly replied that it was more concerned about the reaction from other students if it were cancelled.
However, after pressure, NUS insisted that Mr Dennis would only be headlining the “Liberation Conference”, due to run for two days immediately following the National Conference and intended to “bring together Black*, Disabled, LGBT+, Trans and Women Students together to build communities of activists and plan our campaigning work.” After further pressure, NUS has reportedly removed Ms Dennis from the programme completely.
The controversial Labour Party MP, Zarah Sultana, will still be appearing at NUS’s National Conference. Labour has yet to investigate an outstanding complaint against Ms Sultana by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
When Mr Dennis’ appearance was first publicised, Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “NUS knows exactly what it is doing by headlining Lowkey. He has previously described Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’ in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as ‘antisemitic’, spoken of the ‘Zionist lobby’ in the context of global capitalism, reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn as well as Jew-baiting conspiracists including David Miller.
“Headlining such a person is bad enough, but telling appalled Jews to go and stand in the corner whilst everyone else dances is segregationist and disgusting. Instead of showing solidarity with Jews, NUS is literally casting Jews aside. This is sickening hypocrisy from a union that proclaims itself to be ‘anti-racist’.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].
Woman arrested on suspected arson of church and synagogue in New Britain, Connecticut
A Connecticut woman was arrested on 12th March for arson and burglary after being accused of setting fires in a synagogue and a church.
Kimorah Parker, 30, allegedly broke into Tephereth Israel Synagogue on 11th March and started a fire that caused “fairly extensive” damage. She has also been accused of setting fire to St Matthew’s Lutheran Church.
Local police are investigating the arson with the assistance of the FBI.
The FBI released a statement in which it said: “Local police have arrested a suspect well-known to them and retain the lead over the ongoing investigations. No other incidents have been reported since the arrest. The FBI will continue to coordinate with local law enforcement and, pending further evidence collection, will determine whether federal charges are appropriate.”
A Tephereth Israel Synagogue congregation member called the incident “devastating,” adding: “We don’t know why the person who started the fire did this…we know she chose a church and a synagogue, so it wasn’t specifically Jewish; we don’t know a motive.
“It’s devastating, because that building holds a lot of memories for me and my family…I’m hoping that [the] building itself is still structurally sound and that they can repair it.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expanded our coverage of antisemitism worldwide. Please contact us if you would like to share feedback or volunteer to assist with this project.
CAA outraged after NUS suggests Jewish students who feel excluded by rapper Lowkey headlining centenary conference should literally segregate themselves
Campaign Against Antisemitism has expressed outrage after it was reported that the National Union of Students (NUS) responded to Jewish complaints about an inflammatory rapper headlining the union’s centenary conference by suggesting that the Jewish students literally segregate themselves.
Jewish students reportedly expressed concern after learning that the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, would be headlining a conference of a union ostensibly meant to represent them.
Mr Dennis is a patron of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). A month-long investigation by Campaign Against Antisemitism in 2017 exposed extensive antisemitic bigotry amongst PSC supporters on social media. Mr Dennis has previously described Israel as a “racist endeavour” in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as “antisemitic”, spoken of the “Zionist lobby” in the context of global capitalism, has reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson, defended the disgraced academic David Miller, and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn.
More recently, Mr Dennis has reportedly claimed that the “mainstream media” has “weaponised the Jewish heritage” of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “stave off” inquiries about far-right groups in Ukraine. He has also appeared on the disgraced former MP Chris Williamson’s show on Press TV, an Iranian state-owned news network whose British broadcasting licence was revoked by Ofcom in 2012. The disgraced academic David Miller has appeared alongside Mr Dennis.
When Jewish students raised concerns about the choice of act for the union’s conference, NUS reportedly advised them that they could use an “existing safe space” which was to be “designated for students who are sensitive to loud noise” during Mr Dennis’ performance. In response to worries about how Jewish students would react if the performance went ahead, NUS reportedly replied that it was more concerned about the reaction from other students if it were cancelled.
The controversial Labour Party MP, Zarah Sultana, will also be appearing at the event, it has been reported. Labour has yet to investigate an outstanding complaint against Ms Sultana by Campaign Against Antisemitism.
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “NUS knows exactly what it is doing by headlining Lowkey. He has previously described Israel as a ‘racist endeavour’ in direct and deliberate contravention of the International Definition of Antisemitism, described Zionism as ‘antisemitic’, spoken of the ‘Zionist lobby’ in the context of global capitalism, reportedly backed the disgraced former Labour MP Chris Williamson and has repeatedly supported the antisemite Jeremy Corbyn as well as Jew-baiting conspiracists including David Miller.
“Headlining such a person is bad enough, but telling appalled Jews to go and stand in the corner whilst everyone else dances is segregationist and disgusting. Instead of showing solidarity with Jews, NUS is literally casting Jews aside. This is sickening hypocrisy from a union that proclaims itself to be ‘anti-racist’.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism monitors 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].