Israel-Hamas war: How Europe is cracking down on rising antisemitism

European countries are in a rush to contain any tensions arising from the Israel-Hamas war, amid a reported surge in antisemitism worldwide. While France has banned all pro-Palestinian protests, Germany has also toughened its stance. Israel declared war after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack last weekend, killing over 1,200 people, including foreigners. Gaza officials have said Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 1,500 people and wounded over 6,600 others. Amid the recent flare-up, let’s understand what antisemitism is and how Europe is scrambling to crack down on it. Antisemitism Antisemitism is prejudice against or hatred of Jewish people. This has existed for thousands of years, with its worst example being the Holocaust. Nazis in Germany and their collaborators killed six million Jews in Europe during the Second World War. Dr Karen Auerbach, an associate professor of history at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, told ABC7 Chicago, “There is no one thing that is antisemitism. There have been anti-Jewish ideas and sort of forms of systems of anti-Jewish thought that have changed over time with common themes, common tropes but with different political context and used in different ways.” Although antisemitism works like other forms of hatred as it presents Jews as the other, it is different in the way that it portrays Jewish people as a “nefarious group” trying to control the economy, religion, health care systems, the media, primarily, the world, Auerbach explained. According to the Anti-Defamation League, the oldest Jewish civil rights group in the United States, antisemitism can be reflected in many ways including religious teachings, political efforts, or prejudiced or stereotyped views. One form of antisemitism surfaced during the COVID-19 pandemic when the Holocaust was trivialised and sometimes even outrightly denied. ALSO READ: What will happen if Israel invades Gaza? Recent rise in antisemitism Hamas’s recent attack on Israel has laid bare the deep divisions across the world. While some have expressed support for the impoverished Palestinian people of Gaza, others have held demonstrations in solidarity with Jewish-majority Israel. However, incidents of antisemitism have also surged amid the war between the West Asian nation and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. [caption id=“attachment_13246252” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] People gather outside the European Council on 9 October 023 in Strasbourg, eastern France, two days after Hamas’s attack on Israel. AP File Photo[/caption] There has reportedly been an online spurt in threats against Jews, public display of antisemitic symbols and intimidation of Jewish institutions. According to the Anti-Defamation League, anti-Jewish threats on Telegram increased by 488 per cent in the first 18 hours of 7 October – the day when Hamas carried out its stealth attack on Israel, reported V_oice of America (VOA)._ In US’ Salt Lake City, Utah, a synagogue had to be evacuated after receiving the Jewish house of worship received a bomb threat. A kosher restaurant’s glass door was shattered in Jews-dominated neighbourhood Golders Green section in United Kingdom’s London city. Mayor Sadiq Khan denounced the incident, saying he stood with London’s Jewish community and the culprit would “face the full force of the law, reported The Times of Israel. Europe’s crackdown on antisemitism German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday (12 October) pledged “zero tolerance” on antisemitism and said anyone who condones the crimes of Hamas, uses its symbols or expressions praising murder and manslaughter, or burns Israeli flags could be prosecuted. “These means expressly include bans on associations and activities. The Federal Ministry of the Interior will issue a ban on Hamas activities in Germany,” he was quoted as saying by Politico. Accusing pro-Palestinian group Samidoun of celebrating Hamas “terror” in Israel on Germany’s streets, Scholz announced a ban on the outfit in the country. “Our law governing associations is a sharp sword. And we, as a strong constitutional state, will draw this sword,” he told Bundestag, the German parliament, as per Reuters. Samidoun, which calls itself a Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, had posted pictures online on Sunday of pro-Palestinian demonstrators handing out sweets in Berlin apparently celebrating Saturday’s Hamas attack in Israel. Scholz said that while thousands of people rallied in support of Israel, Germany had also witnessed “disgraceful images on our streets in which the most brutal acts of terror have been celebrated in broad daylight”. He called the images of the celebration in Berlin of Hamas’s attack “despicable” and “inhuman”, adding “they contradict all the values to which we as a country are committed”, reported Politico. According to German magazine Der Spiegel, Samidoun, which has been organising pro-Palestinian protests, is now being monitored by Berlin’s domestic intelligence agency. French president Emmanuel Macron warned on Thursday that antisemitism and defending terror acts would be “severely” dealt with in the country. As per The Guardian, he said France should not give in to “any form of hate” but stay united. [caption id=“attachment_13246242” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Protestors holding Palestinian flags during an unauthorised demonstration in support of Palestinians on 12 October at Place de la Republique in Paris. Reuters[/caption] Offering “firm and complete” support to Israel, Macron said the conflict was not between Israel and Palestine but between “terrorists and a country with democratic values”. French interior minister Gérald Darmanin also prohibited pro-Palestinian demonstrations. He gave “strict instructions” to ban “pro-Palestinian demonstrations because they are likely to generate public order disturbances,” as per a document seen by AFP. “The organisation of these prohibited demonstrations should lead to arrests,” Darmanin said. According to the minister, over 100 antisemitic cases have been reported in France and 24 people arrested in such incidents since Hamas’s attack on Israel. Belgian prime minister, Alexander De Croo, there was “an increased vigilance for antisemitic attacks”, adding that his country is bolstering the security of its Jewish community. After UK’s Community Security Trust, a body that provides security advice to Jewish communities, said reports of antisemitic incidents had surged 324 per cent since the Saturday attacks as compared with the same period last year, British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, pledged £3m in additional funding to protect Jewish schools and synagogues, reported The Guardian.  In Spain and Portugal, synagogues were vandalised with pro-Palestinian graffiti. A synagogue in Spain was defaced with the words “free Palestine”, triggering security concerns for the Jewish community. The Jewish Community of Porto said on Wednesday that the Kadoorie Mekor Haim synagogue was coated with graffiti including the slogans like “free Palestine” and “end Israel apartheid”, as per The Guardian.  With inputs from agencies