Antisemitic incidents peaked during general election as ‘Labour supporters blamed Jews for defeat’

Community Security Trust (CST) records new record high of antisemitic incidents in 2019, Lizzie Dearden writes

Two-thirds of all incidents were recorded in London or Manchester, which are home to the two largest Jewish communities in the UK, and 39 per cent happened online (Getty)

Antisemitic incidents hit a peak during the general election as conspiracy theorists blamed Jews for Labour’s defeat, a report has found.

The Community Security Trust (CST) recorded a new record number of more than 1,800 incidents for 2019, following four years of increases.

The charity said peaks came during “periods when discourse around Jews and antisemitism was prominent in news and politics, due to the ongoing allegations of antisemitism in the Labour Party”.

The highest total came in December, when 184 incidents were recorded during the general election period and intense debate over calls for the public to vote against Labour because of antisemitism concerns.

A tweet sent during the month claimed that “antisemitism lies from fake Jews” had caused Jeremy Corbyn’s defeat, while the CST said conspiracy theories were apparent in many Labour-related incidents on social media around the election.

Other posts cited in the report claimed that “powerful Jews are engineering claims of antisemitism to discredit a political opponent” and that “predominantly rich, privileged Jews hate Corbyn”.

“These trends do not mean that all Labour Party members, or supporters of Mr Corbyn, are antisemitic,” the CST report said.

“An atmosphere of heightened public discussion of antisemitism, racism, hate crime and related issues can excite activity amongst those people who are already predisposed to carry out hate crimes, while also causing heightened concern about antisemitism amongst potential victims and witnesses of hate incidents, which can lead to higher levels of reporting.”

The CST found that public discussion of antisemitism may encourage more incidents because people reading anti-Jewish comments are more “likely to have the confidence to express such views themselves”.

But the majority of antisemitic incidents in December were not Labour-related, including the scrawling of graffiti depicting a star of David and 9/11 on a synagogue and 10 other locations in north London.

The CST said the spate of vandalism appeared to be spreading the conspiracy theory that Jews were behind the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks.

December also saw a hoax bomb threat sent to a synagogue and Jewish organisations that falsely claimed to be from Isis and vowed to avenge the death of Fishmongers’ Hall attacker Usman Khan.

The second-highest number of antisemitic incidents came in February, when the CST said several MPs left the Labour Party citing antisemitism as a factor in their decision.

Overall, 224 antisemitic incidents in 2019 were recorded as linked to alleged antisemitism in the Labour Party or among professed supporters, compared to 148 in 2018.

The count includes incidents directed towards or committed by Labour politicians and members, and online incidents were “offenders who displayed obvious signs of affiliation to or support of the Labour Party”.

In previous years, dramatic spikes have mainly been linked to conflicts involving Israel.

But with no international trigger events identified in 2019, the CST concluded that rising reported antisemitism was “a consequence of the social and political context in the UK”.

It noted that all types of hate crime had increased since the EU referendum, saying the vote “contributed to an atmosphere in which those already predisposed to express their hatred of otherness have felt enabled and invigorated to do so”.

Of all incidents recorded by the CST last year, violent events rose by a quarter to 126 – the highest number on record.

The most common category was abusive behaviour, followed by assault, threats and damage and desecration.

Of the assaults, the majority were “random attacks on Jewish people in public places”, including on public transport, and 24 were against Jewish schoolchildren.

Two-thirds of all incidents were recorded in London or Manchester, which are home to the two largest Jewish communities in the UK, and 39 per cent happened online.

David Delew, chief executive of the CST, said: “2019 was another difficult year for British Jews and it is no surprise that recorded antisemitic incidents reached yet another high.

People demonstrate against antisemitism outside Labour’s head office in April 2018 (AFP)

“It is clear that both social media and mainstream politics are places where antisemitism and racism need to be driven out, if things are to improve in the future.”

Priti Patel, the home secretary, called the new record “appalling” and added: “I am pushing for greater collaboration, both across government, policing, the courts and community groups, to remove this shameful stain on our society.”

Louise Haigh, shadow policing minister, said: “We require immediate action. I will be working with colleagues, and with the CST and partners to identify what more we can be doing to reverse this unacceptable trend.”

Labour publishes statistics on disciplinary cases involving antisemitism and said formal allegations related to 0.1 per cent of its membership in 2019.

The party said the number of people suspended and expelled has increased, and that its formerly “slow, outdated procedures” had been changed.

A Labour Party spokesperson said: “It is deeply distressing that antisemitism is rising in our society and other countries.

“We thank the CST for the vital work it does highlighting and confronting antisemitism and in providing support and security for Jewish communities.

“Antisemitism has no place in the Labour Party and we are taking more decisive action than ever before, and more than any other political party, to root out this bigotry and racism.”