The overwhelming majority (68 percent) of antisemitism online originates from the pro-Palestinian progressive left, according to a new report released by Israel, debunking the popular theory that most anti-Jewish hatred comes from the right-wing.
The report released by Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Ministry found that of antisemitic discourse on social media, sixty-eight percent “originates in Palestinian or in progressive pro-Palestinian circles,” Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli said when he presented the findings during a cabinet meeting.
According to Chikli, “antisemitism is changing the way it manifests and it is increasingly focusing on hatred towards the Jewish state and the denial of its right to exist.”
While the report showed a decrease in 2022 antisemitic incidents in general from the previous year, there was a 13 percent increase in antisemitic incidents that were categorized as violent from the year before. France recorded three murders motivated by antisemitism and 50 percent of the total number of antisemitic incidents in the past year were physical attacks. 2021 saw many antisemitic incidents coinciding with the May war with Hamas and the months following it.
The notable exception was the U.S., where there was a “noticeable jump” in the number of antisemitic incidents in 2022, Chikli said, and attributed the increase to “hostile atmospheres” towards Jews on some college campuses, “especially if they identify as Zionists.”
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