More than 4,000 antisemitic incidents were recorded in the UK by a Jewish charity in 2023, with the all-time high attributed to the “sheer volume” which took place after the Hamas attacks on 7 October.
The Community Security Trust (CST), a charity which provides protection for British Jews against antisemitic attacks, said the “explosion in hatred” is an “absolute disgrace”.
The charity, which also monitors antisemitism in Britain, said that for the first time ever it had recorded at least one antisemitic incident in every single police region in the UK.
The CST recorded 3,328 incidents of abusive behaviour, 266 of assault, 305 of threats and 182 of damage and desecration across the whole year.
The charity said there was a total of 4,103 antisemitic incidents in the UK in 2023, up from the previous annual record of 2,261 which had been reported two years previously.
Its report, published on Thursday, reads: “This record total is due to the sheer volume of antisemitism perpetrated across the UK following Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.
“Of the 4,103 instances of anti-Jewish hate reported, 2,699 (66%) occurred on or after 7 October.
“This figure alone exceeds any previous annual antisemitic incident total recorded by CST, and marks a rise of 589% from the 392 instances of antisemitism reported to CST over the same time period in 2022.”
The charity said it received reports of 416 antisemitic incidents in the week after 7 October, which it said was higher than for any subsequent week.
Its report said: “The speed at which antisemites mobilised in the UK on and immediately after 7 October suggests that, initially at least, this increase in anti-Jewish hate was a celebration of the Hamas attack on Israel, rather than anger at Israel’s military response in Gaza.”
The CST said the first such incident took place on 7 October, with the charity receiving a report of a vehicle driving past a synagogue in Hertfordshire with a Palestinian flag attached, windows wound down and an occupant shaking their fist in the air towards the synagogue.
Other incidents included “Free Palestine” graffiti being sprayed on a bridge in Golders Green, which is home to one of London’s largest Jewish communities; the defacing with swastikas of a poster in London of a baby kidnapped by Hamas; and a visibly Jewish man being verbally abused and threatened by people who were attending a pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Among its wide-ranging findings, the CST noted a “worrying proportion of children perpetrating antisemitism”, with almost a fifth of the 2,086 incidents recorded where the offender or offenders’ approximate age was provided involving perpetrators thought to be under 18.
The CST said it received a further 2,185 reports of potential incidents in 2023 but they were not deemed to be antisemitic – instead involving anti-Israel activity rather than anti-Jewish language, motivation or targeting – so were not included in the 2023 total.
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Home Secretary James Cleverly MP described the rise in antisemitism in recent months as “utterly deplorable” and said he “will do everything in my power” to ensure the Jewish community is safe and feels safe.
Labour’s Yvette Cooper, shadow home secretary, said the rise was “appalling and intolerable” and a “stain on our society”.
Her comments come as the Labour party faces criticism around its handling of antisemitism allegations after a second parliamentary candidate was suspended over remarks about Israel.
The party has insisted there are “strong checks” on would-be MPs, after parliamentary candidate Graham Jones was suspended on Tuesday, only a day after Labour was forced to suspend and withdraw its backing for Rochdale by-election candidate Azhar Ali.
CST chief executive Mark Gardner said: “British Jews are strong and resilient, but the explosion in hatred against our community is an absolute disgrace.
“It occurs in schools, universities, workplaces, on the streets and all over social media.”
The CST provides security advice and training for Jewish communal organisations, schools and synagogue across Britain. It also provides security at over 650 Jewish communal buildings and approximately 1,000 events every year.
