BERLIN—Jewish leaders have expressed strong concern about figures presented by the German government on Friday showing that the number of anti-Semitic crimes in Germany increased substantially in the first six months of this year compared to the same period in 2017.
According to the figures presented to the Bundestag, the German federal parliament, 401 such crimes were reported in the first half of the year, a rise of more than 10 percent. Most of the offences — 349 — had a far-right motive. Twelve of the 401 were classed as violent crimes.
Berlin saw the highest number of anti-Semitic crimes reported, 80, followed by Bavaria with 43.
The president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, said the government figures were “upsetting but not surprising.” He said the rise in antisemitic offenses ‘’confirms the reports from members of our community about increasing hatred of Jews in everyday life.’’
Last April, the government appointed a special commissioner in charge of tackling antisemitism, Felix Klein. , to tackle the problem head on.
About 200,000 Jews live in Germany.
Klein declared that the latest antisemitic incident figures were “only the tip of the iceberg.”
“Antisemitic abuse and antisemitic attitudes have spread unacceptably in Germany,” he said.
In an interview with daily Der Tagesspiegel, Klein spoke of “a brutalised climate now, in which more people feel emboldened to say anti-Semitic things on the internet and in the street”. “Previously that was unthinkable, but the threshold has dropped.”
One of the more contentious challenges facing Klein is clarifying the number of incidents involving Muslims, in particular asylum seekers. Critics of the government have frequently charged that its methods for gathering and classifying antisemitic crimes in Germany have underrepresented Muslim involvement in attacks on Jews.
In April two young men wearing kippahs were assaulted in Berlin. The attacker, a 19-year-old migrant from Syria, was filmed shouting anti-Semitic abuse.
The same month, the head of the Central Council of Jews advised Jews to avoid wearing kippahs, a move that was criticized and in solidarity, thousands of Berlin residents wore kippahs during a demonstration in the center of the city, in an action day against anti-Semitism.
Commenting the latest government figures, World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder declared: “The German government has demonstrated admirable commitment to combating anti-Semitism, including with the appointment of Ambassador Felix Klein as the first federal government commissioner working on behalf of the Jewish community. Nevertheless, it is clear that concerted efforts are needed across the board to arrest the steady rise in violent incidents and harassment and ensure that German Jews continue to feel secure and valued as all German citizens deserve.”
“The WJC stands ready to assist our community in Germany, as well as all levels of government, to work toward implementing the necessary steps to quell anti-Semitism across the country,” he said.
Earlier this year, a viral video of a Syrian teenager attacking a kippa-wearing man in Berlin caused outrage in Germany and prompted a debate about anti-Semitism among Middle-Eastern migrants.