The CST, a charity which monitors antisemitic incidents and works for the security of the Jewish community in the UK, recorded this year 111 university-related antisemitic incidents, compared with 70 in the 2019-2020 academic year.
The British Union of Jewish Students called on universities to do more to combat anti-Jewish racism.
Antisemitism at British universities is a growing problem, a report by the Community Security Trust (CST) has revealed.
The CST, a charity which monitors antisemitic incidents and works for the security of the Jewish community in the UK, recorded this year 111 university-related antisemitic incidents, compared with 70 in the 2019-2020 academic year.
The 59 per cent increase represents the highest annual total ever recorded by CST since it began collecting data in 2002.
Almost all cases involved verbal, written or online abuse, though there was one alleged assault.
A majority of cases (64) were reported in May, with all nine incidents recorded at the University of Oxford reported as the 11 day conflict unfolded between Israel and Hamas.
A spokesperson for the CST said that “the fact that this record total coincided with the conflict in Israel and Gaza shows yet again that wherever extreme anti-Israel hate is found, anti-Jewish hatred surely follows.”
The CST also called on universities to ensure their “complaints processes are fit for purpose and that Jewish students get the necessary support when they suffer antisemitism.”
The British Union of Jewish Students called on universities to do more to combat anti-Jewish racism.
It was “incredibly worrying to see how positive and active Jewish student life is being tainted by the growth of anti-Jewish hatred across campuses in the UK,” a spokesperson said.
British Secretary of State for Education, Nadhim Zahawi, said that he believes every school pupil in Britain should travel to see the Auschwitz death camp.
Nadhim made the statetement as he toured the former Nazi extermination camp in the framework of a symposium on Holocaust education organized in Krakow by the European Jewish Association to commemorate the 83rd anniversary of Kristallnacht.
He told the Jewish Chronicle that “we have to make sure young minds actually see this place, experience this place, and understand what took place here, and for them to pledge ‘never again’ for future generations.”
He added that a visit will aid future generations “understand how important is our fight against antisemitism.”