TOP EUROPEAN RABBI WARNS OF 'NEW ERA OF ANTISEMITISM' IN GERMANY

The Jerusalem Post

A top European rabbi has warned that the world has entered a new era of antisemitism, in response to a report released Tuesday about rising antisemitism in Germany. 

The UK Times reported that antisemitism in Germany has risen threefold in one year, citing data published by the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung. According to the report, the German Justice Ministry revealed that there had been 2,083 cases of attacks on Jews, Jewish property and hate speech against Jews last year, in contrast with 691 in 2014. 

"There is a rejection of mainstream politics and we need to be aware of the waves of antisemitism sweeping across Europe," said Conference of European Rabbis President Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt. "As a society we must take measures to reject antisemitism and ensure that it does not become a new norm.”     

“What we see right now is a revolution happening in the world,” Goldschmidt told The Jerusalem Post earlier this month, following the victory of US President-elect Donald Trump. “Europe has been weakened with Brexit and we fear now that with new winds blowing from the US, Europe is going to change as well. And not for the better.” 

The CER, which comprises more than 700 Jewish religious leaders across Europe, is bracing for a tougher battle over efforts to ban elements of Jewish religious practice. 

Having already spent the past 10 years fending off attacks against shechita (kosher slaughter) and brit mila (circumcision), the CER’s stated aim is to maintain and defend the religious rights of Jews in Europe.

“The CER’s mission to protect the freedoms of the Jews here,” Goldschmidt stated, noting that the body of rabbis is reaching out to both Jews and non-Jews, and building coalitions across the board in its work to counter potential restrictions on Jewish life.

http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Top-European-rabbi-warns-of-new-era-of-antisemitism-as-Germany-reports-rise-in-incidents-474059