Gaza conflict leads to rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia

The Global Terrorism Index has shown a sharp increase in antisemitism and Islamophobia since October 7, 2023, while a report by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) identified an “unprecedented” number of hate crimes and bigotry in the West.

Rise of antisemitism 

In 2024, 31% of all Western attacks were motivated by antisemitic or anti-Israel sentiment. In the United States, the FBI’s hate crime data shows a sharp increase in antisemitic incidents in the US, with more than 10,000 incidents, an increase of 270% between September 2023 and November 2023, and a 200% rise in 2024. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued a joint statement warming of possible violent threats against Jews amid the conflict in Gaza.

In Europe and Australia, a higher number of attacks on synagogues were reported in 2024. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry published their report, stating that there were more than 2000 incidents in 2024. The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) has recorded as much as a 400% rise in antisemitic activities since the outbreak of the war in Gaza. The survey results point to rising antisemitism, high levels of antisemitism online, antisemitism in the public sphere, harassment, and safety and security concerns.

Europe is experiencing a ‘wave of antisemitism’, both online and offline. The FRA reported that four in five people find that antisemitism had increased over the past five years in their country. France and Germany have especially seen an increase in antisemitism. In 2024, France saw nearly 1,600 antisemitic acts, while Germany saw the highest annual antisemitic incident in almost a decade, with 1,383 incidents in Berlin alone, according to the Germany’s Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism.

The rise of antisemitism can also be seen in lone wolf terrorist acts, such as in Switzerland or Australia, and can also be perpetrated by young adults or teenagers. In Sweden, the number of reported crimes with antisemitic motives have significantly risen from 24 in autumn of 2022 to 110 in autumn of 2023.

Rise of Islamophobia 

The FBI found that anti-Muslim hate in the US increased drastically following the Gaza war, with reported incidents of Islamophobia rising by 300% in two months. Similar patterns emerged in Europe and Australia. The Council on American-Islamic Relations reported 8,061 anti-Muslim incidents in 2023, which is the highest number since the Council was created 30 years ago, with nearly half coming after the October 7 attack.

In Europe, the growing presence of Muslims, coupled with the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the rise of populist parties, has exacerbated pre-existing discrimination against these communities. The European Islamophobia Report 2023 examined anti-Muslim sentiment in 28 European countries and revealed that Israel’s attacks on Gaza led to a notable increase in Islamophobia in Western Europe. Statista found that the number of reported Islamophobic crimes in Sweden increased in the fall of 2023, rising to 62 from 50 in 2022.

According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Austria experienced the most Islamophobia, with 71 per cent of Muslims targeted, followed by Germany and Finland. The European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia reported that after 9/11 Muslims were vulnerable to racial and religious discrimination in many countries in Europe. Anti-Muslim prejudice is a key driver of far-right growth in Great Britian, with a third of the population believing that Islam threatens their way of life.

The European Islamophobia report found that the “War on Gaza has functioned as a geopolitical catalyst of anti-Muslim racism in Europe”, with countries like Norway, Spain and Greece seeing a spike in anti-Muslim hate crimes, such as increased physical and verbal assaults, particularly women wearing religious attire. According to the Scanlon Foundation in Australia, there was a substantial increase in the numbers of reports of Islamophobia in 2024, rising to 309 compared to an average of 61 per year for the last decade.