A new report has only confirmed what I have known for a long time – Islamist anti-Semitism remains a major problem in modern Britain.
The 94-page report by the Counter Extremism Group reveals the rising threat of anti-Semitism fuelled by Islamic extremists in the UK. It also accuses the Government’s counter-terrorism officials of a “widespread failure to recognise the extensive recent history of anti-Semitic incidents involving Islamists in the UK”.
In the report’s foreword, Lord Blunkett, the former Labour home secretary, said it was “unforgivable” for anyone to use the actions of the Israeli state as an “excuse for anti-Semitism”.
Blunkett is correct. While I believe that the current Israeli government is a malevolent regime which includes Jewish religious extremists such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, and Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister, the level of violence, intimidation, and harassment faced by British Jews shows that we are anything but a bastion of a multi-faith democracy.
Supporting Palestinian statehood and the right to self-determination is a noble cause, but the displaying of pro-terror paraphernalia and the chanting of anti-Jewish slogans at pro-Palestine marches – all too often under-policed – has revealed the dark side of multicultural Britain. The glorification of the October 7 terror attacks should have no place in a genuinely civilised society.
A new report has only confirmed what I have known for a long time – Islamist anti-Semitism remains a major problem in modern Britain.
The 94-page report by the Counter Extremism Group reveals the rising threat of anti-Semitism fuelled by Islamic extremists in the UK. It also accuses the Government’s counter-terrorism officials of a “widespread failure to recognise the extensive recent history of anti-Semitic incidents involving Islamists in the UK”.
In the report’s foreword, Lord Blunkett, the former Labour home secretary, said it was “unforgivable” for anyone to use the actions of the Israeli state as an “excuse for anti-Semitism”.
Blunkett is correct. While I believe that the current Israeli government is a malevolent regime which includes Jewish religious extremists such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, and Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister, the level of violence, intimidation, and harassment faced by British Jews shows that we are anything but a bastion of a multi-faith democracy.
Supporting Palestinian statehood and the right to self-determination is a noble cause, but the displaying of pro-terror paraphernalia and the chanting of anti-Jewish slogans at pro-Palestine marches – all too often under-policed – has revealed the dark side of multicultural Britain. The glorification of the October 7 terror attacks should have no place in a genuinely civilised society.