Criticism of Israel and Zionism led to a rise of anti-Jewish sentiment around the world in 2009, the US said in a report that denounced “new forms” of antisemitism.
“Traditional and new forms of Antisemitism continued to arise, and a spike in such activity followed the Gaza conflict in the winter of 2009,” the State Department said in an annual report.
“Often despite official efforts to combat the problem, societal Antisemitism persisted across Europe, South America, and beyond and manifested itself in classic forms,” it said.
Such incidents, it said, involved attacks on Jews or places of worship as well as desecration of cemeteries and accusations of undue Jewish influence on government policy and media.
“New forms of Antisemitism took the form of criticism of Zionism or Israeli policy that crossed the line into demonising all Jews, and in some cases, translated into violence against Jewish individuals in general,” it said.
It accused some governments – like those in Iran and Egypt – of fuelling Antisemitism rather than combating the scourge.
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