The Hamas attack on Israel triggered a wave of antisemitism in the South Caucasus and Central Asia. The root causes of this surge are similar: anti-Israeli propaganda in Russia (which is anti-liberal and anti-Western in nature) and in the Islamic world (usually of a specifically religious nature), as well as in the West (typically taking on an extreme leftist nature). Collectively, these influences from three different directions have affected all countries of the South Caucasus and Central Asia. However, in each country this wave manifested itself in a different way due to the peculiarities of each state.
Antisemitic incidents in South Caucasus
The most vivid manifestation of this wave of antisemitism has been observed in Armenia. The reason lies in the fact that the ongoing conflict overlaps with a number of circumstances, including:
- Armenia is deeply affected by its defeat by Azerbaijan in Karabakh, while Israel is closely cooperating with Azerbaijan.
- Since the blockade imposed on Armenia during the First Karabakh War, immediately after the collapse of the USSR, there has been a strategic dependence of Armenia on Iran, prompting a certain portion of Armenian society to sympathize with Israel’s adversaries.
- Currently, there is a land dispute in Jerusalem involving local Armenians.
Against the backdrop of antisemitic sentiments triggered by the Karabakh defeat, two attempts have been made to set fire to the country’s only synagogue.
The first attack occurred even before the Hamas attack on Israel. On the night of October 3, the only functioning synagogue, ‘Mordechai Ha-Navi,’ in the capital of Armenia was desecrated. Vandals threw a bottle of flammable liquid at the building, smashed windows, and painted the outer walls. Experts cited ‘Israeli support for Azerbaijan’ as an apparent motive for the attack. The responsibility for the desecration of the synagogue was claimed by the organization ASALA Young. They posted the following explanation on social media in Armenian and English:
“We, the young followers of true fighters for freedom of the Armenian Nation, are proud to inform about the intimidation operation which took place in the morning of October 3rd, 2023, against the global Jewish center in Yerevan (Nar-Dos street 23).
The Jews are the enemies of the Armenian Nation, the accomplices of the Turkish crimes and bloody Aliyev’s regime against the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, accomplices of the forceful deportation of more than 100 thousand people of Artsakh from the Armenian ancestral lands.
The Jewish state provides weapons to the criminal Aliyev’s regime, the Jews of America and Europe actively support it.
Turkey, Aliyev’s regime and the Jews are the archenemies of the Armenian State and Armenian People.
This is a warning: our successful operation on October 3rd in Yerevan is just a beginning. This is a mere declaration of our serious commitment. If Jewish rabbis in the US and in Europe continue to support Aliyev’s regime, we will continue burning their synagogues in other countries. Every rabbi will be in our sights”.
On October 15, in the wave of antisemitic hysteria sweeping countries around the world, a second arson attack on the synagogue took place. ASALA Young also claimed responsibility for this incident. The following statement was published in their Telegram channel: “Fearless fighters of ASALA-Y struck the Yerevan center of the Jewish organization Chabad, which entangled most countries of the world in its web. The head of this gang in Armenia, as it is typical for Jews, skilfully adapts to the mood of the Armenians and swears allegiance to them. But he hides the fact that his masters are based in the United States and in occupied Palestine. From there all Chabad agents receive instructions. In Armenia, their task is to acquire connections, present themselves as friends of the Armenians, and conduct espionage in the interests of Tel Aviv and Aliyev’s Zionist junta” .
The organization’s statement expresses solidarity with the Palestinian population of Gaza and draws parallels with the attack on Israel on October 7. While Hamas is not explicitly mentioned, it’s clear from the text of the statement that they stand in solidarity with it.
“After our first operation, Chabad and the provisional government of the Armenian Republic, which had already sold itself to the Turks and was now currying favor with the Americans and world Jewry, established strong security post in front of the Chabad center in Yerevan. In addition to security guards, police cars arrived there every day. Visible and hidden surveillance cameras were installed in the vicinity of the center. But all these measures helped the Jews as much as the walls separating Gaza from the rest of occupied Palestine…”.
ASALA stated that “this second operation was carried out in solidarity with the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance movements against Zionism”, i.e. with terrorist organizations Hamas and Hezbollah. Another reason cited for the attack was the land dispute concerning Armenian property in Jerusalem. “We are also warning you: if the armed attacks of the Zionist regime on the Armenian quarter of Jerusalem and the seizure of the property of the Armenian Church do not stop, our next operation will be outside Armenia”.
The rhetoric, atypical even for Armenian terrorist organizations of the past, is noteworthy here, reminiscent of Iranian propaganda stereotypes. Armenian nationalist organizations have historically fought for the liberation of Armenia (in accordance with their interpretation of Armenia’s historically defined borders), typically using anti-Turkish, anti-Azeri (or anti-Soviet) rhetoric, but almost never resorting to antisemitism. Generally, there were no significant historical conflicts between the Armenian and Zionist projects.
The ASALA-Young organization declared itself the successor to ASALA (Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia), an armed Armenian organization that existed from 1975 until the early 1990s. The historic ASALA primarily targeted Turkey, demanding the recognition of the Armenian genocide and the return of “historically Armenian lands” (according to their perception of history) to Armenia. However, ASALA was established in Beirut among Lebanese Armenians, suggesting its collaboration with the Palestinian Liberation Front and possibly Soviet intelligence. It’s worth noting that within the Armenian national movement, the original ASALA occupied a very marginal position and in no way should be compared in terms of influence with genuinely influential Armenian nationalist organizations like Dashnaktsutyun.
The Telegram channel ASALA-Young was created on October 6, 2023, a day before Hamas attacked Israel. Until then, nothing was known about the activities of this organization. Even after the two terrorist attacks that contributed to the structure’s publicity, the number of subscribers to this Telegram channel is only 106. This suggests that the group is a completely marginal entity with little public support.
At present, numerous versions of who is actually behind the synagogue arson are being actively discussed in Armenia. Thus, one of the versions most favorable to the current Armenian authorities is the version about Russia’s involvement in the attack on the synagogue. According to this version, the arsonist was a person who did not live in Armenia and immediately left the territory of this country. It is assumed that this person could have been a representative of Russian special services aiming to worsen Armenia’s relations with the West by presenting it as an antisemitic country. There is a version about the involvement of both Russian and Turkish intelligence services (as well as Azerbaijani intelligence or their accomplices) in the arson. Along with this, the viewpoint favorable to the authorities is also popular, according to which there is no antisemitism in Armenia, partly due to the historical similarities in the destinies of the two peoples.
It should be noted that there are many other various conspiracy theories in the information space. For example, “no one set fire to the synagogue,” it’s a fake, a “fabrication”. According to one of the versions circulating in social media, Jews, allegedly in cooperation with Azerbaijanis, “are spreading information about an arson that never happened”. This version is, of course, absurd. However, it should be noted that there is little objective data on this incident, which gives room for very divergent interpretations.
There are also openly antisemitic interpretations of the events in social networks. For instance, there are publications suggesting that the synagogue was “set on fire by the Jews themselves” to defame Armenians. This version was supported by Vladimir Pogosyan, one of the most well-known politicians with antisemitic tendencies, who claimed that the arson was allegedly organized by “Israeli intelligence services.”
There are also general statements with antisemitic overtones justifying the arson. One of the authors of a Telegram channel claims that “Jews are enemies of Armenians,” another says that this is “retaliation for Palestine”, and a third urges people to go “to fight in Palestine”.
But there are many other, equally bizarre versions. For instance, claims that the synagogue was set on fire by the American CIA, or that it was just young hooligans causing mischief.
It is important to note that the ASALA manifesto and a number of other publications link the arson to the land conflict in Jerusalem.
The Armenian Church owns properties in the most revered Christian historical sites in Jerusalem. The Armenian Quarter with a population of about 2,000 people is located in the southwestern part of the Old City. In early October 2023, it emerged that the Armenian Patriarchate had leased some it this land to an Israeli construction firm. The Jerusalem Patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Nurhan Manukyan, admitted to signing the lease agreement, but stated to have fallen victim of deception by one of his subordinates, a priest from the local church. As a result, this priest was defrocked and shamefully expelled from the Armenian Quarter amid the shouts of “Traitor!”, requiring Israeli police escort. After that, Jerusalem Armenians accused the company of ‘ethnic cleansing’ and demanded that the deal be cancelled. Jordanian and Palestinian authorities got involved in the conflict, condemning the deal as an ‘attempted land grab’ by ‘Jewish settlers.’ On November 15 and 16, clashes occurred between private security guards and Armenian activists on the same territory. Due to Jerusalem’s status as a sacred city for Armenians, this conflict has drawn considerable attention from the Armenians around the world.
The prospects for the growth of antisemitism in Armenia should not be overstated. This is primarily due to short-term situational circumstances. Armenia is currently undergoing a strategic reorientation from its alliances with Russia and Iran toward Western countries. The Armenian leadership understands that anti-Israeli and antisemitic sentiments may hinder this integration. Therefore, there is no significant interest within Armenian leadership, nor among the majority of Armenia’s population, in fueling antisemitic sentiments. In addition, Armenia has a very small Jewish population, and there are no daily conflicts of an antisemitic nature among ordinary people. It’s also crucial that a substantial part of Armenian intellectuals sees certain similarities in the historical fates of Armenians and Jews.
An antisemitic, or rather anti-Israeli incident also occurred in Azerbaijan. In Baku, a man was arrested for attempting an armed attack on the Israeli Embassy. He is accused of preparing a terrorist act motivated by religious hatred. The individual who tried to commit the attack is allegedly of Iranian descent.
Antisemitism in Central Asia
Manifestations of antisemitism in Central Asia have so far been less violent because the general stance of the authorities towards Israel tends to be relatively favorable, and the vast majority of the population is not concerned with Middle Eastern issues.
On October 17, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the Hamas attack on Israel and the taking of hostages, among them foreign nationals. However, Kazakhstan officially opposes the use of force by both sides of the conflict.
Nevertheless, on TikTok and Instagram, users from Kazakhstan are increasingly making posts “in support of Palestinians”, urging against purchasing products from companies associated with Israel. Citizens are boycott such brands as Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Procter and Gamble, Unilever, Mars, KFC, and others. The movement to boycott Israeli products has been active globally since 2005 under the name BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions). The movement calls for various forms of boycott, divestment, and sanctions against Israel. The BDS movement has its own website, which publishes a specific list of companies ‘profiting from the Palestinian genocide’, categorized according to the degree of boycott.
The skeptical attitude to this boycott among broad sections of the Kazakh population is summed up in one Kazakh publication’s take on the initiative: “On the expanses of Kaznet, you can find a whole list of companies supposedly supporting Israel. Where this list came from and whether the organizations listed therein have any actual ties to Israel is unclear.”
Overall, there were no mass actions in Kazakhstan. For instance, one woman held a solitary picket in support of Palestine in Almaty. However, due to the possibility of antisemitic incidents, especially under the influence of pogroms in the Russia’s Dagestan, Kazakhstan’s police were put on high alert. Alleged supporters of Islamist organizations were detained.
According to the well-known political analyst Ashimbaev, there are active supporters of the Palestinian position in Kazakhstan. But in general, the country’s leadership and the majority of society do not consider Middle Eastern issues important for Kazakhstan and seek to avoid supporting any side.
Rallies in support of Palestine were held in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek and the Uzbek capital Tashkent. In Bishkek, in the second half of October 2023, two rallies were held, the first gathering about 100 people, and the second between 700 and 1000 participants. A similar rally in Tashkent on October 29 was disrupted by the police, and more than 100 people gathered were detained. Due to the presence of dangerous Islamist organizations in Uzbekistan, security measures around synagogues and other Jewish institutions in the country’s cities have been strengthened.
The Telegram channel of prominent Russian orientalist Andrey Serenko claims that “attempts to attack Israeli centers in the capital of Uzbekistan have been documented.” “Two individuals (one Uzbek and one Kyrgyz) are currently under arrest for these attempted attacks”.
Conclusion
Overall, the wave of antisemitism sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel in the South Caucasus and Central Asia raises serious concerns for the fate of the remaining Jewish population in the region. Such outbreaks of antisemitism haven’t been registered in the region for a long time. However, antisemitic and anti-Israeli incidents in the South Caucasus and Central Asia are smaller in scale compared to those in Russia (in the North Caucasus). It is worth noting that the new wave of antisemitism had its own specifics in each particular country. The most active manifestation of antisemitism in the form of an attempted arson attack on a synagogue was observed in Armenia. However, it was less linked to the conflict in Gaza and more to a number of other coinciding events, making the Armenian case completely isolated from all the others. All other events were caused by anti-Israeli and anti-Jewish propaganda from various external sources (mostly from outside of the South Caucasus and Central Asia region).
Andrei Kazantsev-Vaisman, PhD, D.Sc., is an affiliated research fellow, the PSCR Program at the Begin-Saadat Center
