Contemporary antisemitism in Belgium

Belgium is a European country with a population of approximately 35,000 Jews. It is among the countries which experienced an increase in both antisemitic attitudes, driven by the anti-Israeli political left and by the rapidly growing Muslim population, and in physical attacks on Jews, principally carried out by Muslims, including both non-Belgian nationals and citizens of Belgium.

1980s through early 2000s

The 1980s were marked by a number of anti-Jewish attacks, including the deadly 1980 Antwerp summer camp attack on families waiting with their children for a bus that would carry them to a Jewish summer camp, part of a wave of attacks on Jewish targets worldwide that included the synagogue in Copenhagen, the bombing of a synagogue in Paris, the 1981 Vienna synagogue attack, attacks on a synagogue in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1983, attacks on synagogues in Buenos Aires and Rosario Argentina in 1984, an attack on a Jewish film festival in Paris in 1985, the 1982 Great Synagogue of Rome attack, and the 1981 Antwerp bombing in which 3 people were killed and over 100 wounded.[1]

In April 2002 the facade of the Charleroi synagogue was sprayed with bullets.[2] In 2003 a 33-year-old man of Moroccan descent parked a car alongside the synagogue of Charleroi, poured gasoline over the car, and set it alight in an attempt to destroy the synagogue.[3] Authorities investigated it as possible terrorism. Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt condemned the attack but stated that he saw no need to raise security around Jewish institutions in Belgium.[3] Firefighters were able to douse the fire before it destroyed the building.[4]

Post 2014

2014 was marked by an increased frequency of antisemitic attacks, with anti-Semitic attacks recorded by the government increasing by 50% over the previous year.[5] The increase is often dated from the May 2014 Jewish Museum of Belgium shooting.[5][6] Two days later, a young Muslim man entered the CCU (Jewish Cultural Center) while an event was taking place and shouted racist slurs.[7] A month later, a school bus in Antwerp, that was driving 5-year-old Jewish children was stoned by a group of Muslim teens.[8] Towards the end of August 2014, a 75-year-old Jewish woman was hit and pushed to the ground because of her Jewish-sounding surname.[9]

In 2014 The New York Times reported on crowds of protestors near the European Parliament building in Brussels shouting “Death to the Jews!”[10] On September 14, a crowd that had gathered in Brussels to dedicate a plaque memorializing the Holocaust was attacked by "youths" hurling rocks and bottles.[10] On September 18, a synagogue in the Anderlecht neighborhood was set on fire in a suspected arson attack.[10] These were among a series of incidents, including an ethnically Turkish butcher who a Turkish shop owner in Liège who put up a sign stating that he would serve dogs but not Jews, and a commuter train announcement that the next stop would be “Auschwitz” and ordering all Jews to get off, that caused growing numbers of Jews to leave, or to consider leaving Belgium.[11][5][10][12] The incidents are concentrated in Brussels, where anti-Jewish activity is driven by Muslims, who constitute about a quarter of the population of the city.[11][10][13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Jewish Targets: Recent Attacks: Chronology". New York Times. Associated Press. 7 September 1986. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  2. ↑ "Belgian synagogue sprayed with bullets despite police monitoring". BBC. 22 April 2002. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Belgian police thwart attack on synagogue". Jerusalem Post. 15 June 2003. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "Man arrested in Belgium about to blow up synagogue". BBC. 13 June 2003. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 Matthew, Holehouse (30 November 2015). "Paris attacks and Brussels raids prompt Belgium's Jews to consider new exodus". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  6. ↑ "4 killed in shooting outside Jewish Museum in Brussels". CFCA. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "Antisemitic threats near the CCU (Jewish Cultural Center) building". The Coordination Forum for Countering Antisemitism. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  8. ↑ "School bus carrying ultra-Orthodox Jewish children stoned in anti-Jewish attack". The Coordination Forum for Countering Antisemitism. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "Antisemitic attack against 75 old woman". CFCA. La- Libre. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Yardley, Jim (23 September 2014). "Europe's Anti-Semitism Comes Out of the Shadows". New York Times.
  11. 1 2 Goldberg, Jeffrey (April 2015). "Is It Time for the Jews to Leave Europe?". The Atlantic. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  12. ↑ "Belgium Anti-Semitism Sends Jews Fleeing". The Forward. Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 13 July 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  13. ↑ Ain, Stewart (29 March 2016). "In Brussels, 'Jews Are The Canary In The Coal Mine'". The Jewish Week. Retrieved 10 August 2016.

Further reading

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