96% of Jews Across Europe Have Experienced Antisemitism, Survey Finds

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – A major new survey shows that 96% of Jews across Europe had experienced some form of antisemitism, even before the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas triggered the ongoing war in Gaza and a global outpouring of anti-Israel sentiment, the Times of Israel (TOI) reports. Conducted by the European Union’s Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), the poll surveyed nearly 8,000 self-identified Jews in 13 European countries.

The poll found that most respondents are concerned for their own (53%) and their family’s (60%) safety and security, TOI reports. Eighty percent of the respondents said they believe antisemitism has intensified in recent years.

Around 76% of the survey respondents said they hide their Jewish identity “at least occasionally,” and 34% said they avoid Jewish events or sites “because they do not feel safe,” TOI reports. Some 60% of respondents said they are not happy with their government’s efforts to fight antisemitism, TOI reports.

Many of the survey respondents said they had also encountered denial of Israel’s right to exist as a state, TOI reports.

In a statement about the survey findings, FRA director Sirpa Rautio said European Jews are facing a “rising tide of antisemitism,” TOI reports. And the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza is “eroding” progress made in the fight against it, Rautio added.

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