Germany: Study Reveals Continued Link Between Anti-Semitism and Far-Right Extremism

A study in Germany concluded that anti-Semitism is still closely tied to far-right extremism.

Between 2019 and 2023, the “Rias” reporting network attributed 2,284 incidents classified as “anti-Semitic” in Germany to the far-right spectrum. The study, published in Potsdam on Wednesday under the title “Far-Right Extremism and Anti-Semitism,” stated that “far-right extremism is therefore the political background most associated with reported incidents during the period.”

The Federal Association of Centers Reporting Anti-Semitic Incidents explained that far-right-linked anti-Semitism is especially violent in nature. According to the data, 6 severe violence incidents and 34 assaults by far-right extremists were documented between 2019 and 2023.

The document mentioned that Jewish institutions are particularly vulnerable to threats, as evidenced by the 2019 attack on a synagogue in Halle. It also highlighted the glorification of violent anti-Semitic crimes within far-right circles.

Benjamin Steinitz, executive director of the “Rias” network, stated that “anti-Semitism linked to far-right terrorism represents a central threat to Jews in Germany—and consequently to our democracy as well.”

A large part of the study’s evaluation pertains to the period before Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Since that attack, many of the cases classified as anti-Semitic have been attributed to pro-Palestinian activists. Criticism of Israel is often seen as anti-Semitic in Germany, but the network noted that Jews in Europe have faced hostility, threats, and attacks from various political circles since October 7, including the far-right. For example, a banner was displayed at a far-right gathering in Dortmund reading: “The State of Israel is our calamity.”

In Hannover, at a memorial site for Nazi victims, stickers were found with phrases such as “Free from the worship of guilt,” some linked to a youth organization from the far-right National Home Party (formerly known as the NPD).