The European Commission on Tuesday (5 October) unveiled an anti-Semitism strategy to tackle hatred amid a worrying increase in attacks, notably online.

“There is an increasing, worrying tendency of anti-Semitic attacks and sentiments across the European Union. Anti-Semitism continues not only to be a burden of the past, but also a present, dreadful threat in today’s Europe,” said Commission vice-president Margaritis Schinas.

Schinas added that during coronavirus lockdowns there had been “an explosion of anti-Semitic content online,” citing an EU study showing a seven-fold increase in online attacks in France and 13-fold in Germany.