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Another suspected anti-Semitically motivated attack startles the USA. Some see a crisis – and Donald Trump as co-responsible.
New York – The attack on a Jewish celebration near New York causes outrage around the world. “We must all come together to fight, confront and eradicate the diabolical scourge of anti-Semitism,” wrote US President Donald Trump on Twitter on Sunday.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described the attack as “disgusting”. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called for the incident to be classified as “domestic terrorism”. Bill de Blasio, Mayor of the metropolis of New York, announced additional security precautions at a press conference on Sunday – including more security cameras and additional police presence.
Hanukkah attacks: where does anti-Semitism come from?
The 38-year-old perpetrator, who injured five people in Monsey, north of New York, was arrested. In court he now has to answer for fivefold attempted murder and burglary and initially pleaded not guilty. Four of the injured could be released from the hospital by Monday, one was further treated with a head injury.
I’m saddened to hear the news about the mass stabbing at an Orthodox rabbi’s house in New York last night. This despicable act of #Antisemitism during Hanukkah celebrations is sickening. We offer our deepest condolences to the victims’ families and the Jewish community.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) December 29, 2019
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According to the Anti-Defamation League, which campaigns against discrimination against Jews in the USA, the number of anti-Semitic attacks in the USA had actually steadily decreased since 2001 – but has been increasing again since 2014. In the worst attack to date, a man shot eleven believers in a synagogue in Pittsburgh in October 2018. There is currently a wave of anti-Semitic attacks around the world, as was the case in Halle in October this year.
Anti-Semitism in the US: The Atmosphere of Hate
Anti-Semitism is currently taking root in the United States. The Monsey attack is not the first in New York – during the Hanukkah festival of lights, which lasted several days, there were at least five attacks in New York that were obviously motivated by anti-Semitism. With the festival of lights, which lasts several days, every year Jews commemorate the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem in 165 BC. The US metropolis had therefore only recently tightened its security precautions.
The USA, a country of immigration, is known for strong social tensions among people of different origins. The incumbent President Donald Trump is now also held responsible for discharging these tensions into hatred and violence. “An atmosphere of hatred has developed in this country over the past few years,” says New York City Mayor De Blasio, for example. “Much of it comes from Washington and has a big impact.”
“Again and again we are witnessing the dire effects of anti-Semitism, this time in Monsey, New York,” wrote Israel’s former defense minister Avigdor Lieberman on Twitter. He only sees the emigration of Jews to Israel as a permanent solution.
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