Study finds that Antisemitic v!olence in 2025 k!lled highest number of Jews in 30 years

Antisemitic Violence in 2025 Killed Highest Number of Jews in 30 Years, Study Finds

Violent antisemitic attacks in 2025 resulted in the highest number of Jewish fatalities in three decades, according to a new annual report from Tel Aviv University. Throughout the year, 20 Jews were murdered in four separate attacks, the deadliest being a Hanukkah attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, which claimed 15 lives. The report indicates that the total number of incidents in Western countries remains significantly higher than in 2022, despite various diplomatic efforts to curb regional conflicts in the Middle East.

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In the United Kingdom, antisemitic incidents rose from 3,556 in 2024 to 3,700 in 2025, including a fatal car-ramming and stabbing attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year. The United States also saw targeted violence, such as a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., that killed two Israeli embassy staff members. The report’s authors noted that “high levels of antisemitism have become a normalized feature in societies with large Jewish minorities,” observing that even where total incident numbers fell slightly, such as in France and Germany, the levels of physical violence often increased or remained dramatically higher than pre-war figures.

The study also leveled harsh criticism at the Israeli government and media for politicizing the definition of antisemitism. By frequently expanding the term to include policy criticism, the report concludes that authorities have “robbed the word of meaning” and risk “discrediting a crucial fight by politicizing it and emptying it of analytic meaning.” The authors argued that the label of antisemitism is harsh and should be applied only after careful consideration based on solid, objective criteria.

Furthermore, the report highlighted a concerning normalization of antisemitic rhetoric within American politics. While acknowledging President Donald Trump’s historic pro-Israel actions—including the Abraham Accords and the recognition of Jerusalem—the study warned that the current political environment has tolerated conspiracy theories and rhetoric to an unprecedented degree. U.S. historian Christopher Browning emphasized in the report that the mixture of conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism historically leads to antisemitism, stating, “Historically, when you mix conspiracy theory, racism, and authoritarianism, you almost always get to antisemitism.”