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Germany is facing a sharp rise in anti-Semitism, with officials warning that Islamist and left-wing extremist networks are taking advantage of the war in the Middle East to spread anti-Semitic rhetoric, mobilize supporters and contribute to persecution and violence against Jewish communities.
According to a study by the Hessian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution, these groups are using the Israel-Hamas war and broader regional tensions as a pretext to amplify anti-Semitic narratives, including allegations of “genocide” in Gaza and portraying Israel as a colonial state, language officials say is increasingly being used to justify hostility and, in some cases, violence against Jews.
German Interior Minister Roman Posek warned that the trend was increasing.
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“Anti-Semitism is one of the greatest threats to our social cohesion – particularly from Islamism and the left-wing extremist spectrum,” Posek said in a statement.
The developments are raising broader concerns beyond Germany, as officials and Jewish leaders warn that similar patterns of anti-Semitic rhetoric linked to Middle East conflicts are emerging in Western democracies, including the United States. Germany has long been seen as a red flag because of its history and legal framework around hate speech, with the findings being seen as a warning sign of how extremist narratives can move from the margins into mainstream discourse.
A man carries an Israeli flag during a protest against anti-Semitism at the Brandenburg Gate, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Berlin, Germany on December 10, 2023. (Lissie Niesner/Reuters)
Posek, who prepared the report for the Hessian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution, warned of the deteriorating social climate, saying that “anti-Semitism is becoming increasingly intolerable even in public places.”
He added, “I am deeply ashamed of what Jews in Germany have had to endure 80 years after the end of the Second World War.” “We Germans, in particular, bear an enduring responsibility to never forget what happened.”
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An anti-Israel protester wears a high-visibility jacket during a march near the Sydney Harbor Bridge in Australia in August 2025. (Ayush Kumar/SOPA Images/LightRocket)
A new nationwide report from the Central Council of Jews in Germany found that forty-six of 102 Jewish communities surveyed in Germany reported anti-Semitic incidents, highlighting the growing scale of the threat.
The most common incidents identified in the Central Council survey were verbal abuse, threatening phone calls, vandalism and anti-Semitic graffiti. Sixty-eight percent of respondents said they feel less safe living in Germany after the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
“After the explosive rise in anti-Semitism after October 7, a ‘new normal’ has emerged,” Central Council Chairman Joseph Schuster said in a press statement. “A situation in which Jewish communities require constant protection and anti-Semitism has become normalized as part of the public sphere.”
The report also found that broader geopolitical developments are directly impacting Jewish communities in Germany. Sixty-two percent of respondents said their sense of insecurity had worsened following the recent war involving Iran, while two-thirds said the Gaza ceasefire had not improved their security.
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Law enforcement officers respond to a call at the Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan on March 12, 2026. (Paul Sansya/AP)
Jewish leaders say its consequences are being felt in daily life. Fearing persecution, many Jews are increasingly avoiding visible signs of their identity, such as wearing the Star of David or kippah, or the Jewish skullcap. In some cases, communities have canceled events due to safety concerns.
At the same time, the report highlights a sharp decline in perceived social support. Only 35% of communities said they felt solidarity with wider civil society, down from 62% in 2023.
Officials say the normalization of such rhetoric is shifting the boundaries of acceptable public discussion.
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Police arrest a protester during a rally organized by the Campaign Against Antisemitism in front of Downing Street in central London, April 30, 2026, following the stabbing of two Jewish men a day earlier in the Golders Green area of north London. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer vowed to step up security on Thursday after the latest attack against the Jewish community, while urging Britons to unite against anti-Semitism. Facing accusations from angry British Jews that his government has repeatedly failed to protect them, Starmer promised to immediately increase funding for synagogues and other sites, but insisted that British society must “come together” to “fight antisemitism.” (Carlos Jasso/AFP via Getty Images)
The findings underline growing concern that anti-Semitism, once thought to be confined to the margins, is becoming more visible in public life, leaving Jewish communities feeling increasingly isolated and under threat.
