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Anti-semitic incidents in UK double since 2014, figures suggest

Separate figures – released by individual UK police forces – showed 459 anti-semitic incidents were recorded by the Metropolitan Police in London in 2014/15, up from 193 in 2013/14.

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Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan said: “Once again we see the national rise in anti-semitic incidents and crimes being mirrored on the streets of Greater Manchester”.

Rises were also recorded by forces in Merseyside, the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, Hertfordshire and Lincolnshire.

“I know that many Jewish people in this country are concerned about safety in their community, and we are listening”, said Home Secretary (interior minister) Theresa May.

She said: “Those who seek to spread anti-Semitic hatred should know that the Government will act against all those who seek to divide our country and sow discord”.

“I welcome the work of the Community Security Trust (CST) in recording and publishing anti-Semitic incident reports, and it is encouraging that more people are coming forward as the under-reporting of hate crime is a real issue, ” May said.

Community leaders expressed regret over the “concern and anxiety” within Jewish communities, but welcomed the increased alertness to anti-Semitism.

A Kosher supermarket was targeted in the Paris attacks in January, while the following month a Jewish man was killed near the main synagogue in Copenhagen.

There were 164 more incidents reported from January to June this year, compared to the same period in 2014 and more than double the number of incidents than in 2013.

The increase is likely the result of a growing inclination by victims to report the incidents and does not necessarily reflect an increase in their prevalence, CST wrote in a statement about the report.

Earlier this year, a group of senior lawmakers said urgent action was needed to address the rise in anti-Semitism, while a survey suggested a quarter of Jews had considered leaving Britain and more than half felt they had no long term future in Europe.

A similar increase was also seen in Greater Manchester, where there is also a large Jewish community.

A recent poll commissioned by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) also found a marked increase in concern about violence against Jews in Germany, Belgium and France.

“But while the global picture – typified by the terrorist atrocities in Europe at the start of the year – of increasing hostility and tension towards the Jewish community is no doubt having an influence in the UK, it is not the only contributory factor”.

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A majority of the recorded incidents (353) were listed as verbal abuse, anti-Semitic graffiti, and anti-Semitic abuse via social media.

Woodford Liberal Synagogue Rabbi Richard Jacobi outside the old synagogue