German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that migration is a significant factor in the growing anti-Semitism in the country, defining it as a “terrible challenge“, reported DPA, quoted by BTA.
“There is something like imported anti-Semitism with the large number of migrants that we have had in the last 10 years“, Merz said in an interview with the American television “Fox News“, broadcast late last night.
The expression “imported anti-Semitism“ has sparked serious controversy in Germany. Critics say he unfairly blames Muslims and migrants while downplaying the anti-Semitism that exists in German society as a whole. Such claims are often made by right-wing populist political circles.
Data from the German monitoring organization for research and information on anti-Semitism shows that anti-Semitic incidents in the country increased dramatically in 2024. 8,627 cases were documented - a 77% increase compared to the previous year.
Of these, 5,857 were classified as “Israel-related anti-Semitism“ - that is, incidents in which Jews living in Germany were held responsible for the actions of the Israeli government or the right to exist of the state of Israel was questioned. This figure is more than double the number recorded in 2023.