Thousands march in Brussels against anti-Semitism

BRUSSELS - Thousands of people took to the streets of Brussels on Dec 10 in a protest against anti-Semitism, after a surge in outbreaks across Europe amid the war between Israel and the Hamas militant group.

The European Commission has warned that European Jews are facing threats after a spike in anti-Semitic incidents across Europe.

Brussels police said around 4,000 people attended the march in the Belgian capital, with some holding placards reading: “You don’t have to be Jewish to march against anti-Semitism.”

“An old evil is resurfacing in Europe,” EU chief Ursula von der Leyen during an event to light one of the candles of a Hanukkah menorah in front of the Commission and European Council headquarters in Brussels.

“Swastikas have been painted on the homes of Jews. Synagogues have been vandalised. Jewish children have been locked in their schools because the streets are not safe for them. This is horrific. And it is painful,” von der Leyen said.

“There should be no place for this hatred, especially here in Europe. And there is no justification to the rise in anti-Semitism. No war, no political argument, can excuse it,” she said.

“This moment of celebration must also be one to say that never again will we tolerate hate against Jewish people,” von der Leyen said.

She added that the EU would create a new award to celebrate Jewish cultural heritage.

The EU commission has already announced an array of measures to tackle rising hate speech and crime including additional funding to protect places of worship.

Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip staged an unprecedented attack on Oct 7, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and seizing around 240 hostages, Israeli officials say.

In response, Israel’s government vowed to destroy Hamas with a military offensive that has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed at least 17,997 people, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. AFP