Being Jewish in Europe: A Withering Diaspora

I have been actively researching the situation of European antisemitism for nearly ten years; I began my first research project, which focused on antisemitism in England, in 2015. Since then, I have published a detailed report—in Hungarian—on antisemitism in the Netherlands, written several essays in English on antisemitism and Holocaust denial in Europe, and in 2021, I published a monograph in Hungarian on the issue of antisemitism and mass Muslim migration, which is still awaiting a translator and a publisher in English. It is in this context that I share my thoughts: never—not even when writing my 2021 book—did I imagine that events in the diaspora would escalate so rapidly and to such a degree.

I already wrote in my 2021 book that we are on the verge of a new wave of antisemitism, and I also predicted that pogroms could be expected in Western and Northern European cities, and possibly in American cities as well. But I thought my predictions would be validated in 10 to 20 years. I also wrote that European Jewry would come under pressure simultaneously from the far right, the far left, and from Muslims. But I did not believe at the time that masses would be cheering on the perpetrators of pogroms, or that there are in fact this many violent antisemites living among us. I also did not predict that there would be such a lack of empathy in Western societies towards the fate of their Jewish compatriots. I would never have expected that, after a massacre like that of October 7, sympathy rallies would be organised all around the world, not for the Israeli victims, but for the mass murderers of Hamas.

I’m only writing all this because my fellow researchers in the past often accused me of being too pessimistic. Perhaps—but I believe I’m simply being realistic when I predict, and have predicted, that civil-war-like conditions will emerge in Western societies. But what we are witnessing now shocks even me. Not necessarily because I didn’t expect these developments, but because I thought the population with a migration background would need to reach a certain percentage in Western societies for such outcomes to occur. 

It appears that this premise was incorrect. The Muslim population in the Netherlands stands at 6%, and that was evidently enough for a pogrom to take place in a major European city, 80 years after the end of World War II. In this respect, the future looks even darker than we thought: the Muslim population in Germany and the UK is 6.6–7%, in Sweden 8%, and in France 10%. And as the Washington, D.C., attack shows, far-left extremists also pose a threat. What kind of future can Jewish communities expect in these countries?

Well, Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli believes that Jews have no future in Belgium. In a tweet, Chikli “highly recommended” that “the Jewish community in Belgium” leave the country, declaring that it “has been seized by Islamist mobs chanting for Hamas and Hezbollah.” He added, “Re-enactments of October 7 horrors and open death threats to Jewish leaders go unanswered. Hezbollah operatives operate in the country with complete impunity.” Concluding his message, Chikli wrote, “Belgium has surrendered!” and reiterated his warning: “I highly recommend the Jewish community in Belgium to leave—this country has lost its sovereignty and can no longer protect its Jews.”

His words remind me of the speech made by the famous Zionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky in front of the Jews of Warsaw in 1938: 

For three years I keep addressing you, Jews of Poland, the Crown of World Jewry. I keep warning you time and again that the catastrophe is approaching. My hair has turned white and I grew old during all those years, because my heart is bleeding for you, dear brethren and sisters, for not seeing that the volcano is about to erupt and spit the fire of destruction. I foresee a terrible vision; there is not much time left to save your life. I know: you are too preoccupied and busy with your daily concerns to see it. Listen to my words on the very last moment: For heaven’s sake! Save your lives, every one of you, as long as there is time—and time is short!” 

Back then, too, few believed Jabotinsky’s words. 

What do the numbers show now? A record number of 144 antisemitic incidents were reported in Belgium in 2023, the highest since monitoring began in 2001, according to data from antisemitisme.be. But this isn’t a unique Belgian phenomenon. Dutch Jews said they had documented 421 antisemitic incidents last year, a record tally that surpassed the previous all-time high, reported in 2023, by 11%. The number of antisemitic incidents in Germany almost doubled last year, reported the semi-official German body that tracks antisemitism. The Federal Research and Information Point for Antisemitism (RIAS) said it had registered 8,627 incidents of violence, vandalism, and threats against Jews in Germany last year, almost twice the 4,886 recorded in 2023, and far ahead of 2020’s 1,957. France saw nearly 1,600 anti-Semitic acts in 2024, perhaps a slight dip from the year before, but still at levels unseen in recent years, the country’s main Jewish organisation said. Britain suffered its second-worst year for antisemitism in 2024, with more than 3,500 incidents being recorded, the Jewish body advising communities on security reported in February. 

And the list goes on. Perhaps only Eastern Europe remains something of a haven: true enough, antisemitism has also increased here, but it was Amsterdam, and not Budapest, where a pogrom broke out last year.

This reality cannot—and should not—be sugarcoated. Jewish communities are experiencing a major crisis again, one comparable only to that of the 1930s. The historical example is clear; the difference now is that at least some Western governments and leaders fully understand the challenge and are able to respond. Another reassuring fact is that there is now a Jewish state—one that is fighting for its survival on multiple fronts but appears to be winning. Of course, Israeli intelligence cannot be present at every European synagogue. What can a lone Jewish person in Europe do to secure their future? As the already quoted Jabotinsky once said, he had one piece of advice for young European Jews: learn how to shoot. Perhaps it is worth rereading Jabotinsky today.