Chief Rabbi Calls for National Reckoning Following Attack
The United Kingdom's chief rabbi has stated that numerous people within Jewish circles and further afield are wondering why protests such as those opposing the prohibition on Palestine Action are allowed to proceed.
Chief Rabbi Sir Mirvis stated: “Certain ones contain overt anti-Jewish sentiment, explicit endorsement for Hamas. Not every individual, however we see an abundance of this, which proves obviously risky to countless across the nation.”
Addressing before his arrival to Manchester this Friday to stand with those mourning the deaths of two individuals in a terrorist attack near a synagogue, he emphasized an “urgent need for national soul-searching.”
The assault had occurred following what he described as a persistent tide of hatred against Jews” throughout Britain’s streets, campuses, digital networks as well as in some sections of news outlets, Mirvis told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Pointing out the chant “spread the intifada worldwide” – that numerous regard as a call for violent acts aimed at Jewish people – he stated the nation had seen “with tragic clarity” last Thursday the implications of that phrase.
Referring again to his characterization as broadcast on public grounds and online, he noted: “A great deal of it is extremely hostile and additionally, when there is the unjustified demonisation of Israel that contributes directly into anti-Jewish feelings in the atmosphere across the nation which then promotes radical views. The government should take note of that.”
Upon questioning about marches arranged by advocates for Palestine calling for a cessation to the war in the Gaza Strip and protests advocating for the removal of the prohibition on the outlawed entity the activist network Palestine Action, he answered that “a significant portion” of such activities are harmful for numerous across the UK.
“Since October 7th, 2023 there have been so many people who have asked the reason these demonstrations are allowed to happen on our streets.”
“One cannot divide the rhetoric across the nation, the behaviors of people like this and what necessarily occur … These factors are intertwined and therefore we urge national authorities again to assert authority over these protests as they are hazardous.”
Religious figures also hold a specific role to undertake, Sir Ephraim Mirvis remarked, saying: “We need to talk regarding restraining our speech, the opinions we share, how we express those views and likewise a spiritual figure ought to foster coexistence and calm in our communities and within households.”
His remarks came as the head of Israel, Isaac Herzog, stated that Thursday proved to be “horrific day” for the Jewish community across the UK, the wider UK, and Jewish populations around the globe.
“It is a stark warning regarding what we’ve been alerting for a long while, that this wave of antisemitism and animosity toward Jewish people across the globe eventually results in bloodshed,” he stated on LBC radio.
Within the group urging additional state measures toward combating antisemitism was Danny Cohen, the ex-executive from BBC One, who stated on a radio program we need a national investigation on antisemitism set up immediately” since “something has become seriously flawed across our community, and it demands prompt action.”
