Liberal Media Successfully Resurrects European Anti-Semitism

Daniel Halper in The Weekly Standard points us to a shocking story in the Jerusalem Post describing a recent study done in Europe by a think-tank associated with Germany's Social Democratic Party. The story is entitled: "47% of Germans Think Israel is Exterminating Palestinians" and the summary says: "Study shows a strong presence of “anti-Semitism that is linked with Israel and is hidden behind criticism of Israel" in Europe."

Here are some excerpts:

"Dr. Beate Küpper, a researcher from the University of Bielefeld who co-authored the Friedrich Ebert Foundation’s study along with her colleagues Andreas Zick and Andreas Hoevermann, told The Jerusalem Post on Monday that the study showed a strong presence of “anti-Semitism that is linked with Israel and is hidden behind criticism of Israel, and is not neutral.” . . .

She termed the outbreak of Jew-hatred in Germany “remarkable” because there were widespread Holocaust remembrance and education events in Germany.

The study – “Intolerance, Prejudice, Discrimination: A European Report” –questioned roughly 1,000 people in each of the selected EU countries. . . .

Asked to respond to the statement that “Israel is conducting a war of extermination against the Palestinians,” 47.7 percent of the study’s participants in Germany expressed agreement – the highest number in Western Europe.

The statement is a typical question used to probe attitudes about equating Israel with the Nazi campaign to exterminate European Jewry.

The US State Department defines the comparison as an expression of modern anti- Semitism, as does the European Union. . .

The statement “Considering Israel’s policy, I can understand why people do not like Jews” met with 35.6% affirmation in Germany, while 35.9% of British respondents were in agreement. In the Netherlands, 41.1% favored the assertion, as did 55.2% in Poland, 45.6% in Hungary and 48.8% in Portugal. France declined to participate.

The researchers also asked whether “Jews try to take advantage of having been victims during the Nazi era.”

Almost half the Germans questioned responded in the affirmative; the country’s 48.9% result was the highest among the Western European countries. The Netherlands provided the lowest percentage, with 17.2% affirming that Jews were trying to exploit the Nazi era. The number for Poland was 72.2%, and Hungary reached 68.1%. France reached 32.3%, England 21.8%, Portugal 52.2% and Italy 40.2%."

Read it all here.

I noticed this story after writing my last post, but this is clearly the toxic result of the widespread, growing, and extreme bias against Israel displayed by the liberal media over the past number of years. They should be proud of their work: they have revived what WW II stamped out. European anti-Semitism rises again as a result of stoking the ancient prejudice and hatred of Jews under the guise of being anti-Zionist, anti-Israel and pro-Arab. The Left should be pleased with the preparatory work it is doing to get Europe ready to acquiesce to its coming Islamic masters. The transition should be seamless and painless.