The uncontrolled spread of hatred is also fueled by social media.

The 1,800-strong Jewish Community has seen the the biggest antisemitic wave in Denmark over the past few months, according to Henri Goldstein, the head of the community told the Associated Press, adding that the number of antisemitic incidents registered in Denmark since the 7 October attack by Hamas on Israel has reached levels not seen since World War II.

Mr Goldstein compared the current spike in antisemitism to the dark times of 1943. That was the year some 7,200 Danish Jews were evacuated to neutral Sweden to prevent their deportation to a Nazi concentration camp, leaving almost no Jews in Denmark.

The community’s security organisation has has documented a staggering 121 incidents of Jew-hatred recently, and Mr Goldstein believes that

this violent escalation is fueled by the uncontrolled spread of hatred on social media.

Of particular concern are the 20 recorded death threats, a level of hostility not seen since the 1980s. In response to the escalating danger, Danish Jews have been advised against openly displaying Jewish symbols, according to the Voice of Europe news site.

The majority of incidents involve hate messages with over half occurring online. However, the actual extent of antisemitism is likely underestimated, as many cases go unreported.

„From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”

As V4NA has highlighted in an earlier article, the surge in antisemitism is a general European trend, with an increase in hate speech and rhetoric since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict. However, besides the attacks targeting Jews, pro-Palestinian marches and demonstrations have also regularly turned into anti-Jewish, antisemitic rallies.

Most recently, a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London has degenerated into an anti-Israel and anti-Jewish stunt, as

the protesters used laser to project their slogan „From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” in huge letters onto the famous Big Ben clock tower.

The slogan is controversial in Europe, and qualifies as hate speech, for example in Germany, as it calls for the establishment of a free Palestinian state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, i.e. largely within Israel’s territory, and by wiping Israel off the map.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,”

projected from the Elizabeth Tower, better known as Big Ben, which is part of the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place of the UK Parliament.

Police did not arrest those projecting the message.pic.twitter.com/OIPKyWIhOv

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) February 22, 2024

In the UK, chanting this slogan in public is not a criminal offence but, according to former Home Secretary Suella Braverman, the slogan has become a „major player in antisemitic discourse”, according to Breitbart.

Earlier this year, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak emphasized that

„people who chant ‘from the river to the sea’ are either useful idiots who don’t understand what they are saying, or worse, people who want to wipe the Jewish state off the map. We have zero tolerance for those who promote or glorify terrorism or peddle antisemitism on our streets.”