British Jews Demonstrate Against anti-Semitism

Jewish groups gathered in London on Sunday in a protest against anti-Semitism.

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The demonstrators assembled outside London's Royal Courts of Justice, calling for "zero tolerance for anti-Semites," AFP reported.

The rally comes after an uptick in anti-Semitic acts in Britain, sparked by the summer's fighting between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip.

The British anti-Semitism watchdog Community Security Trust recorded 240 anti-Semitic incidents in July, compared to 304 anti-Semitic incidents in the first six months of the year.

British Jews are afraid," Jonathan Sacerdoti of the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism said in a statement last week, "Citizens are looking to the police and government to enforce the law with zero tolerance against anti-Semites, as they do in other cases of racism. It is only through zero tolerance that the tide of anti-Semitism can be turned, 

In August alone, four synagogues in Britain were vandalized, Jews were attacked on the street, and a Jewish graveyard and Holocaust memorials were vandalized.

Supermarkets and shops carrying products made in the West Bank also faced protests over the past several months. A Sainsbury supermarket branch in London reacted to such a protest by clearing its shelves of kosher food, saying it had feared demonstrators were going to cause a ruckus in the store.

Critics said these rallies have caused many Jews, as well as store owners and employees, to feel fearful and intimidated.