Victor Isaac Eliezer, Head of Communications and Secretary General of the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece (KIS), sounds the alarm over the rise of antisemitism in Greece in a revealing interview with Manifesto.
What concerned you most about the incident in Syros? The protest itself, or the fact that people were targeted because they were Israeli?
First of all, let me say that Syros is one of my favourite Greek islands. My family and I spent wonderful summer holidays there for many years, and I have dear friends on the island. At the same time, Ermoupoli is a centre of culture—indeed, I would even say of interfaith culture—founded on the principles of mutual respect and understanding.
Under no circumstances, therefore, should Syros be portrayed as an island that does not welcome Jewish or Israeli visitors. What happened—the obstruction of the free movement of foreign visitors to Syros—was, I believe, organised by a small number of people who thought that, through their actions, they were punishing Israeli visitors because they believe that Israelis have committed genocide against the Palestinians. It is their right to hold such a belief and, of course, their right to express their anger and their views, always within the framework of the laws established by our democracy.
But what actually happened in Syros? A group of demonstrators, chanting hateful slogans, obstructed and ultimately prevented a cruise ship carrying Israelis and nationals of other countries, who had planned to visit the island, from docking. In other words, a group of demonstrators imposed an embargo—not on the Israelis, but on the island itself. They blockaded Syros. The Israelis simply continued their holiday cruise undisturbed.
As a Greek, therefore, I am saddened when I see small minorities imposing, through their actions, decisions that do not represent the majority of a society. As a Greek, I am equally saddened by the deafening silence of the many, who in many cases accept without protest the isolation of their own community because of the loud cries of the few. And as a Jew, I am saddened by the selective sensitivity of those few, who readily demonise my fellow Jews from Israel, yet deliberately choose to remain silent about and ignore the rapes and the massacre suffered by Israeli citizens—men, women and children—at the hands of Hamas on 7 October 2023.
Do you believe that part of Greek society finds it difficult to understand that being Jewish, being Israeli, and the Government of Israel are not conceptually identical?
Thank you for this question, because it gives me the opportunity to explain certain concepts that may be interpreted incorrectly, either because of ignorance or deliberately.
A Jew, or an Israelite, is a citizen of any country who is of the Jewish faith. An Israeli is a citizen of the State of Israel, regardless of religion. There are Jewish Israelis, Muslim Israelis and Christian Israelis. Jews do not all have the same relationship with Israel.
Israel was established as the national home of the Jewish people in 1948, following the successive persecutions suffered by Jews—from their expulsion from Jerusalem in 70 CE, to persecutions and blood libels promoted during the Middle Ages, to the pogroms in Spain and Russia, and ultimately to the hatred that led to the Holocaust and the murder of six million Jews.
But, as Amos Oz aptly said, we Jews never stop asking questions, and our dialogue with God and with humanity is continuous. Judaism is a religion with a pluralistic culture that allows for multiple interpretations. As I said, the relationship of Jews with Israel is not the same for all Jews. There are those who regard it as their homeland and decide to immigrate there.
There are those—who constitute the great majority of Jews in the Diaspora—who regard it as the spiritual and religious centre of Judaism and defend its right to exist. There are also those who simply regard it as a state like any other, which they may like or dislike. And, naturally, when it comes to the Government of Israel, there are critics and supporters everywhere, regardless of religion.
It is therefore a tragic mistake to identify all Jews with the State of Israel, and an even greater mistake to identify all Jews with any particular Government of Israel.
Is antisemitism increasing in Greece, or do you believe that it is mainly a matter of “vocal” groups from a particular political sphere?
In 2014, according to the findings of a major global public opinion survey conducted by the ADL (Anti-Defamation League), 65% of Greeks held negative views about Jews. The same survey was repeated in 2025 and showed that this percentage had fallen to 50%. Should we celebrate? Of course not.
On the contrary, this is a finding that calls on all of us to intensify our efforts to inform and educate, to confront ignorance with knowledge, and to combat stereotypes, ideological obsessions and prejudice. The Greek State has adopted the definition of antisemitism formulated by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), of which Greece is a member.
Within the Church, under the leadership of His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos, other enlightened hierarchs are also working to abolish customs that encourage hatred against Jews, while at the same time highlighting the unbreakable theological bonds between Judaism and Christianity. Finally, the contribution of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs is particularly important, through specialised educational programmes concerning both the Holocaust and the history of Greek Jewry.
And, to conclude my answer to your question, there will always be “vocal” groups driven by fanaticism, which may at times oppose the right of Jews to exist as equal citizens in a society, and at other times oppose the right of the State of Israel to exist as an equal member of the community of nations.
Who are today the main carriers of antisemitic stereotypes in Greece?
On the one hand, we have the anti-European Far Right, whose influence is unfortunately growing across Europe. This is a worrying phenomenon. Why? Because they seek precisely to bring about the fragmentation of Europe, strengthening national legal frameworks that would allow for the exclusion or expulsion of minority populations, free from the restrictions and safeguards provided by the European Union. As you know, we Jews have bitter experience of such laws, based on intolerance and unwillingness to accept differences of colour, gender, race or religion.
On the other hand, as I mentioned earlier, we see the selective sensitivity of circles on the Left, who readily demonise my fellow Jews from Israel, yet deliberately choose to remain silent about and ignore the rapes and massacre suffered by Israeli citizens at the hands of Hamas.
This is what the French philosopher Pierre-André Taguieff calls Judeophobia. Let us be clear: harsh criticism of the Government of Israel is not antisemitism. The slogan “Free Palestine from the river to the sea”, however, is a call for the elimination of 10 million Israelis. And that is antisemitism.
Unfortunately, the phenomenon becomes even more distressing and worrying when we encounter it in cultural spaces, at universities, in theatres and even at book presentations—spaces which, by definition, should be places for the free exchange of ideas and for understanding different political and cultural perspectives.
What would you say if an Israeli tourist asked you: “Is it safe for me to come to Greece?”
Of course it is! Hundreds of thousands of Israeli tourists visit Greece, and under no circumstances do the few isolated incidents—or even certain slogans heard in streets and public squares—make Greece an unsafe country for Israeli visitors.
I should also point out the positive role played by the Hellenic Police, whose interventions, whenever deemed necessary, have been effective in preventing violent incidents.
So I would tell the Israeli tourist: yes, come to Greece. You are much safer in Athens than you are in London, Paris or Madrid.
