The Jewish community in Luxembourg experienced an “explosion” in antisemitic comments and incidents following Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October and the ensuing war in Gaza, the Research and Information Centre on Antisemitism in Luxembourg (Rial) said in its annual report for 2023.
In the first nine months of last year, the group recorded 36 cases of antisemitism, an average of four a month. That number rose to 108 incidents in the last quarter of the year after Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October, triggering an ongoing war on Gaza in the following months.
The antisemitic incidents that Rial recorded include, in particular, posts on social media, which the centre reports to the BeeSecure Stopline when there is a suspicion of incitement to hatred or hate speech.
Citizens can report illegal content and posts online to the Stopline, whether these are text, images or videos on social networks, forums, blogs or websites.
Rial distinguishes between several categories, ranging from the trivialisation of the Holocaust to antisemitic stereotypes and clichés, conspiracy theories or saying Israel does not have a right to exist.
Rial uses the antisemitism definition of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), which has also been recognised by the Luxembourg government, as a benchmark.
