DEBATE • Antisemitism has risen dramatically, especially in Europe but also in the USA, Australia, and Canada. We have witnessed a wave of antisemitism following the massacre on October 7, 2023, when Hamas and other Palestinian jihadist groups attacked Israel, torturing and executing 1,200 people and taking over 200 hostages, whom they transported to Gaza.
The most recent attack occurred as late as Sunday, December 14 this year at the iconic Bondi Beach outside Sydney. Two IS-inspired jihadist terrorists—a father and son—opened fire on a group of Jews celebrating Hanukkah on the beach. Fifteen people were murdered. Many more were injured, some critically. The victims ranged from a 10-year-old child to an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, as well as a much beloved rabbi in the community, and a Russian immigrant who had found his Jewish identity in Sydney.
Jewish communities had warned local authorities that the increasingly commonplace antisemitic rhetoric in Australia—including among certain left-wing politicians—could lead to violence. Still, much of Australia’s cultural elite insisted that these warnings were either moral panic or outright fabrication. Many claimed the real danger was not antisemitism, but that measures against it would lead to the “suppression” of pro-Palestinian free speech.
A New “Kristallnacht” Approaching
This event, and many others around the world in 2025 alone, now suggest we are about to witness a repeat of Kristallnacht 87 years ago, when the Nazis burned more than 1,400 synagogues, vandalized thousands of Jewish businesses, broke into Jewish people’s apartments and homes, and desecrated Jewish religious objects. Additionally, about 26,000 men were arrested and placed in concentration camps simply for being Jews. This marked the beginning of the Holocaust.
The question is why we are now seeing such signs of the gravest wave of antisemitism in Western countries we believed were immune to this type of discrimination, threats, hatred, and violence.
Essentially Imported Antisemitism
87 years may seem like a long time, but the memories of the Holocaust have faded and fewer people remain alive today who witnessed this shameful tragedy. Schools appear to no longer teach about the Holocaust, or choose not to emphasize the causes and consequences leading to it. As a result, antisemitism has been allowed to run rampant in Swedish schools and has become a serious threat to the Jewish minority in our country. Leading educational policymakers and principals must be urged by the government to curb antisemitism and report teachers and students who engage in it to the police.
Today, undeniably, Swedish antisemitism is mainly imported from countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. We also find the majority of Israel’s enemies there.
The Left Mainly Responsible
A great deal of responsibility for antisemitism in Sweden lies with left-wing politicians and the Social Democrats. Within the Left Party and the Green Party, it seems that nearly every politician harbors antisemitic views, some explicit, some implicit. Leading Social Democrats in Gothenburg, for example, decided to boycott goods from Israel, and who can forget Magdalena Andersson’s intense and persistent defense of the Social Democrat MP Jamal El-Haj, who turned out to be a staunch Hamas supporter and antisemite? The red-green parties’ flirting with immigrants from countries that view themselves as enemies of Israel is not merely reprehensible, it is a betrayal of democracy and the Swedish people. To fish for votes among antisemitic immigrants and to side with them is a disgrace that must be highlighted and debated during the 2026 election year.
Swedish left-wing politicians seem to compete with Spain’s and Ireland’s prime ministers over who is the most radical among antisemites. Antisemitism has also spread like a cancer within culture (read: Eurovision) and sports.
The Media Shares Responsibility
In addition to Swedish and European politicians, the Swedish media shares equal responsibility for today’s antisemitism. It’s not just left-leaning media that leads attacks against Israel and its people; publicly funded Swedish state media also delivers its hatred toward Israel, its politicians, and its people to a high degree. By employing pro-Palestinian reporters, so-called experts, and by exclusively interviewing critics of the government in and outside Israel, they have stirred up an atmosphere of hatred and threats against the nation of Israel and the Jewish minority in Sweden. This cannot be called Public Service; it should rather be called Public Disservice.
The leadership of Swedish state media cannot escape being held accountable for their one-sided reporting. The only ones who can demand this accountability are Sweden’s elected officials, that is, the Swedish Parliament. The Review Board and other regulatory bodies are utterly toothless. The management of Swedish Radio, therefore, should be summoned to the Parliament and a hearing should be arranged, similar to what happens in the U.S. Senate. Who else can publicly funded managers be held responsible to? In the UK, the top executives at the BBC resigned over exactly the same skewed and false reporting that the Swedish Radio group is guilty of, but in Sweden they are free to continue unchecked.
The State Church’s Dark Past
Last but not least, the Church of Sweden bears a great responsibility for the spread of antisemitism in Sweden. There seems to be an effort to conceal that Christianity shares a common history and roots in the history and culture of Israel. To instead promote a religion that stands in opposition to Israel is nothing but reprehensible and dangerous. We know that the German Lutheran Church, like the Catholic Church, were collaborators with the Nazis during the Holocaust. The few Lutheran priests who opposed the persecution of Jews, such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, were imprisoned and executed. There are films and books that document the churches’ roles during the Holocaust and the few brave priests who refused to participate in the persecution.
It is said that words have enormous power and force that can lead to hatred and violence, which we see daily in the news flow from all corners of the world. Without doubt, the hateful rhetoric led by politicians, journalists, and social media has resulted in the countless attacks we have seen in 2025 against the Jewish people, regardless of what country they happen to be in. We even read about environmental extremists who seem to have chosen to become poster figures for antisemitism in order to mislead young people and those lacking a moral compass.
Israel Has the Right to Defend Itself
It is said: “There is nothing new under the sun,” and unfortunately history seems to repeat itself. The expression has been coined: “To :censored:6:cdd6bbaa89:ize the intifada,” which means the country Israel should be wiped off the map. Western politicians seem to side with the mullahs in Iran and not with the only democratic country in the Middle East. They are campaigning to convict Israel of genocide, even though international law gives Israel the right to defend itself.
The question of responsibility should instead be directed at Hamas and the jihadists who are responsible for civilian casualties during the war in Gaza. They started the war by focusing exclusively on killing and torturing Israeli civilians and taking hostages. They chose to use Palestinian civilians as shields. They chose to hide weapons, ammunition, and fighters in schools, hospitals, and even UN buildings. They opted to torture and kill those Palestinians who opposed the Hamas-led leadership in Gaza. Under these circumstances, it is not possible to fight terrorists without the tragic consequence of civilian casualties.
The Bible Gives Answers
To emphasize how serious antisemitism is for all of us, we should examine what the Bible says about Israel and its people?
In the Gospel of John, among others, we read about the event where Jesus speaks to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well and says to her (John 4:22): “You worship what you do not know, we worship what we know, for salvation comes from the Jews.” By “you,” he meant the Samaritans, and by “we,” he referred to the Jews. He thus identified himself with the Jews. He spoke as one of them. In the Bible’s last book (Revelation 5:5), Jesus is called “the Lion of Judah.” The word Jew originates from the word Judah.
It is important for all of us to understand that Jesus specifically identified himself with the Jews, and that this identification did not end with his earthly life, but continues in the Scriptures after his death, burial, and resurrection—and into eternity. Equally important is understanding what Jesus said to the Samaritan woman: “Salvation comes from the Jews.” This is therefore an indisputable historical fact. Without the Jews, we would not have the patriarchs, the prophets, the apostles, the Bible, or the Savior. Without all of this, how much salvation would we have? Absolutely none!
Thus, antisemitism is not only an attack on Israel and its people but also on all Christians worldwide. We see this especially in Africa, where Christians are persecuted and killed daily. Therefore, we must stand with Israel and pray for “the peace of Jerusalem” and rise up against today’s tsunami of antisemitism.
The Bible Teacher