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Saturday, December 1, 2018

The cigarette pack that saved lives in the Holocaust

A rare engraved silver cigarette pack was discovered a decade ago in the remnants of the Łódź ghetto in Poland. It was given to a Jewish ghetto prison warden by an inmate—the artist who made it—to buy a friend’s freedom, rather than his own.

 

Soon, the rare find is going to be a part of an exhibition in the Shem Olam Faith & the Holocaust Institute for Education & Research.

The engraved silver cigarette pack.

The engraved silver cigarette pack.

The engraving work on the piece is rare and unique for the time. To personalize the gift, the artist added an engraving with the warden’s name and the symbol he wore on his arm band—attesting to his role in the Jewish Ghetto Police.

The ghetto prison was run a Jewish man who was loyal to the Nazis, named Salomon Herzberg.

The Lodge Ghetto prison warden, Salomon Herzberg. (Photo: Shem Olam)

The Lodge Ghetto prison warden, Salomon Herzberg. (Photo: Shem Olam)

“Whenever we find such artifacts, we get chills. It reveals what people had to do to survive,” said Rabbi Kriger of the Shem Olam institution. “It’s a valuable piece, since most of the artist’s work was lost during the Holocaust.”

The cigarette pack was preserved marvelously, despite years of rolling around in the ghetto debris.

The artist who made the piece, Chaim Kliger, survived the Holocaust and died in Israel in 1956. He would never know his cigarette pack survived throughout decades.

The artist, Chaim Kliger, who gifted his creation to save a friends life. (Photo: Shem Olam)

The artist, Chaim Kliger, who gifted his creation to save a friends life. (Photo: Shem Olam)

“We believe that this unique gift allowed Kliger to save another inmate from being sent to a labor camp or another unknown destination. Detainees were the first to be sent away during German Aktions,” added Kriger.

Years after the Holocaust, new buildings were erected on the Łódź ghetto’s ruins. A decade ago, during construction, the cigarette pack was found a Polish man who understood the find is unique and of historical importance. He held on to it and finally donated it to the Shem Olam Center, where it is to be exhibited soon.

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Thursday, November 29, 2018

Rabbinate publishes list of recognized Diaspora courts

The Chief Rabbinate publishes a list of foreign rabbinical courts recognized for the performance of conversions and divorce. The move follows a petition by ITIM Institute against the so-called 'blacklists' of disqualified courts.

 

Their goal is to finally regulate a domain that has been characterized by vagueness and uncertainty. However, criteria have not yet been determined for the Rabbinate to recognize individual rabbis from abroad.

Rabbinical Court (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

Rabbinical Court (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

To date, the Chief Rabbinate has denied the claim that it maintains lists of recognized rabbis or rabbinical courts, and certainly the existence of a secret "black list" of those who are disqualified in their eyes. According to the Chief Rabbinate, each case is examined on its own merits. The rabbinate also admitted that it had never formulated criteria for the recognition of rabbis abroad. However, two years ago, after being criticized by the court, it undertook to formulate such measures.

Now, for the first time, two lists, whose existence has previously been denied, have been published; including some 80 courts around the world that the Chief Rabbinate recognizes to perform conversions, and about 70 that are recognized to testify regarding an individual's "marital status." However, a list of individual rabbis, if it indeed exists, was not revealed. In addition, the rabbinate published the recently formulated criteria for recognizing new courts. Yet the courts appearing on these lists do not necessarily fulfill all the requirements, but have been approved for reasons that have yet to be explained.

The new criteria stipulate that Rabbis from foreign courts who wish to be included on the list will be invited to an oral examination performed by rabbis of the Rabbinical Court of Israel, and appointed by the rabbinate. The test will examine their knowledge— in theory and in practice— in the laws of divorce and conversion. Based on the results, the committee will then decide whether to recommend recognizing these courts to the Chief Rabbinic Council.

ITIM organization, which led the legal struggle to formulate the criteria, welcomed the publication of the lists, which are expected to make life easier for those who apply for assistance with state religious services.

"This is another important step towards the regulation of relations between the State of Israel and Diaspora Jewry, and we are happy that after our adamant struggle, the list has finally been published and there is something to work with," said ITIM Director Dr. Shaul Farber

Despite the achievement, Farber expressed reservations about the composition of the list and the new criteria.

"We must examine why rabbis whom the Chief Rabbinate say are trusted are not on the list. But it is a positive step towards transparent and improved religious services for the Jewish public in Israel and abroad."

 

ITIM also called on the Rabbinate to act fairly and impartiality towards community rabbis whose conversions have been rejected with no explanation given.

Rabbi Lau meets with European rabbis

Rabbi Lau meets with European rabbis

Shmuel Shetach, the director of the Ne'emanei Torah v'Avodah, a religious Zionist movement, also expressed reservations about the move.

"The list of rabbinical courts published is one step forward and two steps backwards. Instead of publishing clear and equal criteria that will bring about a de facto recognition of all communities abroad, the rabbinate continues to play games and excludes a large part of Diaspora Jewry, "Shetach said.

"While the time has come for a methodical list—not 'black lists' leaving bureaucrats to do whatever they want—the fact that the current list does not include rabbis and important communities abroad is a source of deep concern.

"We expect and hope to see a completion of the process of recognizing the rabbis of the Diaspora, which can advance the healing of the great rift between Diaspora Jewry and the State of Israel," he added.

Meanwhile, the Conference of European Rabbis (CER) announced Tuesday that it had reached an agreement with the Chief Rabbinate according to which, the State of Israel would recognize conversions and divorce from Europe only if they were performed in courts approved by senior rabbis from the Chief Rabbinate.

 

A delegation of CER's rabbis, headed by CER's President Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, arrived in Israel last week and met with Chief Rabbi David Lau. Lau promised them that the rabbinate would not recognize conversions performed by "roving" rabbis, but only those belonging to recognized courts.

The rabbis issued a statement pledging to "expand its activities and provide court services to smaller communities… There will be no conversion in places where there is no infrastructure for Jewish communal life. An international database will be set up to promote closer cooperation between the courts in Europe and in Israel."

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Saturday, November 24, 2018

Anne Frank House renovated to tell story to new generation

The museum built around a secret annex in a canal-side house where Anne Frank hid from Nazis during World War II has been renovated to better tell the teenage Jewish diarist's tragic story to a new generation of visitors who may know little about the horrors of the Holocaust.

Museum executive director Ronald Leopold said Wednesday the aim is to "provide more information about the historical context and background of the story we represent, which is the story of Anne Frank." What has remained the same is the museum's moving centerpiece: the Spartan secret annex where Anne wrote her world-famous diary.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

Anne, her sister and their parents hid in the annex with four other Jews from July 1942 until they were arrested in August 1944 and deported to concentration camps. Only her father, Otto Frank, survived. "Of course we did not change the hiding place itself—the annex—which is the most authentic place where Anne Frank was in hiding and where she wrote the diary," Leopold said.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

In a major overhaul spanning two years, the museum got a new entrance and changes to rooms including the darkened space that displays the iconic books that made up Anne's diary.

The museum also has revamped the way it tells the story of the Frank family, and by extension the Nazi persecution of Jews.

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

"What we tried to do is ... use the family history as kind of a window onto a larger history," said Tom Brink, the museum's head of publications and presentations. That larger history includes the Nazi-occupied Dutch capital during the war "and, of course, European history because all Europe was affected by the Nazi rule," Brink said.
Dutch King Willem-Alexander visiting the renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

Dutch King Willem-Alexander visiting the renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

As well as the physical changes, the museum now has an audio tour which pieces together fragments from the diary, family stories and historical perspective. That allowed curators to keep physical exhibits sparse while still explaining the Franks' story and putting it in historical context.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

"We wanted to preserve the character of the house, which is very much its emptiness," said Leopold. "I think its emptiness is probably the most powerful feature of the Anne Frank House." For example, a room that served as the office for Anne's father's company used to contain office furnishings. Now it is virtually empty with just a few photos on the wall. One shows a group of Jewish men in Amsterdam kneeling, their hands on their heads, watched over by a Nazi soldier carrying a rifle.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

On another wall is a map drawn up by Amsterdam civil servants for the city's Nazi occupiers with black dots representing the places where Jews lived. The museum remained open throughout the renovations. Dutch King Willem-Alexander formally opened the refurbished landmark on Thursday.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

After the war, Otto Frank had his daughter's diary published, and it went on to become a symbol of hope and resilience that has been translated into more than 70 languages. The building housing the secret annex was turned into a museum in 1960. Telling Anne's story remains relevant more than 60 years after Anne and her sister both perished in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp after contracting typhus.
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

This week, the head of the European Jewish Congress, Moshe Kantor, warned at a conference in Vienna that "Jewish communities in Europe are increasingly concerned about their security and pessimistic about their future."
The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

The renovated Anne Frank House (Photo: AP)

Leopold said the museum, which receives 1.2 million visitors annually, has an important role to play in combatting anti-Semitism. "We run a museum and we know how powerful the influence of this museum is," he said. "A visit ... really has a huge impact on young people and encourages them to fight discrimination, anti-Semitism, racism in their own communities."

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Wednesday, November 21, 2018

South Africa: Jewish students kneel during Israel's national anthem

Two students from the United Herzlia Middle School in Cape Town, South Africa sparked nation-wide criticism after they "took a knee" while "Hatikvah" national anthem was sung, in protest of Israel's policy towards the Palestinians. 

 

The incident, which was reported in South Africa's media outlets, sparked controversy not only among the local Jewish community, but all over the country as well.

The two students kneeled in protest of Israel's treatment of the Palestinians and what they deem as Israel's human rights violations. The "taking a knee” protest was inspired by African-American football players who protested against police brutality during US football matches.  

 

The website of United Herzlia Middle School in Cape Town

The website of United Herzlia Middle School in Cape Town

Following the incident, local media quoted a letter sent by the school's management stating that "the boys’ inappropriate kneeling action demonstrated deliberate and flagrant disregard for the ethos of the school."

"We encourage kids to protests and debate but the forum that they chose to protest in our opinion was embarrassing for us and for many people there. There are many forums within the school to express opinions and points of view, but this was not the right one," the school management added.

"Our students must understand that there are consequences for crossing the line. We have informed the parents of the steps we are going take and we urge everyone to move on," they stressed.

United Herzlia Middle School in Cape Town, South Africa

United Herzlia Middle School in Cape Town, South Africa

One of student recorded an audio clip in which he explains his decision to take a knee when Israel's national anthem was sung: "we cannot sing Hatikvah when we don't approve of Israel's policy. It is a beautiful song, but it is also Israel's national anthem…you support Israel by singing its national anthem. They forced us to sing it, and we didn't want that. The school claims they believe in freedom of speech, but in practice, they only let us express favorable opinions towards Israel.

"I hope that our protest will show other students that there is another side, and that pro-Palestinians are not 'terrorists' but students just like us. There is a huge debate about politics and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the local Jewish community...I hope that we started a conversation," he said.

United Herzlia Director of Education Geoff Cohen told a local newspaper that "the boys were Zionists in essence,” but had concerns with the current government." In order to protect his student's privacy, Cohen refused to elaborate on the disciplinary measures taken by the school. 

 

American football players kneel during US national anthem (Photo: MCT)

American football players kneel during US national anthem (Photo: MCT)


The boys were criticized among the local Jewish community, but also received a great deal of praise.

A parent of another student told local news that "we should be proud of the students and the courage they demonstrated in the face of a system that does not encourage freedom of speech."

On the other hand, many social media users posted angry messages about the incident while using offensive language, and calling to remove the students from school premises.

Former South African minister Roni Kasrilis supported the youth's protest. "Israel violates human rights and international laws— these are things these students could not ignore," he said, adding that "young Jews, not only in the United States but also in South Africa, are learning the truth and refusing this brainwash." 

Similar calls were voiced by pro-Palestinian organizations. For example, one social media post states that "a new generation of Jews is changing local communities around the world, demanding freedom and respect for the Palestinians people. Jewish institutions now have a choice —should they support this new generation's calling or simply ignore it?"

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Saturday, November 17, 2018

Book can help Holocaust survivors reclaim property in Warsaw

For 70 years, this book was a dream. The names of thousands of Jews who owned homes in Poland, homes that were later confiscated by the Nazis during World War II—all in one book. Three years ago, the land registry book reappeared when it was bought in an auction by the National Military Academy in Warsaw. After years of a Jewish struggle to reclaim the lost property, and this newly-found book finally provides a list the names of the mostly-deceased homeowners by street names. Yoram Sztykgold, 82, is one of those who dreamed of finding this book. For years, he tried to prove his ownership over the properties his family owned in Poland, which were confiscated during the war. “I was probably the last boy to leave the Warsaw Ghetto, just a few days before the uprising,” he said, standing where there was once a big house right in the center of Warsaw, behind the large synagogue. Today it’s a municipal park with tall trees and public benches, filled with parents, children and elderly—some as old as Sztykgold.
Yoram Sztykgold

Yoram Sztykgold

He looks around, helpless. Nothing here reminds him of the city he knew as a child. Nothing is left of the place where his family home stood in the ghetto. “For me, there are two Warsaws,” he says. “There’s the Warsaw that is gone and will never return, and there’s the new Warsaw that came to life. They have nothing to do with each other.” Yoram was born in September 1936 to a traditional Jewish family. His father, Mieczysław Moshe, was an engineer and owner of one of the biggest gas lamp factories in Europe of the time. His grandfather, Meir, was in real estate and owned multiple properties in Poland. He lived in a large house with servants, nannies and a cook. The family had at least 10 properties. And now, 73 years later, they want to reclaim them, or at least get restitution for the rightful heirs. In September 2016, the Warsaw municipality published a list of 2,613 addresses linked to open property claims, but without the homeowner names. Holocaust survivors had only six months to report to the Polish capital and reinstate their claims once the municipality published the announcement about their property in the local media. They later received three more months to prove ownership before the homes would be officially declared property of the Warsaw municipality or of the Polish Treasury.

So far, homeowners' details were only released for 211 of the properties, dozens every month. Some claim the bureaucracy and short deadlines are meant to make it difficult for the owners or heirs to claim the properties. The Polish authorities, however, claim it’s a way of preventing fraud.

Yoram Sztykgold in Warsaw.

Yoram Sztykgold in Warsaw.

  What good is this list, if the heirs don’t know the addresses? This is where the World Jewish Restitution Organization (WJRO) comes to their aid. The organization created a database that allows survivors and heirs to track their assets by address, and learn whether they are entitled to proceed with claims that originated with the 1945 Warsaw Decree. After the Holocaust, properties that were confiscated under German rule should have returned to their rightful owners. However, the Polish communist government nationalized properties, and so original owners were prevented from reclaiming their real estate assets. Poland, the home of 3.3 million Jews before the Holocaust, is the only one in Europe that doesn’t have a restitution of property law. The Warsaw case was unusual and gave hope to many. A breakthrough was made when Logan Kleinwaks, a Jewish genealogist from Washington, managed to match addresses from the famous Warsaw book to the list of Warsaw homeowners from 1939-1940. In 2014, Kleinwaks discovered that a Polish book seller is going to sell a copy of the homeowners' book at an auction in Krakow. He was going to attend but missed it, and the book was bought by the Polish Military Library for $3,000. The WJRO's computer database of Warsaw properties is based on the information in this book. We went on this journey with Yoram, his wife and his niece. It was a difficult journey for Yoram. One of the family's properties, which was listed under his grandfather's name since 1897, is now crossed by a street and houses a Polish kebab restaurant. Another one is 24 kilometers outside of Warsaw, in the city of Otvozk. A third is a massive property of 6,000 square meters that today is covered by forest and houses a huge villa. I suggest that Yoram enter the restaurant and introduce himself as the true owner. He’s worried: “We shouldn't cause provocation.” The Sztykgolds are now waiting for the Warsaw municipality to publish the list of properties from the book. Meanwhile, Yoram is trying to get his hands on documents that would prove his ownership. Apparently his mother filed a claim in 1945 and some documents do exist. The family hopes, but is skeptical that they can get all the paperwork done in six months in order to make the draconic deadline.

“It’s important for me, for my family, for my grandchildren, to get something for the properties we owned,” said Yoram. “Why? Because my children, and perhaps grandchildren, suffered through me. They deserve it. For me it doesn't matter, I’m 82. We’ll leave the historical justice to politicians.”

Yoram Sztykgold

Yoram Sztykgold

Yoram can’t forget the life in the ghetto, the hardships, the hunger. His grandparents, who were among the richest people in Warsaw, found themselves penniless.

“When I left the city, ten days before the uprising, there was no one left in the streets. The only ones left were those who had jobs, it was awfully quiet. My father got me and my mother fake IDs, and we decided to run, but at the last minute he didn't join us,” he recalled.

Yoram escaped with his mother, but they later parted ways and met again after the war. “I saw miserable people coming out of the fire. Disabled, burnt,” he said, when describing his return to Warsaw, which was in ruins. “My mother found me half dead, emotionally and physically devastated, exhausted, bloated with hunger. My recovery took months.” “The Polish property restitution is a sensitive issue, and we want to change that,” said Konstanty Gebert, a Jewish journalist in the Gazeta Wyborcza, the country’s most important newspaper. “The reason for this is that people see property restitution as unfair, as it’s going to be funded off tax money. The Poles see themselves as victims of the Nazi and Communist regimes, and they feel it’s unfair for a few to get property and restitution from other victims.” “There is fear that if the property restitution is granted, there would be millions of Jewish claims that would empty the country's coffers,” Gebert went on to say.  In recent years, there have been several corruption scandals revolving around property restitution, including arrests of officials who were allegedly bribed by those who claimed properties. Poland's Deputy Minister of Justice Patrick Yaki, who is also the ruling party’s Warsaw mayoral candidate, worked on a property restitution law in 2017. But his draft was frowned upon and condemned by the Israeli government and Jewish organizations, who saw it as draconic. Yaki’s bill stated that a survivor who wishes to claim property has to be a Polish citizen today, and had to live in Poland when the property was nationalized by the Communist rule. This means most survivors, who left during or right after the Holocaust, are not eligible to claim properties. In light of the criticism of the bill, Poland withdrew the legislation for further assessment, and it isn’t expected to be discussed until after elections—meaning 2020. Meanwhile, Holocaust survivors are dying, and it’s unlikely that their heirs would be able to sue for properties and restitution. Gideon Taylor, chair of Operations and Treasure at WJRO, is angry: “I’m not pleased by the recent developments. I was expecting Warsaw to disclose all information about properties in a public manner that would allow property owners to file suits. We demand they set up a longer deadline and disclose all details about assets.” Yoram’s wife, Lusha, can’t use the newly-discovered book to retrieve her family’s property. “To speak of property and assets is no shame,” she says. “At our age, we are left alone. We are the last survivors left. We want to die in better conditions than the ones we live in today. We need restitution for our suffering—no parents, no childhood. The property claims are claims for justice, since it’s a disgrace that 80 year olds in Israel and around the world live penniless. The property clams will help me financially. For me, justice is also revenge.”

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Thursday, November 15, 2018

Nearly half of UK Jews consider emigrating, some to Israel

Almost half of UK Jews consider emigrating due to rising anti-Semitism, and its hold on the Labour Party, said Chairman of Campaign Against anti-Semitism Gideon Falter in an European Jewish Association (EJA) meeting in Brussels.

 

The annual meeting of the EJA is supported and funded by the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage, and includes representatives from various communities and other European officials.

Gideon Falter, Chairman of Campaign Against anti-Semitism

According to the data, 40 percent of British Jews are considering leaving the UK, some of them to Israel, due to the rising anti-Semitism they experience, and 90% of them believe that Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour is anti-Semitic and that Jews should refrain from voting for it.

Falter criticized the Israeli government for not doing enough.

“It has an important role in this struggle, but the Jewish community in the UK feels it is on its own.”

Jewish leader Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the chairman of the EJA. (Photo: Yoni Rikner)

Jewish leader Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the chairman of the EJA. (Photo: Yoni Rikner)

“Any help that Israel can offer regarding this struggle will be of great help to us, and we’ve seen it being done before,” said Falter. “Jews are afraid, especially after the summer’s events, that revealed Corbyn has himself been extensively involved in anti-Semitic activity for several decades.”

The EJA convened in Brussels ten days after the Tree of Life Synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh, in order to discuss the rise of the populist far-right groups around Europe and how to stop them from gaining more political power.

Part of the discussion revolved around the need to compile a list with several demands and hand them to the different political candidates around the continent. If the demands remain unanswered by certain candidates—they would be blacklisted.

 

European Jewish leader Rabbi Menachem Margolin, the chairman of the EJA, warned that “the future of European Jewry is on the line,” and stressed the importance of drawing red lines that “will be a wake-up call for politicians.”

Margolin added that “Europe is at a crossroad, and it’s likely that the political sphere will be even more polarized after the elections for the EU Parliament.” Current events brought leaders from different communities—Reform, Orthodox and Christians who support Israel—to unite in the name of the campaign against anti-Semitism.

Matthew James Offord, Parliament member from the UK Conservative Party, who spoke in the meeting. (Photo: Yoni Rikner)

Matthew James Offord, Parliament member from the UK Conservative Party, who spoke in the meeting. (Photo: Yoni Rikner)

The list’s draft included a demand for full adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of anti-Semitism, as well as appointment of a government official committed to the campaign in each country, a guarantee not to form coalitions with anti-Semitic parties, defining the BDS as an anti-Semitic movement and finally, a promise for complete freedom of worship.

One of the things that worry EJA the most is the situation in Britain. A British delegation to Brussels arrived in order to discuss possible actions against Labour leader Corbyn, whose past anti-Semitic activity has only recently surfaced.

 

Matthew James Offord, a UK Parliament member from the Conservative Party, spoke in the Brussels meeting and said that the Labour leader “never tried to face anti-Semitism or speak against it,” and reminded everyone that “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

“Many of my friends are Jews who deal with anti-Semitism every day and fear that Corbyn will become the next prime minister,” said Offord. “We need to make sure this doesn't happen, but we also need to make sure that the Labour changes its face, and acknowledges what it’s doing, so that people can’t say anti-Semitic things and remain in the party.”

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FBI: US anti-Semitic hate crimes spiked 37% in 2017

Hate crimes in the United States jumped 17 percent in 2017, with a huge 37 percent spike in anti-Semitic attacks, marking the third year in a row that such attacks have increased, according to FBI data released on Tuesday.

 

The release of the data comes just weeks after a gunman burst into a Pittsburgh synagogue and shot dead 11 worshippers while shouting “All Jews must die.”

According to the FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics report, there were a total of 7,175 hate crime incidents reported last year by law enforcement agencies, up from 6,121 incidents in 2016. The agency did not offer a reason for the increase.

Anti-Semitic vandalism in California (Photo: AFP)

Anti-Semitic vandalism in California (Photo: AFP)

Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker said in a statement that hate crimes were “despicable violations” of America’s values.

“I am particularly troubled by the increase in anti-Semitic hate crimes,” Whitaker said.

The report showed a 37 percent jump in anti-Semitic incidents to 938 from 684 a year earlier.

The Pittsburgh synagogue massacre in late October fueled a debate ahead of the November 6 national elections over US President Donald Trump’s inflammatory political rhetoric and his self-identification as a “nationalist.”

Critics say Trump’s rhetoric has fomented a surge in right-wing extremism and may have even helped provoke the bloodshed at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood, which was the worst attack on America’s Jewish community.

The Trump administration has rejected any notion that he has encouraged white nationalists and neo-Nazis who have embraced him, insisting the president’s true aim is to unify America.

Memorial for victims of Pittsburgh synagogue massacre (Photo: AP)

Memorial for victims of Pittsburgh synagogue massacre (Photo: AP)

“This report provides further evidence that more must be done to address the divisive climate of hate in America,” Jonathan Greenblatt, the Anti-Defamation League’s national director, said in a statement. “That begins with leaders from all walks of life and from all sectors of society forcefully condemning anti-Semitism, bigotry, and hate whenever it occurs.”

Nearly 16 percent of the 4,131 incidents in 2017 involving race or ethnicity were fueled by anti-black or African-American bias, increasing to 2,013 from 1,739 in 2016, the FBI said.

Of the 6,370 known offenders in the report, 50.7 percent were white, while 21.3 percent were Black or African-American.

The 2017 data was compiled from reports voluntarily submitted by 16,149 law enforcement agencies.

FBI officials said the agency will provide training next year for law enforcement officers on how to identify bias-motivated incidents and report that data to federal authorities.

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