Jews, Israelis Targeted in Europe Amid Escalating Middle East Conflict

In Greece, an Israeli tourist was attacked last week by a group of pro-Palestinian activists after they overheard him using Google Maps in Hebrew while navigating Athens.

By Ailin Vilches Arguello, The Algemeiner

Jewish communities across Europe have been targeted in a growing wave of antisemitic incidents amid rising tensions in the Middle East, prompting Jewish leaders to demand stronger government action and greater protection as hostility escalates across the continent.

Last week, posters accusing prominent Jews of “lobbying for genocide,” featuring their names and photos, were displayed in several public areas across Brussels, Belgium.

Among those targeted were the European Jewish Association’s Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin, Vice Chairman Alex Benjamin, and Director of EU Relations Ruth Isaac.

“When your face is glued to a wall under the label ‘genocidal,’ you are being dehumanized. This is not protest — it is persecution. And it chillingly echoes some of the darkest moments in Europe’s past,” Margolin said in a statement.

“It is becoming tragically clear that Jews are once again unsafe on this continent. We are no longer asking, we are demanding action,” he continued.

In a post on X, the EJA also condemned the incident, stressing that “this is not political activism — this is incitement, plain and simple.”

“We’ve already seen where this kind of incitement can lead,” the statement read. “In recent weeks, Jews have been attacked and murdered, targeted simply for being Jewish or for their perceived connection to Israel.”

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On Friday we woke up to discovered that the faces of EJA Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin, EJA Vice Chairman Alex Benjamin, and EJA Director Ruth Isaac along with leaders of other Jewish organisations, plastered across Brussels, steps away from the main EU institutions, with the… pic.twitter.com/mR0MbT63Sg

— EJA – EIPA (@EJAssociation) June 15, 2025

The organization called on Belgian authorities and EU leadership to take immediate action by promptly removing the posters, launching a criminal investigation into those responsible, and issuing a clear and unequivocal public condemnation of the incident.

On Friday, Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli advised the local Jewish community to leave the country, accusing Brussels of failing to safeguard their security amid escalating “Islamist threats.”

The Israeli official said the country is “being held hostage by Islamist packs chanting in support of Hamas and Hezbollah.”

“Belgium has surrendered. The country has lost its sovereignty and is no longer able to protect its Jews,” Chikli said in a post on X.

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Brussels- the heart of the EU- has been seized by Islamist mobs chanting for Hamas & Hezbollah. Re-enactments of Oct 7 horrors and open death threats to Jewish leaders go unanswered. Hezbollah operatives operate in the country with complete impunity.

Belgium has surrendered!

I… pic.twitter.com/u3LkQaoXE8

— עמיחי שיקלי – Amichai Chikli (@AmichaiChikli) June 13, 2025

In Moldova, meanwhile, the local Jewish community faced a disturbing antisemitic attack over the weekend. In the capital city of Chisinau, dozens of graves at the Jewish cemetery were vandalized, with swastikas spray-painted throughout the site.

This latest antisemitic outrage is part of an escalating pattern across the country, including hateful slurs and threats against the Jewish community, as well as antisemitic graffiti vandalizing synagogues.

“The escalation in the Middle East is accompanied by a wave of antisemitic incidents across Europe, underscoring the urgent need for increased vigilance to protect Jewish communities on the continent,” Moldova’s Chief Rabbi Pinchas Zaltzman said in a statement.

“The direct conflict between Israel and Iran is fueling global waves of hatred and antisemitism. Unfortunately, Moldova is not immune to this trend,” he continued.

In Greece, an Israeli tourist was attacked last week by a group of pro-Palestinian activists after they overheard him using Google Maps in Hebrew while navigating Athens.

When the attackers realized the victim was speaking Hebrew, they began physically assaulting him while shouting antisemitic slurs.

Although local police arrived promptly, a large crowd had already gathered outside the restaurant where the victim had sought shelter.

At first, authorities mistakenly arrested the victim, accusing him of the attack. However, after video footage clarified the situation, they apologized and took him to the nearest hospital.

In Germany, Stefan Hensel, the antisemitism commissioner for the northern city of Hamburg, was also targeted in an antisemitic attack.

While driving home with his daughter, Hensel was listening to Israeli music when a car pulled up beside him and the occupants began shouting insults, calling him a “child killer” and “damned Israeli,” German media reported.

When Hensel refused to get out of the car as demanded, the attacker even attempted to force him off the road.

Local police launched an investigation into the attack. However, according to Hamburg authorities, there were “no grounds for their arrest.”

Peter Tschentscher, the First Mayor of Hamburg, described the attack as “another serious offense in a growing series of antisemitic incidents since 2023,” in an interview with the German newspaper Bild.

“This is shocking and shameful, especially given Germany’s historical responsibility toward Israel and Jewish life in our country,” Tschentscher said. “The Senate stands firmly with the Jewish communities and is committed to strengthening and protecting Jewish life in Hamburg.”