ADL: Anti-Semitism up in Europe

An ADL survey of five European countries found widespread anti-Semitism, with many residents believing stereotypes of Jewish business prowess and lack of patriotism.The survey, released Monday, found that 51 percent of respondents in Spain, Poland and Germany believe it is “probably true” that Jews are more loyal to Israel than to their home countries. Additionally, 44 percent of those surveyed in France, Poland, Germany, Italy and Spain agreed that “Jews have too much power in international financial markets,” while 39 percent believe “Jews have too much power in the business world.” Each country surveyed showed a rise in negative perceptions of Jews in relation to business and finance since the ADL’s 2005 survey.Forty-seven percent said it was “probably true” that Jews talk too much about the Holocaust, and 20 percent blame Jews for the death of Jesus. On the subject of the Middle East, nearly half overall agreed with the statement “American Jews control U.S. Middle Eastern policy,” with the figure rising to 53 percent in Spain and 56 percent in Poland. The survey, conducted by Taylor Nelson Sofres, was conducted through telephone interviews with 2,714 people in France, Italy, Germany, Spain and Poland from March 21 to April 16. The margin of error was 4 percentage points.