Antisemitic incidents in the Czech Republic rose sharply in 2023, says the Jewish community

PRAGUE (AP) — The Jewish community in the Czech Republic says antisemitic incidents sharply increased in the country last year, with their peak appearing in the final quarter of 2023 following the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, which triggered the war in Gaza. In its annual report, the Federation of the Jewish Communities says it registered 4,328 antisemitic incidents in 2023, up 90% from 2,277 in the previous year. The report says that 41,59%, happened in the last three months of the year.  The raging war in the Middle East and its massive toll on Palestinian civilians has reignited the long debate about the definition of antisemitism and whether any criticism of Israeli actions and policies amounts to anti-Jewish hate speech.