Almost half of the world’s adults hold anti-Semitic ideas, a new study reveals. In Portugal, 21% of people have anti-Jewish beliefs and there are still those who have never heard of the Holocaust.
One from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) revealed that 46% of adults worldwide have deep-seated anti-Semitic beliefs.
According to this data, based on a survey of 58,000 adults in 103 countries, in the year 2024, approximately 2.2 billion people around the world hold anti-Semitic beliefs.
76% of respondents in the Middle East and North Africa said they agreed with most stereotypes, including “Jews have too much power in business,” “Jewish loyalty is only to Israel,” and “Jews have many annoying defects“.
The people who feel the most hatred towards the Jewish community are those from West Bank and Gaza (97%), a by do Kuwait (97%) and followed by Indonesia (96%), highlights the . In general, the regions where there is a higher degree of anti-Semitism are the Middle East and North Africa.
In Europe, the anti-Semitism rate is lower, standing at 17%. However, Portugal is above the European average: 21% of Portuguese people have anti-Jewish ideas.
On the ADL website, it is possible to interactively view the data.
It is even possible to notice patterns in younger people. Of people between 18 and 35 years old, 40% believe that “Jews are responsible for most of the world’s wars” and 47% agreeing that “Jews have many annoying flaws,” compared to 23% and 28%, respectively, among respondents 65 and older.
The study also analyzed people’s perception of recent conflicts, such as the war in Palestine and Israel, or older ones, such as the Second World War.
In the Israeli-Arab conflict, the The majority of respondents (63%) were in favor of Palestine. Among people under 35, support for Israel drops even further, and rises to 75% in the case of Palestine.
Regarding Hamas, 23% of respondents are in favor of the terrorist groupa percentage that rises to 29% among those under 35 years of age.
Regarding the Holocaust, 20% of people questioned had never heard of itand less than half (48%) believe that “the Holocaust happened and that the number of Jews who died was fairly described by history.” 4% of the world believes that the Holocaust never existed.
En Portugal, 4% of people have never heard of the Holocaust (above the European average, with 3%), but only 1% believe that it never happened. 79% of European Union citizens believe that the Holocaust existed and that it is narrated correctly.
Well, about CEO da ADL, Jonathan Greenblattwrites that “in simple terms, these data reveal a glaring failure in transmitting the memory and lessons of the Holocaust to younger generations — the future of our world.”
“These data should be a warning sign. Anti-Semitism is not an abstract issue — it is a threat that manifests itself in violencein hatred and the erosion of social cohesion”, writes Greenblatt.
O The population’s level of anti-Semitism continues to rise. In the first year that this ADL survey was carried out, which does this every year, the global percentage of anti-Semitism was 26%. In 2024, it rose to 46%.
“Let’s make this the last hate record we have to break,” urges Greenblatt.
