Anti-Semitism in the United States has reached “historic levels” according to FBI Director Christopher Wray, who noted the rise in the wake of the Hamas terror attack in Israel.
While anti-Israel views have been on the rise for a few years, it is recent events and the start of the conflict between Gaza and Israel that have led to an increase in acts targeting the Jewish community, as Wray told a Senate panel on Tuesday.
“The reality is that the Jewish community is the single target of almost every terrorist organization across the spectrum. And when you look at a group that makes up roughly 2.4 percent of the American population, it should surprise everyone that this same population accounts for something like 60 percent of all religiously-based hate crimes, and so they need our help,” Wray said in testimony before the Senate Homeland Security Committee .
“They’re getting it from racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists, ISIS-inspired violent extremists [and] foreign terrorist organizations,” the FBI director added.
“This is a threat that is reaching, in some ways, historic levels,” Wray said.
His comments come after a spate of anti-Semitic rhetoric and pro-Palestine comments from Democrats and far-left “Squad” lawmakers like Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Cori Bush of Missouri.
Wray noted that hate crime investigations, joint terrorism task forces and more were being handled by the FBI’s law enforcement efforts.
“This is not a time for panic, but it is a time for vigilance,” Wray said. “We must not stop doing our daily lives: going to schools, houses of worship, etc., but we must be vigilant.”
Perhaps instead of pouring the entire staff and financial resources of the office into prosecuting Biden’s political opponents, Christopher Wray should have been more concerned with the security of the country. https://t.co/bkyI7uxTO2
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) October 31, 2023
“You often hear the expression if you see something, you say something, that’s never been truer than it is now,” Wray said. “And that’s probably partly why the American people are reporting more tips and leads to us, and we’re pursuing those threats and leads as vigorously and responsibly as we can.”
Wray also warned of the potential for extremists to be “inspired” by the Hamas attack.
“The actions of Hamas and its allies will serve as inspiration the likes of which we have not seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago,” he said.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas also spoke about the security issues facing the US in the wake of the Middle East conflict.
“In the days and weeks since, we have responded to an increase in threats against Jewish, Muslim and Arab American communities and institutions across our country,” Mayorkas said.
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida, where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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