Watchdog: Anti-Semitism at highs in Europe

Anti-Semitic incidents remain at historically high levels throughout Europe and North America, a major human rights group reported. The report on anti-Semitism was attached to the broader Human Rights First 2007 Hate Crimes Survey, which was released Wednesday to coincide with a conference on combating discrimination held in Bucharest by the Organization for Security and Cooperation.The OSCE’s pledge to survey hate crimes annually is the first by any major human rights watchdog.”Bias-motivated violence remains a serious problem in Europe,” said Maureen Byrnes, executive director of Human Rights First.The group said anti-Semitic hate crimes occur with greater frequency than in the 1990s, noting among other incidents in 2006 the knife assault on worshipers of a Moscow synagogue that left nine severely injured, and the torture and murder of Ilam Halimi in a Paris subway.Attacks on Jewish schools and students, as well as the defamation of places of worship, cemeteries and community centers had become routine, the survey said. The complete study is available at www.humanrightsfirst.org/discrimination/reports.asp?country=multi&id=31&misc1=survey-antisem