Ahead of Auschwitz liberation anniversary, UN rights chief warns of ‘rampant’ antisemitism

An ADL poll found that roughly one-half of the world’s population harbors antisemitic beliefs.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

United Nations rights chief described antisemitism as “rampant” 80 years after the Holocaust.

On Friday, Volker Turk, UN Rights Chief, commented on the rise in antisemitism just days before the anniversary of the liberation of the death camp on Monday.

He described the liberated inmates of the death camp as “Exhausted, emaciated, terrified, and sick, those 7,000 were all that remained of 1.3 million men, women and children who had been deported to Auschwitz.”

Turk called on the public to commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day by becoming aware of the indifference and complacency and to take a stand against intolerance.

“Antisemitism is rampant on our streets and online. Jews face increasing intimidation, threats, and physical violence,” Turk said.

Antisemitic incidents and online hatred against Jews have spiked to unprecedented levels following the war between Israel and Hamas that began on October 7th, 2023, with the terror group’s invasion of Israel and massacre of its citizens.

The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany report found that the majority of people in seven Western countries said they believed the Holocaust could happen again, and that most young adults in France, where antisemitic incidents have reached historic levels, said they never heard of the Holocaust.

Roughly one-half of the world’s population harbors antisemitic beliefs, according to a new poll conducted on behalf of the Anti-Defamation League.

The poll was conducted as part of the ADL Global 100 Index through a combination of telephone, face-to-face, and online surveys. The ADL has maintained the index since 2014.

The data was collected from July 23rd, 2024 through November 13th, 2024, and surveyed between 500 to 1,000 respondents per country or territory.

A total of 58,000 adults across 103 countries and territories were surveyed for the study, spanning roughly half of the world’s countries where 94% of the total world population lives.

This year’s ADL Global 100 Index found that among all surveyed adults worldwide, less than half (48%) said they recognized the historical accuracy of the Holocaust. A fifth said they had never heard of the Holocaust.

Nearly half (46%) of the global adult population holds antisemitic beliefs, the poll found, the highest level ever reported on an ADL Global 100 Index survey.