March 12 (Reuters) – Rights advocates note a rise in anti-Muslim, anti-Palestinian and antisemitic hate in the United States since the start of U.S. ally Israel’s war in Gaza following an October 7, 2023, attack by Palestinian Hamas militants.
The United States and Israel also launched a war against Iran on February 28.
Jewish advocacy group the Anti-Defamation League tallied 9,354 antisemitic incidents in the U.S. in 2024 a 5% increase over 2023 and a record high since it began keeping track in 1979. The group said the figure represented a 344% increase over the past five years and a 893% increase over the last decade.
Following are some U.S. attacks that occurred before a suspect crashed his truck into the hallway of a Detroit-area synagogue where children were attending preschool on Thursday and was shot dead by security personnel, the only fatality in what the FBI called “a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.”
JANUARY 28
A car crashed into the entrance of the headquarters of a Jewish religious order in New York City. No injuries were reported.
Police are investigating the incident as a hate crime.
MAY 22, 2025
Two Israeli diplomats were shot and killed outside an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee in Washington, D.C.
The gunman, who was charged with terrorism and hate crimes, is believed to have been motivated by the Israel-Gaza conflict.
He told police on the scene, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,” according to the charging documents. Witnesses recounted hearing him chant, “Free Palestine” after he was taken into custody.
FEBRUARY 18, 2025
Authorities in Florida launched a hate crime investigation after a man opened fire on two men he thought were Palestinians but turned out to be Israeli visitors.
The victims survived. One was shot in the shoulder and the other in the forearm.
NOVEMBER 6, 2024
Masked men attacked two Jewish students who were demonstrating in support of Israel at Chicago’s DePaul University, resulting in minor injuries.
The suspect, who was facing hate crime charges, later pleaded guilty to battery and causing bodily harm.
OCTOBER 26, 2024
A 39-year-old Jewish man wearing a religious skullcap was shot and wounded as he walked to synagogue in Chicago, Illinois.
The suspect, who was apprehended 30 minutes after the attack, was charged with attempted murder, among other crimes.
(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Lincoln Feast)
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