Is anti-Semitism on the rise in the UK?

Video caption, Jenny went to meet Jewish children to talk to them about anti-Semitism (February 2015)

A new report says that there was a record number of anti-Semitic incidents in the UK last year.

The Community Security Trust (CST) revealed there were 1,652 incidents in total, which is 16% more than the 1,420 recorded the year before.

What is anti-Semitism?

Anti-Semitism is actions or language promoting a dislike towards Jewish people.

The result of it can be that a Jewish person or group of people are treated unkindly, unequally or unfairly because of their faith.

If the anti-Semitic incident is particularly serious, it can be a form of hate crime, which is against the law.

Commenting on the new figures, 鶹Լ Secretary Sajid Javid said: "All acts of anti-Semitism are utterly despicable and have no place in society."

Is anti-Semitism on the rise in the UK?

The report revealed that 2018 was the third year in a row that the number has gone up, suggesting that the problem of anti-Semitism in the UK is growing.

Almost three in every four incidents happened in Greater London or Greater Manchester, which have the two largest Jewish communities in the UK.

The CST - which works to monitor anti-Semitism and protect the Jewish community - said it was also the first year that more than 100 incidents were reported every single month of the year.

John Mann - a member of Parliament who is head of a group working to tackle the issue - added that he believes the problem is actually bigger than the figures suggest because not all cases are reported to the police.