On Sunday, a father and son killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration in Australia. It was one of the deadliest attacks on Jewish people in that nation’s history.

The attack is part of a larger trend of rising antisemitism. 

Since October of 2023, American Jews report a rise in antisemitism, including an uptick in violence against Jewish people. This past year alone, high-profile attacks happened in Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Colorado. 

All of this is occurring amid Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, according to scholars. 

What is the connection between Israel’s violence and violence targeting Jewish people around the world? 

The Metro’s Sam Corey spoke with a variety of Jewish scholars and community leaders to learn more.

This reporting was edited by Metro Host Robyn Vincent.

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Since Oct. 7, 2023, the world has felt different for a lot of American Jews.  Antisemitism has risen. More recently, two people were shot dead outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C. And a man with a flamethrower in Colorado attacked Israeli hostage advocates. 

At the same time, Israel has expanded its militarism, recently attacking Iran to destroy its nuclear capacity and potentially overturn its regime. Israel has gotten the support of President Donald Trump, as America has now also attacked Iran’s nuclear sites. 

All the while, Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has continued. There are now at least 57,000 Palestinians who’ve been killed by Israel’s attacks since October 7th, 2023. In conjunction with that, Israel’s months-long food aid blockade has put one-in-five Palestinians on the brink of starvation. 

To find out where this leaves American Jews, and what they’re meant to make of the political moment, Producer Sam Corey spoke with Rabbi Shalom Kantor from Congregation B’nai Moshe, a zionist temple in West Bloomfield. The two spoke prior to Israel’s attacks on Iran, Iran’s retaliations and America’s involvement in the war.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro