Antisemitism at UK universities up nearly 80% since October 2023, charity report finds

Antisemitism at British universities is on the rise, with incidents up nearly 80% from before the October 2023 attacks by Hamas on Israel, according to a report by the Community Security Trust (CST), the charity that provides security advice to Britain’s Jewish community.

The CST said it recorded 178 university-related antisemitic incidents between the 2024 and 2026 academic years, with a 14% increase during 2025/26 — 95 incidents last year, compared with 83 in 2024/25 and 53 in 2022/23, the last academic year before the Hamas attacks and the subsequent Israeli assault on Gaza.

Most incidents involved abusive behaviour, such as verbal abuse, antisemitic comments or graffiti aimed at students, staff or Jewish organisations. But the report also recorded two incidents of extreme violence in 2024/25, six assaults across the two-year period, eight incidents of damage and desecration to Jewish property — five of them in student accommodation — ten direct threats and three instances of mass-produced antisemitic literature. Sixteen of the incidents were perpetrated by university staff.

“No student should have to choose between expressing their identity and feeling safe on campus, yet for too many Jewish students that remains a reality,” said education minister Lucy Powell.

Sources

• Reuters, “Antisemitism at UK universities is increasing, security charity says”, 29 Sep 2026: https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/antisemitism-uk-universities-is-increasing-security-charity-says-2026-09-29/
• The Jerusalem Post, “Campus antisemitism still higher than before Oct. 7, CST report reveals”, 30 Sep 2026: https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-910137
• BBC News, “Antisemitism on the rise at universities, charity warns”, 30 Sep 2026: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9gk54r61yldo