The claim you are answering

Criticising Israel has nothing to do with Jews here. Stop dragging antisemitism into a foreign policy argument.

This page answers it below. A line you can say, the facts under it, and the sources, so you can cite them rather than assert them.

The short answer. Say this

Twenty-three lethal or attempted mass attacks on Jewish targets outside Israel since 1982, in twelve countries. The man who killed a rabbi and three children at a Toulouse school said he was avenging Palestinian children. He made the connection, not us.

When they answer that

Two replies come, and the second is dangerous. First, that you are telling them to stop criticising Israel. Say plainly that you are not: criticise the government, the war, the settlements as hard as you like, and you are still arguing about a state rather than about a synagogue. That costs you nothing, since you were never going to stop them. The second is briefed. If attacks here track events there, the way to protect Jews in Manchester is to change Israeli policy. Answer with a date. The bomb that killed 85 at a Jewish welfare office in Buenos Aires went off on 18 July 1994, ten months after Oslo and seven days before Israel and Jordan ended the state of belligerency.

If you say nothing else, say one of these

On the claim: Criticising Israel has nothing to do with Jews here. Stop dragging antisemitism into a foreign policy argument.

01
The man who murdered a rabbi and three children at a school in Toulouse in 2012 told police he did it to avenge Palestinian children.
He supplies the gap himself, so you never have to assert it. Give the stated reason and the address in the same breath and let the listener close it.
Times of Israel, 22 March 2012, reporting French police accounts of the siege negotiations
02
The 2002 Djerba synagogue bombing was claimed in the name of Palestine, against the Jews. Fourteen of the nineteen dead were German tourists.
Djerba is a Tunisian island. It is their fax, not our characterisation, and the victim list is checkable. Nobody in that building had any connection to any Israeli decision.
CTC Sentinel, April 2017, on the statement faxed to al-Hayat and al-Quds al-Arabi
03
A white supremacist shot three people dead at a Jewish community centre and care home in Kansas in 2014. All three were Christians.
It kills the reply that we count only our own dead, and it shows the dataset is built on what the killer wanted rather than on who was buried.
KCUR, 29 March 2021; Miller testified he drove there looking to murder Jews

The strongest version of the other side

Stated as fairly as we can manage, because this is the version you will actually meet. You are not answering it yet. Read it so that it cannot surprise you, then take the answer below.

Violence against a minority is not evidence about that minority's politics. If a gunman murders four people at a Jewish school because he says he is avenging Palestinian children, that tells you he is a murderer with a stated reason.

It does not make the reason false and it does not make any Israeli policy right. A list of dead Jews cannot settle an argument about a state. Second, our own dataset undercuts the neat version. Pittsburgh, Poway, Halle, Overland Park and Jersey City were attacks by white supremacists and racial separatists in which no Israeli policy is named by anybody at any point, so antisemitism plainly has sources with nothing to do with the Middle East.

Third and sharpest, the causal reading runs both ways: if attacks abroad rise and fall with events in the Middle East, the same data says the way to protect Jews in Manchester is to change what happens in Gaza. Expect that one, and answer it on the record rather than on the feeling.

Our answer, in one lineTwenty-three lethal or attempted mass attacks on Jewish targets outside Israel since 1982, in twelve countries. The man who killed a rabbi and three children at a Toulouse school said he was avenging Palestinian children. He made the connection, not us.Take it apart properly

The fuller answer

Twenty-three attacks. Twelve countries. Every decade since the 1980s. Not one of them in Israel.

A neutral reference work would file that as a list of incidents. It is not a list of incidents. It is the answer to a question British Jews get asked in a hostile tone about once a week, which is what a country in the Middle East has to do with them, and the answer was supplied by the men who did the attacking rather than by anybody arguing our side.

The column that makes this an argument

Every row above carries two things next to each other: the place the attacker chose, and what he said his reason was. Read them together.

A gunman told French negotiators he shot a rabbi and three children to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children. He did it at a Jewish primary school in Toulouse. The claim of responsibility for the synagogue bombing on Djerba said it was in the name of Palestine against the Jews; fourteen of the nineteen people it killed were German tourists on a Tunisian island. The man who shot six women at a charity office in Seattle announced himself on the way in as an American Muslim angry at Israel. The man who took a Texas congregation hostage did it to get a prisoner out of a federal jail forty minutes up the road.

At the kosher supermarket at Porte de Vincennes the gunman’s own camera recorded him asking a customer where he was from. The man said he was Jewish. He was shot, and the killer said: so you know why I am here then.

None of those sentences is our characterisation. Every one is on a court record, a police transcript, a fax to a newspaper or a livestream the attacker set up himself. You are quoting hostile witnesses, which is the only kind whose evidence cannot be waved away.

Now the part our own side usually leaves out

Five of these have nothing to do with Israel at all.

The man who murdered eleven people at prayer in Pittsburgh was writing about a Jewish refugee charity, not about Gaza. The one who attacked a synagogue on Yom Kippur in Halle had written his objective down, which was to kill as many anti-Whites as possible, Jews preferred. He never got in, because the door held, and he shot a woman in the street and a man in a kebab shop instead. In Kansas a white supremacist drove to a Jewish community centre and a Jewish care home meaning to murder Jews, and killed three Christians.

That is why the dataset is built on stated motive and not on the ideology of the killer. Sort by ideology and you get a political weapon somebody will disassemble in front of you. Sort by what the man said, and both patterns appear in their real proportions, without anybody having to assert a ranking that nobody can prove.

What the list does not prove, said properly

It does not prove that any Israeli policy is right. Four dead at a school in Toulouse tell you about the man who killed them. They tell you nothing about a border, a war or a government, and a page that used them that way would deserve the reply it got.

The strongest objection is the one about causation, so meet it on the record. If these attacks track events in the Middle East, an opponent can say the way to keep Jews safe in Manchester is to change what Israel does. Then look at the worst of them. The bomb that killed 85 people at a Jewish welfare office in Buenos Aires went off ten months after the Oslo accords were signed and a week before Israel and Jordan signed a peace declaration. Toulouse was not during a war. Djerba was not during a war. Whatever this pattern tracks, it is not the intensity of Israeli military action.

So ask for the plan. If Jewish safety in Britain is contingent on a foreign government, name the position that makes a synagogue door safe, say who has to hold it, and explain how the man arriving on Yom Kippur is meant to check.

The geography is half of it

Read the places out loud rather than the dates. A school in France, a supermarket in France, a museum in Belgium, a synagogue in Denmark during a girl’s bat mitzvah with eighty people inside, a hostel in Mumbai, a welfare office in Argentina, a pilgrimage site in Tunisia, community buildings in Kansas and Seattle, a synagogue in north Manchester on the holiest day of the year.

Taken one at a time, each has a local explanation ready made: French integration, American guns, German extremism. Taken as a set of places, the local explanations stop working, because no account of Kansas explains Djerba. That is the argument the geography makes and a paragraph cannot, and it is the reason this belongs on a map as well as on a line.

One more thing about Manchester, and say it before anybody else does. The inquest heard that one of the two men killed, who was holding the doors shut so the attacker could not get in, died from a police bullet fired through that door. Put it in your own account when you use this. A person who volunteers the fact that complicates their case is believed on the rest of it.

Lines to use

“Twenty-three attacks, twelve countries, every decade since the 1980s, none in Israel. I can send you the dates.”

“He told the police he was avenging Palestinian children. Then he went to a Jewish primary school in Toulouse.”

“In Kansas a man went to kill Jews and killed three Christians. That’s in the dataset too. We didn’t tidy it.”

“The Buenos Aires bomb killed 85 during the Oslo peace process. Tell me which policy would have stopped it.”

“I’m not asking you to agree with me about Israel. I’m asking what my synagogue has to do with it.”

Before you next need this

Two sentences, with a real day in them.

Action. “On Sunday morning I will learn four of these by heart: Toulouse 2012, four dead at a school, avenging Palestinian children. Buenos Aires 1994, 85 dead, during Oslo. Kansas 2014, three dead, none of them Jewish. Halle 2019, the door held.”

Coping. “If somebody tells me this is emotional blackmail, I will agree that no number of dead settles an argument about a state, then ask them which policy, held by whom, would have kept the school in Toulouse safe.”

Timeline

Attacks on Jews outside Israel, 1982 to 2025

Twenty-three attacks in twelve countries, none of them in Israel. Every row carries the place the attacker chose next to what he said his reason was, so the gap between the two is made by the perpetrators rather than by us. Where no reason is on the record the row says so rather than supplying one.

9 AugustParis, France
1982
Chez Jo Goldenberg, rue des Rosiers
Who was targeted
A Jewish restaurant in the Marais and the street outside it, attacked with grenades and gunfire at lunchtime. Six killed and 22 wounded, the deadliest attack on Jews in France since the war.
What he said his reason was
Nothing on the record. No perpetrator has ever given an account of the reason. The attack is attributed to the Abu Nidal Organisation by the French investigation rather than by any claim of responsibility.
What followed
French judges ordered six people to stand trial in July 2025, forty-three years afterwards.
Carry this
Included although the reason column is empty. An attack with no stated motive on the record still meets the inclusion test, and the gap is recorded rather than filled in.
France charges suspect in deadly 1982 Paris Jewish restaurant attack, France 24, 5 December 2020, Six killed and 22 wounded, 9 August 1982. Attribution to the Abu Nidal Organisation.
The same year
9 OctoberRome, Italy
1982
The Great Synagogue of Rome
Who was targeted
Grenades and machine gun fire at worshippers leaving the Saturday service. One person killed, a boy of two, and 37 injured.
What he said his reason was
Nothing on the record. A five-man commando of the Abu Nidal Organisation, on the Italian prosecution's account, and no perpetrator has stated a reason.
What followed
The Rome prosecutor's office concluded an investigation naming five suspects in 2024. Documents released later showed Italian intelligence had been warned and security was reduced rather than raised.
Carry this
Contemporaneous reporting on 10 October 1982 gave 34 injured. Italian accounts and the current prosecution give 37.
1982 Rome synagogue massacre, terrorists found more than forty years later, Il Sole 24 ORE, Five suspects named at the conclusion of the Rome investigation. One killed, 37 injured.
4 years later
6 SeptemberIstanbul, Turkey
1986
Neve Shalom synagogue
Who was targeted
Two gunmen walked in during Sabbath morning prayers and opened fire on the men's side of the synagogue. At least 21 worshippers killed.
What he said his reason was
Two groups claimed responsibility, calling themselves Islamic Revenge and the Palestine Revenge Organisation. Neither gave a reason. Israeli and Turkish officials blamed the Abu Nidal Organisation.
What followed
No perpetrator was ever tried. The same synagogue was bombed again in 2003.
Carry this
Contemporaneous reporting gives at least 21 killed and later accounts give 22. The lower figure is used here because it is the one in the cited source.
Bloodiest Synagogue Massacre Since Nazi Era: Abu Nidal Gang Tagged As Killers of 21 Sabbath Worshippers, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 8 September 1986, At least 21 worshippers killed. Two competing claims of responsibility, neither giving a reason.
8 years later
18 JulyBuenos Aires, Argentina
1994
AMIA, the Jewish community welfare building
Who was targeted
A truck bomb at the offices of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association, which ran welfare, burial and community services. 85 killed and about 300 injured.
What he said his reason was
Nothing from any perpetrator. Argentina's prosecution found the decision was taken in Iran and tied the motive to Argentina cancelling nuclear technology contracts. The building was a welfare office in Buenos Aires.
What followed
The Federal Criminal Cassation Court held Iran responsible in April 2024, called the attack a crime against humanity and put it beyond any limitation period. Trials in absentia of Iranian and Hezbollah figures were ordered in 2025.
Carry this
It happened ten months after the Oslo accords were signed and a week before Israel and Jordan signed the Washington Declaration, which is fatal to the claim that this pattern tracks Israeli military action.
In landmark ruling, Argentine court says Iran and Hezbollah were responsible for 1994 Jewish center bombing, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 12 April 2024, 85 killed. Iran branded a terrorist state and held to have ordered the attack.
8 years later
11 AprilDjerba, Tunisia
2002
El Ghriba synagogue
Who was targeted
A gas truck fitted with explosives detonated at the front of the oldest synagogue in Africa during the pilgrimage season. 19 killed and about 30 injured.
What he said his reason was
The claim of responsibility said the attack was carried out in the name of Palestine against the Jews. It was faxed to al-Hayat and al-Quds al-Arabi five days later in the name of a front organisation for al-Qaeda.
What followed
Al-Qaeda's spokesman afterwards claimed the bomber as one of its own, and investigators traced the plot to the organisation's leadership.
Carry this
Fourteen of the nineteen dead were German tourists, three were Tunisian and two French. Some accounts give 21 killed, counting the bomber and a later death.
Fifteen Years after the Djerba Synagogue Bombing, CTC Sentinel, Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, volume 10, issue 4, 1 April 2017, Aaron Y. Zelin. 19 killed, about 30 injured. Statement faxed on 16 April 2002.
The next year
15 NovemberIstanbul, Turkey
2003
Neve Shalom and Beth Israel synagogues
Who was targeted
Two truck bombs driven at two synagogues on a Saturday morning. 24 killed and more than 300 injured. Most of the dead were Turkish Muslims in the street outside.
What he said his reason was
Claimed by the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, an affiliate of al-Qaeda, in al-Quds al-Arabi the following day. There is no perpetrator account of the reason beyond the claim itself.
What followed
A Turkish cell was prosecuted. Two further truck bombs went off in Istanbul five days later, at the British consulate and a British bank.
Carry this
Casualty figures for 15 November range from 23 to 27 depending on whether the bombers are counted. The figure used here is the one in the cited analysis.
The Synagogue Bombings in Istanbul: Al-Qaeda's New Front?, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 18 November 2003, Ely Karmon. 24 killed, more than 300 injured. Claim published 16 November 2003.
3 years later
28 JulySeattle, United States
2006
Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle
Who was targeted
He forced his way into the offices of a Jewish charity at gunpoint and shot six women, killing one. He had found the building by searching online for Jewish organisations.
What he said his reason was
He told the staff on the way in that he was a Muslim-American who was angry at Israel, and repeated it to the emergency operator, saying these were Jews and that he was tired of his people being pushed around by the situation in the Middle East.
What followed
Convicted of aggravated first degree murder in 2009 after a first trial hung, and jailed for life without parole.
Carry this
The organisation ran fundraising and welfare in Washington State. No Israeli official or institution was involved with it in any way.
Fatal Shooting at Seattle Jewish Federation, Anti-Defamation League, 31 July 2006, One killed and five wounded. Statements on entry and on the 911 call.
2 years later
26 to 29 NovemberMumbai, India
2008
Chabad House at Nariman House
Who was targeted
Gunmen seized the Chabad centre and hostel during the wider assault on Mumbai and killed six people there, among them the rabbi and his wife.
What he said his reason was
The gunmen were directed throughout by handlers in Pakistan on open telephone lines. Discussing the hostages at the Jewish centre, a handler said that if they were killed it would spoil relations between India and Israel.
What followed
The one gunman taken alive was convicted and hanged. The intercepted calls became evidence in the Indian case and in the government dossier.
Carry this
Six were killed at Chabad House and some accounts give seven. The wider attack on Mumbai killed 166 people, who are not counted here because they were not targeted as Jews.
Mumbai handlers in Pakistan cheer after ordering murders over phone, FDD's Long War Journal, 7 January 2009, Intercepted call of 27 November 2008 in the Indian government dossier, handler identified as Wassi.
4 years later
19 MarchToulouse, France
2012
Ozar Hatorah Jewish school
Who was targeted
He rode up to the gates of a Jewish school as the day began and shot dead a rabbi and three young children.
What he said his reason was
He told police negotiators during the siege of his flat that he did it to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children, and to protest against the French army in Afghanistan and the French ban on the face veil.
What followed
He was killed after a siege of more than thirty hours. His brother was later convicted of complicity.
Carry this
He had shot three French soldiers dead in the preceding week. Those killings are not in this dataset, because the soldiers were not targeted as Jews.
Al-Qaeda group claims responsibility for Toulouse killings, Times of Israel, 22 March 2012, Four killed at the school, a rabbi and three young children. Merah told negotiators he acted to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children.
2 years later
13 AprilOverland Park, United States
2014
Jewish Community Center and Village Shalom
Who was targeted
A white supremacist drove to a Jewish community centre and then to a Jewish care home in the same suburb and shot three people dead.
What he said his reason was
He testified at his own trial that he had driven there looking to murder Jews, and used the proceedings to rail about Jewish control of government and the media. He shouted Heil Hitler when he was sentenced to death.
What followed
Convicted of capital murder in August 2015 and sentenced to death. He died in prison in 2021.
Carry this
None of the three people he killed was Jewish. All three were Christians, and Israel appears nowhere in his account of himself.
Man Who Killed Three At Jewish Centers In Overland Park Seeks To Overturn His Death Sentence, KCUR, 29 March 2021, Three killed at two Jewish sites on 13 April 2014. None of the victims was Jewish.
The same year
24 MayBrussels, Belgium
2014
The Jewish Museum of Belgium
Who was targeted
He walked into the museum with a Kalashnikov and a handgun and shot four people. Three died there and one in hospital.
What he said his reason was
Nothing on the record. He denied the charges, and his defence advanced an unevidenced conspiracy theory about foreign intelligence services.
What followed
Convicted of terrorist murder and jailed for life in March 2019. He had spent a year fighting for Islamic State in Syria before returning to Europe.
Carry this
The reason column here rests on a court finding rather than on a statement. He has never given an account, and this entry does not supply one for him.
Prosecutors demand life sentence for Brussels Jewish museum attacker Nemmouche, France 24, 11 March 2019, Four killed at the Jewish Museum of Belgium on 24 May 2014. Convicted 7 March 2019.
The next year
9 JanuaryParis, France
2015
Hyper Cacher, Porte de Vincennes
Who was targeted
He took hostages in a kosher supermarket on the Friday afternoon before the Sabbath and killed four of them.
What he said his reason was
He telephoned a news channel during the siege and said he had chosen this shop because he was targeting Jews, and that he acted to defend oppressed Muslims, notably in Palestine. His own camera recorded him asking a customer his origin and, when the man answered that he was Jewish, shooting him and saying: so you know why I am here then.
What followed
He was killed when police stormed the shop. Fourteen people were convicted in 2020 of helping with that week's attacks.
Carry this
The shop stood at a junction on the Paris ring road with no connection to any government. The stated reason is a foreign policy and the target was people buying food for Friday night.
Paris killer asked victims if they were Jewish before firing, transcript shows, Times of Israel, 28 February 2015, Transcript of Coulibaly's own GoPro footage. Four hostages killed.
The same year
14 to 15 FebruaryCopenhagen, Denmark
2015
The Great Synagogue, Krystalgade
Who was targeted
He shot the volunteer guarding the door of the synagogue during a bat mitzvah, with about 80 people inside. One killed and two police officers wounded.
What he said his reason was
Nothing on the record. He pledged allegiance to Islamic State online hours earlier and was shot dead by police without leaving any account.
What followed
Four men were later convicted of helping him. Nobody inside the building was hurt.
Carry this
He had attacked a free speech event earlier the same night, killing a filmmaker. That killing is not counted here, because the target was not Jewish.
Denmark: What Transformed Copenhagen Gunman From Petty Thug to Jihadi?, TIME, 16 February 2015, Dan Uzan, the guard on the synagogue door, killed. About 80 people inside for a bat mitzvah.
3 years later
27 OctoberPittsburgh, United States
2018
The Tree of Life building
Who was targeted
He entered a building housing three congregations at Sabbath morning prayers and killed eleven people, the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.
What he said his reason was
He had posted repeatedly about HIAS, the Jewish refugee agency, writing that it liked to bring in invaders who kill our people. He told a police officer afterwards that Jews were committing genocide against his people and that he wanted to kill Jews.
What followed
Convicted on federal charges in 2023 and sentenced to death.
Carry this
Israel is nowhere in his account. The stated grievance is refugee resettlement, which is why a dataset sorted by the ideology of the killer rather than by his stated reason would mislead in both directions.
Additional Charges Filed in Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting, United States Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, 29 January 2019, Superseding indictment. Eleven killed. Gab posts about HIAS quoted, and statements indicating a desire to kill Jews.
The next year
27 AprilPoway, United States
2019
Chabad of Poway
Who was targeted
He opened fire in the sanctuary on the last day of Passover, killing one woman and wounding three others, among them the rabbi and a girl of eight.
What he said his reason was
He pleaded guilty to a 113-count federal hate crime indictment, admitting that he opened fire in the synagogue and set fire to a mosque because he wanted to kill Jews and Muslims.
What followed
Sentenced to life without parole on both state and federal charges.
Carry this
No Israeli policy is named anywhere in his account, and the same man had already attacked a mosque in a neighbouring town.
John Earnest Pleads Guilty to 113-Count Federal Hate Crime Indictment in Connection with Poway Synagogue Shooting and Mosque Arson, United States Department of Justice, US Attorney's Office, Southern District of California, One killed and three wounded at Chabad of Poway on 27 April 2019. Admissions in the plea.
The same year
9 OctoberHalle, Germany
2019
The synagogue at Halle
Who was targeted
He tried to shoot and blast his way into a synagogue on Yom Kippur with about 51 people inside, and livestreamed the attempt. The bolted door held. He then shot a woman passing in the street and a man in a nearby kebab shop.
What he said his reason was
His manifesto set the objective out in one line: kill as many anti-Whites as possible, Jews preferred. He denied the Holocaust on camera, and told the court that attacking the synagogue had not been a mistake because Jews were his enemies.
What followed
Convicted of murder in December 2020 and jailed for life with a finding of particular gravity, which bars the usual review after fifteen years.
Carry this
This is the clearest case of the second inclusion rule. Everyone inside survived because a door held, which is a fact about the door and not about his intent.
The Halle, Germany, Synagogue Attack and the Evolution of the Far-Right Terror Threat, CTC Sentinel, Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, 1 December 2019, Daniel Koehler. Manifesto objective quoted directly. Two killed outside, none inside.
The same year
10 DecemberJersey City, United States
2019
JC Kosher Supermarket, Greenville
Who was targeted
Two attackers drove to a kosher grocery in a Hasidic neighbourhood and killed three people inside. A bomb capable of killing at several hundred metres was found in their van.
What he said his reason was
Nothing usable on the record. A note in the van was described by investigators as brief and rambling. New Jersey's attorney general said the attack was driven by antisemitism and by hostility to law enforcement, and that the shop was deliberately targeted.
What followed
Both were killed by police after a three-hour gun battle. Prosecutors said they had prepared for months and had material for a second bomb.
Carry this
A police detective was killed by the same pair shortly beforehand and is not in the toll here, because he was not targeted as a Jew.
New Jersey authorities seek motive for attack on Jewish market, PBS NewsHour, 11 December 2019, Three killed inside the store. Investigated as domestic terrorism driven by antisemitism.
3 years later
15 JanuaryColleyville, United States
2022
Congregation Beth Israel
Who was targeted
He took four people hostage at gunpoint during the Sabbath morning service and held them for eleven hours. Nobody in the building was killed.
What he said his reason was
He demanded the release of a prisoner held in a federal jail forty minutes up the road. On the rabbi's sworn testimony to Congress he believed that Jews controlled the world, and that America would care more about Jewish hostages than about anybody else.
What followed
The three remaining hostages escaped after eleven hours and an FBI team then entered and shot him dead.
Carry this
Included under the second inclusion rule rather than the first. No hostage died, and it is in this dataset because the failure was theirs rather than his.
Testimony of Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker, Congregation Beth Israel, United States House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, 17 February 2022, Written testimony of 17 February 2022. Four hostages, eleven hours, no deaths among the hostages.
The next year
9 MayDjerba, Tunisia
2023
El Ghriba synagogue
Who was targeted
A serving national guardsman shot a colleague, took his ammunition and opened fire at the synagogue during the Lag BaOmer pilgrimage. Five killed and eight wounded.
What he said his reason was
Nothing on the record. Tunisia's interior ministry said the attack on the synagogue was premeditated but that no motive had been established. He was killed at the scene.
What followed
Five people were sentenced to terms of up to fifteen years in Tunisia in February 2026.
Carry this
Three of the five killed were his own national guard colleagues. Two were Jewish pilgrims, one Tunisian and one French.
Tunisia synagogue attack: Five dead on island of Djerba, CNN, 9 May 2023, Five killed and eight wounded at El Ghriba on 9 May 2023.
2 years later
21 MayWashington, United States
2025
The Capital Jewish Museum
Who was targeted
He shot two people dead as they left a reception for young Jewish professionals and diplomats, hosted by the American Jewish Committee at a Jewish museum.
What he said his reason was
Detained at the scene by the event's own security, he produced a keffiyeh, said he had done it for Gaza and chanted for a free Palestine.
What followed
Charged with federal hate crimes and first degree murder. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty.
Carry this
The two people killed were Israeli embassy staff, one German-Israeli and one American. The target was a Jewish communal event in Washington, which is why it is in this dataset.
Federal Hate Crime and First-Degree Murder Charges Filed Against Alleged Killer of Israeli Embassy Staff Members, United States Department of Justice, US Attorney's Office, District of Columbia, 22 May 2025, Two killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum on 21 May 2025 while leaving an American Jewish Committee event.
The same year
1 JuneBoulder, United States
2025
Pearl Street Mall
Who was targeted
Dressed as a gardener to get close, he threw petrol bombs at a weekly walk for the hostages held in Gaza. Twelve people were burned and an 82-year-old woman later died of her injuries.
What he said his reason was
He told investigators he had planned the attack for a year and that he wanted to kill all Zionist people.
What followed
He pleaded guilty to more than a hundred state charges and was sentenced to life in May 2026.
Carry this
The march was a weekly walk by local residents. It had no Israeli participation and no official standing of any kind.
Man gets life in prison in Colorado firebombing attack on Gaza hostage demonstrators, The Colorado Sun, 7 May 2026, One died of her injuries. Guilty plea and life sentence, 7 May 2026.
The same year
2 OctoberManchester, United Kingdom
2025
Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation
Who was targeted
On Yom Kippur he drove a car at people outside the synagogue and then attacked worshippers with a knife. Two men were killed and three injured. He never got inside.
What he said his reason was
Minutes into the attack he telephoned the emergency services himself, claimed responsibility for it and pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
What followed
He was shot dead by armed police at the scene. The attack was declared a terrorist incident the same day and the inquest opened and was adjourned.
Carry this
The inquest heard provisional findings that one of the two men killed, who was holding the doors shut against the attacker, died of a single gunshot wound to the chest fired by an armed officer through the door.
Manchester Attack 2025: updates, Counter Terrorism Policing, 8 October 2025, Update of 8 October 2025. Al Shamie called 999 claiming responsibility and pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
The same year
14 DecemberSydney, Australia
2025
Chanukah by the Sea, Bondi Beach
Who was targeted
A father and son opened fire on a public Chanukah celebration of about a thousand people on the first night of the festival. Fifteen people were killed and around forty injured, the deadliest terrorist attack in Australian history.
What he said his reason was
Islamic State flags were on their car and a device was in its boot. The father was killed at the scene and gave no account. The son has been charged and has not stood trial, so what he says his reason was is not yet on the record.
What followed
Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police. Naveed Akram, 24, survived and faces fifteen counts of murder alongside terrorism and attempted murder charges. Australia opened a government inquiry into antisemitism afterwards.
Carry this
The only row here with a living accused awaiting trial. Nothing attributed to Naveed Akram is proven, the charges are allegations, and the reason column stays open rather than being filled from the flags. Use the charge sheet and the date, not the motive.
Bondi Beach terrorist, charged with 15 counts of murder, faces court for first time, The Times of Israel, 18 December 2025, Fifteen killed on 14 December 2025 at a Chanukah celebration at Bondi Beach. Naveed Akram charged with 15 counts of murder, terrorism and attempted murder. Sajid Akram shot dead by police at the scene. Islamic State flags on the vehicle.

Included where the attack was outside Israel, was aimed at Jews or a Jewish institution rather than catching Jews incidentally, and was either lethal or a mass killing thwarted by something outside the attacker's control. Tolls are taken from named reporting or official records rather than from lists of attacks. Where sources disagree, the row says so and uses the lower figure.

Evidence

Primary sources, so you can cite them rather than asserting this on our authority.

France charges suspect in deadly 1982 Paris Jewish restaurant attack, Rue des Rosiers, 9 August 1982, six killed and 22 wounded, attributed to the Abu Nidal Organisation.
France 24 · 5 December 2020
Bloodiest Synagogue Massacre Since Nazi Era: Abu Nidal Gang Tagged As Killers of 21 Sabbath Worshippers, Neve Shalom synagogue, Istanbul, 6 September 1986. At least 21 worshippers killed. Two claims of responsibility, neither giving a reason.
Jewish Telegraphic Agency · 8 September 1986
In landmark ruling, Argentine court says Iran and Hezbollah were responsible for 1994 Jewish center bombing, AMIA, Buenos Aires, 18 July 1994, 85 killed and about 300 injured. Federal Criminal Cassation Court, crime against humanity.
Jewish Telegraphic Agency · 12 April 2024
Fifteen Years after the Djerba Synagogue Bombing, Aaron Y. Zelin. El Ghriba, 11 April 2002, 19 killed (14 German, three Tunisian, two French) and about 30 injured. Claim of responsibility faxed 16 April 2002.
CTC Sentinel, Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, volume 10, issue 4 · 1 April 2017
The Synagogue Bombings in Istanbul: Al-Qaeda's New Front?, Ely Karmon. Neve Shalom and Beth Israel, 15 November 2003, 24 killed and more than 300 injured. Claimed by the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades via al-Quds al-Arabi, 16 November 2003.
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy · 18 November 2003
Fatal Shooting at Seattle Jewish Federation, 28 July 2006, one killed and five wounded. Haq told staff he was a Muslim-American who was angry at Israel, and repeated it on the 911 call.
Anti-Defamation League · 31 July 2006
Mumbai handlers in Pakistan cheer after ordering murders over phone, Intercepted calls in the Indian government dossier. Handler on Chabad House, 27 November 2008, on the effect of killing the hostages on India's relations with Israel.
FDD's Long War Journal · 7 January 2009
Al-Qaeda group claims responsibility for Toulouse killings, Ozar Hatorah school, 19 March 2012, four killed, a rabbi and three children. Merah told negotiators he acted to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children.
Times of Israel · 22 March 2012
Man Who Killed Three At Jewish Centers In Overland Park Seeks To Overturn His Death Sentence, 13 April 2014, three killed at the Jewish Community Center and Village Shalom. None of the victims was Jewish. Miller testified he drove there to murder Jews.
KCUR · 29 March 2021
Paris killer asked victims if they were Jewish before firing, transcript shows, Hyper Cacher, 9 January 2015, four killed. Transcript of Coulibaly's own GoPro footage.
Times of Israel · 28 February 2015
Additional Charges Filed in Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting, Superseding indictment. 27 October 2018, 11 killed. Gab posts about HIAS, and statements inside the building indicating a desire to kill Jews.
United States Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs · 29 January 2019
The Halle, Germany, Synagogue Attack and the Evolution of the Far-Right Terror Threat, Daniel Koehler. 9 October 2019, Yom Kippur, about 51 people inside, the door held. Manifesto objective quoted directly.
CTC Sentinel, Combating Terrorism Center at West Point · 1 December 2019
Testimony of Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker, Congregation Beth Israel, Colleyville, 15 January 2022. Four hostages, eleven hours, no deaths among the hostages.
United States House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security · 17 February 2022
Federal Hate Crime and First-Degree Murder Charges Filed Against Alleged Killer of Israeli Embassy Staff Members, Capital Jewish Museum, 21 May 2025, two killed leaving an American Jewish Committee reception.
United States Department of Justice, US Attorney's Office, District of Columbia · 22 May 2025
Manchester Attack 2025: updates, Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, 2 October 2025, Yom Kippur. Al Shamie called 999 claiming responsibility and pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
Counter Terrorism Policing · 8 October 2025

Title: "Criticising Israel has nothing to do with Jews here", Answer The Hate
Source: https://answerthehate.com/claims/attacks-on-jews-outside-israel/
Last reviewed: Last reviewed 1 August 2026. Check the website for a newer version before relying on this sheet.
Status: General information, not legal advice. Published by Stop The Hate.

The arguments this one sits next to

Criticising Israel has nothing to do with Jews here. Stop dragging antisemitism into a foreign policy argument.

The short answer. Say this

If you say nothing else, say one of these

The fuller answer

The column that makes this an argument

Now the part our own side usually leaves out

What the list does not prove, said properly

The geography is half of it

Lines to use

Before you next need this

Attacks on Jews outside Israel, 1982 to 2025

Chez Jo Goldenberg, rue des Rosiers

The Great Synagogue of Rome

Neve Shalom synagogue

AMIA, the Jewish community welfare building

El Ghriba synagogue

Neve Shalom and Beth Israel synagogues

Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle

Chabad House at Nariman House

Ozar Hatorah Jewish school

Jewish Community Center and Village Shalom

The Jewish Museum of Belgium

Hyper Cacher, Porte de Vincennes

The Great Synagogue, Krystalgade

The Tree of Life building

Chabad of Poway

The synagogue at Halle

JC Kosher Supermarket, Greenville

Congregation Beth Israel

El Ghriba synagogue

The Capital Jewish Museum

Pearl Street Mall

Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation

Chanukah by the Sea, Bondi Beach

Evidence

Anti-Zionism isn't antisemitism. Zionism is a political ideology like any other, and opposing it is normal politics.

Jews here should answer for what Israel does

Globalise the intifada just means uprising. Intifada is Arabic for shaking off, and reading murder into it is prejudice

Israel is doing to the Palestinians what the Nazis did to the Jews

Israel gets singled out. Nobody treats any other country in the world this way.