More than a quarter of the world’s population hold antisemitic views, an Anti-Defamation League survey has revealed.
In its first global study, the ADL polled more than 53,000 adults from 102 countries and territories in order to produce “a comprehensive data-based research survey of the level and intensity of anti-Jewish sentiment across the world”.
Results were assessed by measuring the percentage of people who answered “probably true” to six or more negative Jewish stereotypes, and then compiling them in numerical order.
While Laos ranked lowest, with only 0.2 per cent of its adult population holding antisemitic attitudes, the West Bank and Gaza held the most at 93 per cent.
Answers also varied by region, with 74 per cent of adults in the Middle East and North African countries harbouring negative attitudes towards Jews, in comparison to 19 per cent of people in the Americas.
“For the first time, we have a real sense of how pervasive and persistent antisemitism is today around the world,” ADL’s national director Abraham Foxman said.
But he also pointed to the “highly encouraging notes” in the survey. More than one in four people did not agree with a single antisemitic stereotype, which slightly outnumbered those who did.
