SCHOOLCHILDREN ASSAULTED

of children who screamed abuse at him, including “f***ing Jew’.

Out of the total 1,382 incidents, 76 targeted synagogues while 88 were directed against Jewish schools, children or staff.

In 141 incidents the victims were Jewish community organisations, communal events, commercial premises or high-profile individuals, compared to 169 such incidents in 2016.

Where CST received a physical description of the offender — in 420 or 30 per cent of all incidents — 54 per cent were described as being “white, north European”.

A minority of offenders were described as being of “black”, “south Asian” or, in a very few cases “Arab or north African” origin.

The report suggests that “antisemitic hate crime and hate incidents, like other forms of hate crime, are significantly under-reported”. It also reveals that 872 potential incidents were not included in the annual total as it was not possible to determine the motivation of offenders so they could not be classed as antisemitic.

Responding to the figures, Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the rise in reported incidents “partly reflects the improving response to these horrendous attacks and better information sharing between the CST and police forces around the UK”.

She added: “But even one incident is one too many, and any rise in incidents is clearly concerning, which is why this government will continue its work protecting the Jewish community and other groups from antisemitism and hate crime.”

Andrew Gwynne, the Shadow Communities and Local Government Secretary, said: “The findings of this report are extremely concerning, and emphasise just how important it is that we all make a conscious effort to call out and confront antisemitism.

“No one should feel unsafe or discriminated against while going about their daily business in public places. Hate has no place in our country and we must root out antisemitism whenever and wherever it takes place.

“I hope CST’s report will act as a stark reminder of the work that still needs to be done.”

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Hate Crime, Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton said: “The partnership between police and CST is central to our efforts to protect our Jewish communities from hate crime.

“I would encourage anybody who suffers hate crime to report it to the police and to CST – we will do everything we can to support you and to bring offenders to justice.”

ONE of the cases highlighted in the report involved a group of Jewish schoolchildren who were physically and verbally attacked on a bus by a gang of teenagers. The schoolchildren tried to get the attention of the bus driver but were ignored. They fled the bus at the next stop, but were chased. The victims ran into a kosher shop where security staff called the police. One offender immediately pleaded guilty and so never went to court; another received a 12-month youth rehabilitation order. Thee perpetrators were told to attend a 60-hour victim awareness programme and restorative justice sessions.