Countering Extremism in Europe: Tackling the Drivers of Rising Antisemitism
A Combat Antisemitism Movement webinar brought together leading experts to analyze the organized networks driving Jew-hatred across modern Europe — and to chart a path from reactive policing toward strategic disruption.
The Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) hosted a timely and sobering webinar examining the forces behind the alarming rise of antisemitism across Europe. Moderated by Shannon Seban, CAM’s Executive Director for European Affairs, the discussion brought together two of Europe’s foremost voices on minority rights, radicalization, and counter-extremism strategy: Manel Msalmi of the European Association for the Defense of Minorities and researcher at ISGAP, and Alexander Ritzmann, Senior Advisor at the Counter Extremism Project.
Fresh data released on the day of the webinar by CAM’s own antisemitism research center confirmed a troubling trend: Jew-hatred is not only increasing in frequency but is becoming more normalized across political and social spectrums. Notably, the data showed antisemitism is no longer predominantly a phenomenon of the far right — 65% of recorded incidents were attributable to far-left and Islamist-inspired ideologies combined.
From incident response to strategic disruption
Alexander Ritzmann opened with a framework that challenges the conventional approach to fighting antisemitism. Drawing on work produced with the German Federal Foreign Office in the wake of October 7, 2023, he argued that current law enforcement responses treat antisemitism as a fragmented, reactive problem — prosecuting individual acts while leaving the organized networks that enable them largely untouched.
There are professional antisemites who get up in the morning to spread antisemitism. We need to address them the way we address organized crime — not just the street dealer, but the Capone organizing the whole network.
Ritzmann described a four-category model of organized antisemitic actors: professional propagandists who manage strategic online and offline communications; professional organizers and fixers who arrange logistics and venues; professional financiers who ensure the money flows; and overlapping links with organized crime. His five-step framework for identifying and disrupting these actors — available at counterextremism.com — borrows methodologies from anti-money laundering, counterterrorism financing, and disinformation super-spreader research.
Ritzmann also cited the October 7 Hamas attack as a case study in professional antisemitic mobilization. Within hours of the attack, coordinated campaigns glorifying the violence were already live across social media — clear evidence, he argued, that standing networks of professional antisemites were ready to act before most of the world had processed what had happened.
Key findings from the webinar
“Antisemitism is never an isolated phenomenon. It is always a warning sign of broader democratic erosion, extremism, and social fragmentation.”
About the Combat Antisemitism Movement
The Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) is a leading voice in the collective effort against antisemitism, fostering alliances that transcend traditional divides, educating mass audiences, mobilizing grassroots activists, and forging relationships with policymakers at the global, national, and local levels.
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