Jewish communities boost security and continue observances amid rise in hateful incidents

Law enforcement officials on Tuesday said they are taking steps to monitor and counter threats to Jewish and Muslim communities nationwide since the onset of war in the Middle East, multiple hate crimes and an attempted terror attack prompted increased security measures at places of worship and investigations into extremist activity.

As the FBI conducts an investigation into a March 12 incident in West Bloomfield, Michigan, in which a driver drove a vehicle through the doors of Temple Israel, the nation’s second-largest congregation in Reform Judaism, officials offered an assessment of threats against faith communities and discussed strategies for maintaining safety and security at places of worship.

“We know a goal of our enemies is to scare us into submission so that we make a decision to not show up,” said Michael Masters, national director of the Secure Community Network, during a national security briefing that included insights from federal and local law enforcement agencies.

“With strong safety and security measures in place, that doesn’t need to happen," Masters said.

The network, which coordinates security for Jewish communities in North America, hosted the national security briefing ahead of Passover and amid rising global tensions. Hateful incidents against Jewish people were recently documented in southern California and Toronto, while European officials are investigating car burnings in Antwerp and London as antisemitic attacks.

For many Jewish Americans, the antisemitic incidents have confirmed longstanding fears about the rise of antisemitism, as well as the need to vigorously counter extremism and live their faith undaunted by threats. Meanwhile, the upsurge of virulent anti-Muslim rhetoric from some GOP politicians and Christian nationalists carries echoes of the early 2000s, when the 9/11 attacks and the Afghanistan and Iraq wars bred Islamophobic sentiment across the U.S. and around the world.

Jewish leaders meet with federal officials on threats to communities

Jewish leaders have called on lawmakers and civic leaders to combat the heightened threats.

“As shocking as the incident in Temple Israel was, it has become, for us in the Jewish community, no longer a surprise,” said Gary Torgow, chair of the Jewish Federations of North America, during the briefing on security measures Jewish organizations were taking nationwide. Torgow, a Michigan business executive, said that “hate today spreads at lightning speed through misinformation on social media” and warned that its unchecked spread “inevitably creates a climate where violence becomes more likely.”

Torgow and other Jewish leaders met last week with senior FBI officials to discuss federal efforts to combat antisemitic incidents since the Trump administration launched joint strikes with Israel on Iran, sparking retaliatory strikes and a regional conflict that has reverberated globally. Among the meeting's participants was Andrew Bailey, the FBI's deputy director, who Torgow said was receptive and responsive to their concerns.

“What we saw in that meeting is a sincere concern and a really active engagement,” said Torgow. “An attack on a synagogue, we shared with them, has to be really understood for what it is: an attack on the principle that every American should be able to worship in peace."

Federal authorities are also monitoring for increased activities from radicalized individuals who may seek to attack places of worship or strike during high profile upcoming events or holidays. Officials during the security briefing did not share any known threats to upcoming events and Secure Community Network officials said they did not know of any active threats to Jewish communities at present.

“As we not only seek to defend against would-be malicious actors, particularly ones encouraged by or empathetic to Iran, we also need to be equally on guard for all aspects and assailants as America looks forward to hosting both the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the America 250 celebrations later this year,” said Matthew Kozma, the under secretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security, during the security briefing.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said during a March Senate hearing that intelligence agencies had focused efforts “on individuals either who have been radicalized by Islamist propaganda and may not have ever had contact with ISIS or al-Qaida” but were nonetheless radicalized online while in the U.S.

The FBI is investigating two recent incidents as acts of terrorism, including an attempted bombing of anti-Muslim protests in front of the New York mayor's residence and a deadly shooting at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

Jewish Federations president Eric Fingerhut said the terror attack on Temple Israel showed that “even our most advanced security efforts can be overtaken by world events and by the very determined planning of terrorists," meaning that Jewish communities “must, yet again, increase our level of security for our community” and work closely with law enforcement to monitor risks, and civic leaders to address the root causes of bigotry and extremism.

The Jewish Federations of North America will also host rallies calling for greater efforts to combat antisemitism from lawmakers in Washington in May.

Since the attack on Temple Israel, for instance, Oakland County, Michigan, Sheriff Michael Bouchard said that he'd received antisemitic death threats himself for responding to the attacks.

“I think it's incumbent on all of us to step up, stand out and do everything we can to protect our communities,” Bouchard said.

A spike in hateful activities

The causes of the spikes in antisemitic attacks and other hateful conduct are complex and longstanding, experts say. Heightened international tensions, polarized domestic politics and new digital technologies have all contributed to the increase in bigoted views.

“We’re seeing a lot of ideas and conspiracy theories that were once on the fringes of public conversation being ingested into political debate,” said Seth Levi, chief strategy officer at the Southern Poverty Law Center. Levi cited social media and the increased ease of hateful rhetoric to spread unfiltered to a mass audience as the primary driver of radicalization for many extremists.

Muslim Americans, meanwhile, have expressed fear and alarm as anti-Muslim rhetoric and actions by state governments designating Muslim communities as security threats have risen in recent months.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has monitored a large rise in antisemitic and Islamophobic rhetoric over the last year that only intensified since the war in the Middle East began, Levi said.

“We continue to see incidents like hateful and racist flyering, especially neighborhoods that have a particular faith community,” Levi said. “In person, physical harassment where you live creates a different, more visceral reaction than online activity.”

Levi said that most Americans still strongly disapprove of hateful violence and rhetoric in polling reviewed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, but that comments from federal lawmakers, including President Donald Trump, were often echoed in the hateful rhetoric used by some figures online or in physical threats reviewed by the center.

For many Jewish leaders, the moment underscores a need for greater resolve and closer community.

“The vibrancy of Jewish life in North America, Jewish life everywhere, only happens with our own efforts,” said Wendy Berger, chair of the Secure Community Network. “It is in our hands. And we have these extraordinary, amazing federal, local, state partners. But security is up to us, and the vibrancy of Jewish lives depends on it.”