The Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain said Monday it is considering legal action after what it described as “one of the most serious cases of antisemitic harassment recorded in Barcelona in recent years.”
According to the federation, the incident took place late Friday night after a group of Jewish citizens from France left a synagogue following prayers and a Shabbat meal.
Pro-Palestinian protest in Barcelona
(Photo: REUTERS/Eva Manez)
Two members of the group, who were identifiable as Jewish because they were wearing kippahs, one of them in Hasidic dress, became the target of hostile looks, insults and a chase that lasted nearly an hour and a half as they made their way to their hotel, according to their testimony.
Witnesses said a woman wearing shorts, a sports bra and a Palestinian keffiyeh, with tattoos covering her body, chased members of the group while shouting antisemitic slurs at them and repeatedly spitting at them.
Later, according to the accounts, dozens of other people joined the pursuit, some of them on bicycles, scooters and motorcycles. They shouted slogans including “Jews are not welcome in Barcelona,” “baby killers” and “Israeli genocide,” and blocked the men from moving freely.
The complainants said they feared for more than half an hour that they would be physically attacked, until they reached the Hotel Arts, where security guards prevented the crowd from entering the hotel grounds.
The Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain and the Jewish community of Barcelona said they are gathering information and considering filing complaints with authorities.
They called on anyone who witnessed the incident or has video documentation from the promenade, the Olympic Port area or the vicinity of the Sofitel and Arts hotels on the night of the incident to send the information to the Jewish community of Barcelona.
The federation said the incident follows what it described as a series of antisemitic incidents in recent months, including the desecration of graves at the Jewish cemetery on Montjuïc, graffiti, vandalism, threatening demonstrations and threats against members of the Jewish community.
“Antisemitism is not a problem of the Jewish community alone. It is a problem for democracy as a whole,” the federation said, calling on Spanish authorities to take decisive action and end what it described as “indifference” toward the phenomenon.