Reports of antisemitic incidents in the UK surged the day after punk duo Bob Vylan's anti-IDF remarks at Glastonbury, according to the Community Security Trust (CST). On 29 June, 26 incidents were recorded, the highest daily total in the first half of 2025.
The previous day, rapper Bobby Vylan chanted “Death, death to the IDF” during the band's set at the Glastonbury festival, which was livestreamed by the BBC. The CST said the incidents on 29 June involved anti-Jewish responses to the Glastonbury event and to the charity's subsequent statement on X, which described the chants as “utterly chilling”.
The CST noted that sentiment towards Israel is influencing and driving “contemporary anti-Jewish discourse”. The second-worst day for antisemitic incidents this year was 17 May, with 19 reports, a day after Israel announced an expansion of its military operation in Gaza.
In the first half of 2025, the CST recorded 1,521 antisemitic incidents across the UK, the second-highest total for that period but down by a quarter from the record high of 2,019 in the same period last year. Just over half (51%) of incidents referenced or were linked to Israel, Palestine, the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023, or the subsequent conflict.
June 2025 saw the highest monthly total this year, with 326 incidents amid heightened tensions in Gaza. The charity recorded 76 violent assaults, 84 cases of damage to Jewish property, and 1,236 incidents of verbal or written abuse. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said antisemitic incidents “remain shamefully and persistently high”.
