Britain on Wednesday (Mar 13) came up with a new definition of extremism, aiming to address a surge in hate crimes against Jews and Muslims following the Oct 7 Hamas attack&nbsp;on Israel.&nbsp;

<h2>Extremism's new definition</h2>

As per the UK's new definition of extremism, it "is the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on violence, hatred, or intolerance", that aims to negate or destroy the fundamental rights and freedoms of others; or undermine, overturn or replace the UK’s system of liberal parliamentary democracy and democratic rights; or intentionally create a permissive environment for others to achieve those results.

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"This new definition helps clearly articulate how extremism is evidenced through the public behaviour of extremists that advance their violent, hateful or intolerant aims," reads the UK government website.

<h2>Tackling extremism</h2>

Michael Gove, the communities minister who heads the department that is behind the new definition, said: "Today's measures will ensure that government does not inadvertently provide a platform to those setting out to subvert democracy and deny other people's fundamental rights."

"This is the first in a series of measures to tackle extremism and protect our democracy," he added.

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Britain already proscribes groups involved in terrorism, and that membership&nbsp;or support for such organisations constitutes a criminal offence.

Groups identified as extremist through a "robust" assessment in the coming weeks will be denied government funding or engagement opportunities.&nbsp;

<h2>Critics warn against it</h2>

Critics, including Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, as per Reuters, have cautioned that the new definition could potentially encroach on freedom of speech.

Archbishop Welby said, "The problem with a top-down definition of extremism is that it catches people who (we) don't want to catch."

"It may accidentally inhibit what we have very preciously in this country, an extraordinarily robust freedom of speech and ability to disagree strongly," he added in a conversation with BBC radio on Wednesday, before the release of the definition.

Furthermore, more than 50 survivors or relatives of victims of Islamist attacks in Britain have criticised politicians for "equating being Muslim with being an extremist".&nbsp;They've signed a letter alleging that this rhetoric inadvertently plays into the hands of militants.

<h2>Extremism in Britain</h2>

This comes as British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had previously warned that the nation's multi-ethnic democracy was under deliberate threat from both Islamist and far-right extremists.

According to the Community Security Trust, a Jewish safety watchdog, driven by the Oct 7 attacks, antisemitic incidents in the UK surged by 147 per cent in 2023, reaching record levels.&nbsp;

Tell Mama, a group monitoring anti-Muslim incidents, also reported a 335 per cent increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes since the attacks.

(With inputs from agencies)

Britain on Wednesday (Mar 13) came up with a new definition of extremism, aiming to address a surge in hate crimes against Jews and Muslims following the Oct 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Britain on Wednesday (Mar 13) came up with a new definition of extremism, aiming to address a surge in hate crimes against Jews and Muslims following the Oct 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Extremism's new definition As per the UK's new definition of extremism, it "is the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on violence, hatred, or intolerance", that aims to negate or destroy the fundamental rights and freedoms of others; or undermine, overturn or replace the UK’s system of liberal parliamentary democracy and democratic rights; or intentionally create a permissive environment for others to achieve those results. Also read | 'Vile' abuse and hate forces UK's first 'anti-Muslim hatred tsar' to quit before taking office "This new definition helps clearly articulate how extremism is evidenced through the public behaviour of extremists that advance their violent, hateful or intolerant aims," reads the UK government website. Tackling extremism Michael Gove, the communities minister who heads the department that is behind the new definition, said: "Today's measures will ensure that government does not inadvertently provide a platform to those setting out to subvert democracy and deny other people's fundamental rights." "This is the first in a series of measures to tackle extremism and protect our democracy," he added. Also read | UN report finds Israel's killing of journalist in Lebanon a clear violation of international law Britain already proscribes groups involved in terrorism, and that membership or support for such organisations constitutes a criminal offence. Groups identified as extremist through a "robust" assessment in the coming weeks will be denied government funding or engagement opportunities. Critics warn against it Critics, including Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, as per Reuters, have cautioned that the new definition could potentially encroach on freedom of speech. Archbishop Welby said, "The problem with a top-down definition of extremism is that it catches people who (we) don't want to catch." "It may accidentally inhibit what we have very preciously in this country, an extraordinarily robust freedom of speech and ability to disagree strongly," he added in a conversation with BBC radio on Wednesday, before the release of the definition. Furthermore, more than 50 survivors or relatives of victims of Islamist attacks in Britain have criticised politicians for "equating being Muslim with being an extremist". They've signed a letter alleging that this rhetoric inadvertently plays into the hands of militants. Extremism in Britain This comes as British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had previously warned that the nation's multi-ethnic democracy was under deliberate threat from both Islamist and far-right extremists. According to the Community Security Trust, a Jewish safety watchdog, driven by the Oct 7 attacks, antisemitic incidents in the UK surged by 147 per cent in 2023, reaching record levels. Tell Mama, a group monitoring anti-Muslim incidents, also reported a 335 per cent increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes since the attacks. (With inputs from agencies)

Britain redefines 'extremism' in the face of rising hate crimes, critics call it a threat to free speech

The&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/thousands-march-in-new-york-city-against-anti-semitism-in-wake-of-attacks-272505">anti-Semitic</a>&nbsp;incidents&nbsp;logged&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/finally-british-lawmakers-approve-historic-brexit-deal-273275">Britain&nbsp;</a>last year hit&nbsp;record&nbsp;levels yet&nbsp;again&nbsp;amid accusations the opposition <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/finally-british-lawmakers-approve-historic-brexit-deal-273275">Labour Party</a> had failed to tackle the issue within its ranks, a Jewish advisory body said on Thursday.

The Community Security Trust (CST), which advises&nbsp;Britain's estimated 280,000 Jews on security matters, said there had been 1,805&nbsp;incidents&nbsp;in 2019, a rise of 7 per cent&nbsp;and the fourth consecutive year the figure had reached a new high.

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CST chief executive David Delew said the&nbsp;record&nbsp;came as no surprise and the organisation believed the real&nbsp;number&nbsp;was likely to be far higher.

"It is clear that both social media and mainstream politics are places where&nbsp;anti-Semitism and racism need to be driven out, if things are to improve in the future," he said.

World leaders warned last month of a growing tide of&nbsp;anti-Jewish sentiment, driven both by far-right white supremacists and those from the far-left, as they commemorated victims of the Holocaust in World War Two.

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In&nbsp;Britain, the CST said there was an increase in&nbsp;incidents&nbsp;in months when Labour's problems with&nbsp;anti-Semitism were in the news.

Ever since veteran socialist <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/finally-british-lawmakers-approve-historic-brexit-deal-273275">Jeremy Corbyn</a>, an ardent supporter of Palestinian rights, became leader in 2015, the party has faced accusations that it has failed to stem&nbsp;anti-Semitism among some members.

Corbyn, who is stepping down as leader in April, has said&nbsp;anti-Semitism is "vile and wrong" but the party is now under investigation by&nbsp;Britain's Equality and Human Rights Commission.

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Last February, a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of Labour lawmakers left the party citing the issue as a reason, while ahead of December's national election,&nbsp;Britain's chief rabbi said Corbyn was unfit to be prime minister.

Of the total&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;incidents, 224 were connected to Labour, said the CST, which has collated such data since 1984.

"It is hard to precisely disaggregate the impact of the continuing Labour&nbsp;anti-Semitism controversy upon CST’s statistics, but it clearly has an important bearing," the report said.

The charity said the main reason for the overall increase in&nbsp;incidents&nbsp;was a sharp rise in online&nbsp;anti-Semitism.

But there were also 157 assaults&nbsp;a 27 per cent&nbsp;increase on 2018 with almost 50 per cent&nbsp;of these occurring in just three areas of the country Barnet and Hackney in London and Salford in northern England which are home to some of the largest Jewish communities.

A rise of intolerance after Britons voted in the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union and the Brexit discourse since, which brought nationalism and immigration to the fore, had also led an atmosphere where people might have felt able to express their "hatred of otherness", the report said.

The number of anti-Semitic incidents logged in Britain last year hit record levels yet again amid accusations the opposition Labour Party had failed to tackle the issue within its ranks, a Jewish advisory body said on Thursday.

The number of anti-Semitic incidents logged in Britain last year hit record levels yet again amid accusations the opposition Labour Party had failed to tackle the issue within its ranks, a Jewish advisory body said on Thursday. The Community Security Trust (CST), which advises Britain's estimated 280,000 Jews on security matters, said there had been 1,805 incidents in 2019, a rise of 7 per cent and the fourth consecutive year the figure had reached a new high. Also read: Thousands march in New York City against anti-Semitism in wake of attacks CST chief executive David Delew said the record came as no surprise and the organisation believed the real number was likely to be far higher. "It is clear that both social media and mainstream politics are places where anti-Semitism and racism need to be driven out, if things are to improve in the future," he said. World leaders warned last month of a growing tide of anti-Jewish sentiment, driven both by far-right white supremacists and those from the far-left, as they commemorated victims of the Holocaust in World War Two. Also read: Netanyahu accuses international court of anti-semitism in war crimes probe In Britain, the CST said there was an increase in incidents in months when Labour's problems with anti-Semitism were in the news. Ever since veteran socialist Jeremy Corbyn, an ardent supporter of Palestinian rights, became leader in 2015, the party has faced accusations that it has failed to stem anti-Semitism among some members. Corbyn, who is stepping down as leader in April, has said anti-Semitism is "vile and wrong" but the party is now under investigation by Britain's Equality and Human Rights Commission. Also read: Amid criticism, Trump signs order targeting anti-Semitism at universities Last February, a number of Labour lawmakers left the party citing the issue as a reason, while ahead of December's national election, Britain's chief rabbi said Corbyn was unfit to be prime minister. Of the total number of incidents, 224 were connected to Labour, said the CST, which has collated such data since 1984. "It is hard to precisely disaggregate the impact of the continuing Labour anti-Semitism controversy upon CST’s statistics, but it clearly has an important bearing," the report said. The charity said the main reason for the overall increase in incidents was a sharp rise in online anti-Semitism. But there were also 157 assaults a 27 per cent increase on 2018 with almost 50 per cent of these occurring in just three areas of the country Barnet and Hackney in London and Salford in northern England which are home to some of the largest Jewish communities. A rise of intolerance after Britons voted in the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union and the Brexit discourse since, which brought nationalism and immigration to the fore, had also led an atmosphere where people might have felt able to express their "hatred of otherness", the report said.

Record number of anti-Semitic incidents logged in Britain, again

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday condemned an "unacceptable increase" in anti-Semitic vandalism and hate speech, linking it to a wave of demonstrations against his government, according to spokesman Benjamin Griveaux.

"Anti-Semitism is a repudiation of the Republic, in the same way that attacking elected officials or institutions is a repudiation of the Republic," Macron told ministers at a cabinet meeting, Griveaux said.

There has been widespread outrage over anti-Jewish graffiti and vandalism in and around Paris last weekend, including the desecration of a memorial to a young Jewish man who was tortured to death in 2006.

According to the spokesman, Macron said the incidents were "a new turn of events linked to the movement" of so-called "yellow vest" anti-government rallies.&nbsp;

The weekend incidents coincided with another Saturday of yellow vest protest against Macron and his perceived pro-business policies.

Government officials have suggested the anti-Semitic acts could be blamed in part on far-left and far-right activists who have infiltrated the weekly protests.

But they have offered no direct evidence of a link, and the rise in anti-Semitic acts predates the movement, which began in November.

Around 300 people gathered at the Paris memorial site Wednesday in Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois outside Paris to mark the anniversary of the gruesome killing of 23-year-old Ilan Halimi.

Officials, including the Israeli ambassador to France, planted trees to replace two sawn down over the weekend.

The interior minister said this week that the number of anti-Jewish offences reported to police surged 74 percent last year, to 541 up from 311 in 2017, after two years of declines.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday condemned an "unacceptable increase" in anti-Semitic vandalism and hate speech, linking it to a wave of demonstrations against his government, according to spokesman Benjamin Griveaux.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday condemned an "unacceptable increase" in anti-Semitic vandalism and hate speech, linking it to a wave of demonstrations against his government, according to spokesman Benjamin Griveaux. "Anti-Semitism is a repudiation of the Republic, in the same way that attacking elected officials or institutions is a repudiation of the Republic," Macron told ministers at a cabinet meeting, Griveaux said. There has been widespread outrage over anti-Jewish graffiti and vandalism in and around Paris last weekend, including the desecration of a memorial to a young Jewish man who was tortured to death in 2006. According to the spokesman, Macron said the incidents were "a new turn of events linked to the movement" of so-called "yellow vest" anti-government rallies. The weekend incidents coincided with another Saturday of yellow vest protest against Macron and his perceived pro-business policies. Government officials have suggested the anti-Semitic acts could be blamed in part on far-left and far-right activists who have infiltrated the weekly protests. But they have offered no direct evidence of a link, and the rise in anti-Semitic acts predates the movement, which began in November. Around 300 people gathered at the Paris memorial site Wednesday in Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois outside Paris to mark the anniversary of the gruesome killing of 23-year-old Ilan Halimi. Officials, including the Israeli ambassador to France, planted trees to replace two sawn down over the weekend. The interior minister said this week that the number of anti-Jewish offences reported to police surged 74 percent last year, to 541 up from 311 in 2017, after two years of declines.

Emmanuel Macron denounces 'unacceptable increase' in anti-Semitic acts