By Maria Hammond, AHA’s European Outreach Manager
In 2019, before the world shut down for COVID, I found myself looking for a new place to live and ended up in Antwerp’s Jewish quarter.
After an arduous accommodation search, an elderly Jewish man, whose family was killed in the Holocaust, kindly opened his doors to me. I remember his warm, genuine welcome and curiosity about my story. His home overflowed with books collected over the years, and he and his wife often invited me for tea.
This final fortress of the Jewish community in Europe is now being threatened by Islamists, and could soon become a relic of the past.
Before I arrived in Antwerp, I knew little about the city’s 500-year-old Jewish history, nearly extinguished in the 1940s. Before WWII, Antwerp was a thriving hub of 35,000 Jews. By the time the city was liberated in 1944, only 800 remained in hiding; over 65% of the city’s Jewish population had been murdered. In the Belgian capital Brussels, by comparison, the Jewish population pre-WWII was approximately 25,000 and about 37 percent were murdered.
Antwerp’s Jewish history is defined by a peaceful, close-knit, and traditional community. The distinct identity of Antwerp’s Jews, shaped by centuries of tradition and resilience, stood out from the rest of the city. Antwerp has a high concentration of Haredi (Ultra-Orthodox) Jews, making it one of the last remaining “shtetls” in Europe. This final fortress of the Jewish community in Europe is now being threatened by Islamists, and could soon become a relic of the past.
On March 23rd, the Islamist group Ashab al Yamin brazenly attacked vehicles in Antwerp’s Jewish quarter. Ashab al Yamin declared: “Antwerp is one of Europe’s most important cities with a large Zionist community. Appelmansstraat, its main street, was targeted. Our operations will escalate until our lands in Palestine are liberated, and we avenge the blood of Palestinians, Lebanese, and all Muslims.”
The Belgian government has failed to adequately address the Islamist threat, often minimizing its seriousness by calling it “hybrid”, blurring the line between local crime and international terrorism.
The same group is responsible for dozens of recent attacks on Jews in Britain and all over Europe. Such targeted attacks—including explosions, arson, and death threats—have intensified in recent years, mostly linked to Ashab al Yamin, and now occur with alarming frequency.
Antwerp’s Jewish residents describe facing multiple threats daily and feeling vulnerable, even with government security measures in place. The Belgian government has failed to adequately address the Islamist threat, often minimizing its seriousness by calling it “hybrid”, blurring the line between local crime and international terrorism. This downplaying of the ever-expanding problem raises serious questions about Europe’s commitment to preserving this once-secure community.
The memories of Antwerp’s Jewish quarter are precious to me not only because it was my first encounter with the Jewish community, but also because it embodied resilience and hope—a place where Jews could rebuild their lives. Today, protecting this legacy demands facing the real dangers threatening the community. We have to confront not just the Islamists, but also the silence and accompanying lack of action in the West.
To preserve Antwerp’s Jewish quarter and safeguard Jewish communities globally, we must openly name their enemies and stand firm in opposition. We need to gather the courage to name the threat.