NEW YORK - The number of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States declined for the third straight year in 2007, according to a report from a leading Jewish group published Wednesday.
The Anti-Defamation League's annual audit of anti-Semitic incidents found 1,357 incidents of vandalism, harassment and other acts of hate against Jewish individuals or institutions in 2007 -- a 13 percent decline from 2006.
"We are certainly encouraged that the total number of anti-Semitic incidents has declined for three years in a row," said Abraham Foxman, the organization's national director.
"Yet, we are still troubled that there are so many incidents reported, and that these incidents often involve expressions of anti-Jewish animus that are ugly and deeply hurtful to their victims and the communities where they occur."
The report found that the Nazi swastika remained the symbol of choice for anti-Semites and was used in hundreds of attacks on buildings, synagogues, cemeteries and private homes.
The group singled out an incident in New Jersey, where a swastika the size of a football field was carved into a cornfield.
"It is a symbol that is instantly recognizable and whose meaning and intent is explicitly clear," said Foxman.
"For Jews, especially survivors of the Holocaust and their families, the swastika is a terrifying reminder of the consequences of unchecked hate and the resilience of anti-Semitism in its most lethal forms," he added.
Other incidents detailed in the report included anti-Semitic graffiti being spray-painted on cars and mailboxes near a New York synagogue and at least 70 headstones being overturned at a Jewish cemetery in Chicago.
The report found that while physical attacks were declining, hate groups were increasingly using the Internet to spread their message.
The group said that while it was difficult to quantify anti-Semitic incidents on the web, the number of hate sites had multiplied in 2007.
jah/sg
03/05/2008 16:23 GMT