From the Liveblog of
Sunday, December 21, 2025
Group of Jews reportedly attacked in Turkey on way to Hanukkah candle lighting
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleZev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.
A video circulating on social media purports to show seven Jews in Turkey being attacked by a large crowd of pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Istanbul while they were on their way to a synagogue to celebrate Hanukkah.
“We don’t want Zionists in our country,” an attacker is heard saying. Details about the video could not be independently verified.
Antisemitic attacks have spiked all over the world since Hamas launched its war against Israel on October 7, 2023. A terror attack on a Hanukkah party in Australia last week, which left 15 people dead, has heightened security concerns in Jewish communities over the eight-day holiday.
Seven Jewish citizens were attacked in Istanbul by a large crowd of pro-Palestinian demonstrators while they were on their way to a synagogue to celebrate Hanukkah.
They were targeted simply for being Jewish and for practicing their faith. pic.twitter.com/5uDiIaG5Mr— Türkü Avcı (@turkuinisrael) December 21, 2025
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