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Poll: 85% of Greeks Believe the Jews Have Too Much Power Over Global Finance

AP
June 30, 2015

A new poll by the Anti-Defamation League found that the majority of Greeks continue to hold anti-Semitic views about Jewish control over finance and the global economy, despite a recent drop in anti-Jewish attitudes in other parts of Europe.

Greece—which faces the prospect of economic default at midnight on Wednesday—surpasses Iran and trails just slightly behind Turkey in the percentage of its residents who hold anti-Semitic views.

In total, 67 percent of Greek respondents agreed with the majority of a list of anti-Semitic statements included in the survey. Other European countries, particularly France and Germany, have experienced a decrease in overall anti-Semitic attitudes in the wake of recent attacks on Jews.

According to the ADL poll, 90 percent of Greeks agreed with the statement that "Jews have too much power in the business world" and 85 percent agreed "Jews have too much power in international finance markets." 

In addition, 70 percent said that "Jews still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust" and 51 percent said "Jews don’t care about what happens to anyone but their own kind." 

Over one-quarter of respondents also said they believe the number of Jews reported to have died in the Holocaust has been "greatly exaggerated." One-third said Jews are "responsible for most of the world’s wars" and 41 percent agreed that "People hate Jews because of the way Jews behave." 

The ADL poll is a follow-up to its 2014 Global 100 survey. Since 2014, the percentage of people holding anti-Semitic views in France, Germany, and Belgium has decreased. Each of these countries has recently experienced attacks on Jews. 

France had the most significant drop. Last year, 37 percent of respondents agreed with the majority of the list of anti-Jewish statements included in the survey. In the latest 2015 poll, just 17 percent agreed with the majority of the statements.

The poll also found widespread anti-Semitism among Muslims across Europe. Fifty-five percent agreed with the majority of anti-Jewish statements included in the survey.

However, European Muslims were still less likely to hold anti-Semitic views than Muslims in the Middle East, and significantly less likely to hold anti-Semitic views than the general population of Greece.

The ADL poll surveyed 10,000 adults, and the margin of error was plus or minus 4.4 percent.

Published under: Anti-Semitism , Greece