NYC Jews targeted in 60% of hate crimes last month; swastika sprayed on synagogue

NYPD reports 30 confirmed anti-Jewish incidents in April; Nazi graffiti found on Kristallnacht memorial, Jewish homes in Queens

NEW YORK — Jews in New York City were targeted in 60 percent of all confirmed hate crimes last month, according to NYPD data released on Monday.

The police reported 30 antisemitic incidents out of 50 total hate crimes in the city.

Jews make up around 10% of the city’s population.

There were nine incidents targeting Black people, one based on gender, three against Hispanic people, two motivated by religion, five based on sexual orientation, and zero for Muslims, Asians, white people, and other ethnicities.

The number of antisemitic hate crimes in April marked a decrease over the 43 confirmed incidents targeting Jews in April 2025.

In February of this year, there were 21 confirmed antisemitic incidents, and in March, 32. The monthly total tends to vary based on factors including news developments, protests, and the weather.

The NYPD had previously reported suspected, but unconfirmed, hate crime incidents. That changed for February, when the police reported confirmed incidents instead.

After coming under criticism, the NYPD began reporting both suspected and confirmed hate crimes in March.

That means that a total for the year is not available, because for January, there is no data on confirmed incidents, and for February, there is no data on suspected incidents.

In February, March, and April, there were 83 confirmed antisemitic incidents, representing 58% of the 143 total hate crimes.

The total for those months amounts to a confirmed antisemitic hate crime every 25 hours in the city. Hate crime experts and Jewish security officials have said many or most incidents are likely not reported to police.

After a surge in antisemitic hate crimes after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023 that continued in 2024, in 2025 the number dropped slightly, but Jews are still targeted more than all other groups combined every month.

The hate crimes range from harassment and graffiti to physical assaults.

In the latest incident, on Monday, swastikas were sprayed on Jewish sites in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Queens, as Jews prepared for the Lag B’omer holiday starting Monday night.

The Shmira neighborhood watch group said “multiple swastikas” were sprayed on Jewish targets overnight, including on a garage and on Congregation Machane Chodosh.

The swastika on the congregation was on a building cornerstone dedicated to survivors of Kristallnacht, the 1938 riots against Jews in Nazi Germany that marked a turning point in the Nazis’ persecution.

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin visited the area, along with other local leaders, saying that multiple homes and synagogues were vandalized.

“When rabbis and congregants arrived to pray this morning, they expected to be met with their usual loving community. When a family woke up, they were prepared to begin an otherwise normal week. Instead, they were met with terrifying signals of hatred and threats of violence,” Menin said in a statement.

She added that the NYPD was investigating and searching for at least four suspects.

Menin is leading an effort in the City Council to rein in antisemitic hate crimes in the city.

Other images circulating online showed graffiti saying “Heil Hitler” on a Jewish center.

The head of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, Mark Treyger, said the vandalized sites included a building that houses a pre-K children’s program.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he was “horrified and angered” by the graffiti.

“This is not just vandalism — it is a deliberate act of antisemitic hatred meant to instill fear. There is no place for antisemitism in Queens or anywhere in our city,” Mamdani said in a statement.

Mamdani, who has identified as an anti-Zionist, often condemns expressions of “classic antisemitism” such as swastikas, but does not consider anti-Zionist or anti-Israel activism as discriminatory.

A poll of Jewish New Yorkers released on Sunday found that a majority of  58% said antisemitism was “linked to the normalization of anti-Zionism,” while 25% disagreed.