“The Simon Wiesenthal Center commends President Obama for directly raising concerns over the growing menace of anti-Semitism in Turkey, with Turkish President Erdogan.  (See White House press release) This deeply troubling trend has been fueled by the extreme rhetoric of the Turkish leader and we are grateful that the President raised it directly with President Erdogan,” said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

Earlier this week, Rabbi Marvin Hier, Wiesenthal Center Dean and Founder joined with other Jewish leaders from the US and abroad to participate in a meeting at the State Department on the rising scourge of anti-Semitism across Europe, in Turkey and beyond. The group also met with Secretary of State John Kerry.

Rabbi Cooper, who will soon travel to Europe in connection with the explosion of anti-Semitism across the continent added, “The Obama Administration, at the highest levels has now expressed its concerns over global anti-Semitism. In the coming weeks, the Wiesenthal Center will press European leaders to match that concern with concrete actions to stem the tide of Jew-hatred in their societies.”  

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).  

For more information, please contact the Center's Public Relations Department, 310-553-9036, join the Center on Facebook, www.facebook.com/simonwiesenthalcenter,  or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent direct to your Twitter feed.