[Institute for Global Jewish Affairs] Simon Erlanger - The Muslim population in Switzerland has increased rapidly from 16,353 in 1970 to an estimated 400,000 persons today, while the general population grew from around 6 million to 7.6 million. The Jewish community today is some 18,000 strong, a number that has not changed since the 1950s. There have been no anti-Jewish hate crimes. Kurds, Turks, and Bosnians tend to be more secular and friendlier toward Jews than Arabs from North Africa and the Middle East. However, there is a growing radicalization of disaffected Muslim youth, with Islamism gaining ground among certain groups. The writer teaches Jewish history at the University of Lucerne.
2008-09-26 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive