Jews and Refugees in Europe.

Jews and Refugees in Europe. PressurePoints. By Elliott Abrams.

Prof. Daniel Byman (of Brookings and Georgetown) wrote recently that

If the refugees are treated as a short-term humanitarian problem rather than as a long-term integration challenge, then we are likely to see this problem worsen.

Radicals will be among those who provide the religious, educational, and social support for the refugees – creating a problem where none existed.

Indeed, the refugees need a comprehensive and long-term package that includes political rights, educational support, and economic assistance as well as immediate humanitarian aid, particularly if they are admitted in large numbers.

If they cannot be integrated into local communities, then they risk perpetuating, or even exacerbating, the tensions between Muslim and non-Muslim communities in Europe.

The non-Muslim communities most likely to feel the brunt of those tensions are Jewish communities. German Jewish leaders explained the problem to Chancellor Merkel this week, warning of “widespread anti-Semitism among Muslim youth” in Germany and noting that “Many refugees come from countries where Israel is an enemy; this resentment is often transferred to Jews in general.” There are also reports that Germany’s security agencies have expressed the same warning. Read the full story here.