The Binnenhof, where the lower and upper houses of the Dutch States General meet. Photo: Nikolai Karaneschev via Wikimedia Commons.

The Roman Catholic and Protestant churches in the Netherlands have issued a joint statement on the rise of antisemitism in the country.

According to Dutch public broadcasting outlet KRO-NCRV, which serves Dutch Christian communities, the churches’ statement said that they viewed “with great concern that antisemitism is becoming stronger.”

“Again and again there are incidents that lead to the creation of an unsafe climate for the Jewish community in the Netherlands,” they said. “That is unacceptable.”

“For the churches, the ongoing conversation with the Jewish community in the Netherlands is of great importance,” the statement added.

“We also consider it our responsibility to do everything we can to combat antisemitism throughout society and to support initiatives that put an end to it,” the churches said.

“We hereby call on the government and society as a whole to do everything in its power to combat antisemitism. As churches, we are naturally willing to further consult and collaborate,” the statement concluded.

Last month, the Dutch government allocated $3.5 million for the fight against antisemitism, the first time it had ever done so.