South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. Photo: Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko.

JNS.org – The number of antisemitic incidents in South Africa fell to a 15-year low, according to the country’s Jewish umbrella organization.

A total of 36 antisemitic incidents were recorded in 2019, compared to 62 the previous year, according to the South African Jewish Board of Deputies. Only one incident consisted of physical assault, and no cases of desecration to Jewish property was recorded.

Some 75,000 Jews live in South Africa, most of them in Johannesburg, with the next largest Jewish community in Cape Town.

“We can be proud that at a time when attacks against Jews are everywhere growing both in number and severity, our country has consistently bucked the trend,” said Shaun Zagnoe, the Jewish board’s national chairman, in a statement. “As a result, South Africa continues to be a country where Jews can fully identify with and practice their religion without fear.”