Syrian Refugees, Antisemitism, and the Challenge of Integration in Germany

This book presents the first sustained empirical study of antisemitism among Syrian refugees in Germany, based on over 200 interviews conducted in Arabic and Kurdish in 2016–2017 and again in 2020–2021. Attending carefully to intra-group diversity—Arab vs. Kurdish, Sunni vs. secular—it documents the range of attitudes, from classical stereotypes and conspiracy theories to Holocaust distortion and Israel demonization, while tracing attitudinal change over time. Some interviewees questioned conspiracy narratives after exposure to Holocaust education and personal encounters with Jews; others remained entrenched. The book argues that while antisemitic attitudes are deeply rooted in decades of Syrian state propaganda, they are not immutable, and that understanding the conditions for change is essential for educators, policymakers, and civil society working on integration and antisemitism across Europe and North America.