Middle East conflict shapes Jewish-Muslim relations less than local British experiences do

Evidence

We have shown throughout this chapter that though the role that the conflict in the Middle East plays in shaping Jewish–Muslim relations is difficult to ignore, the way in which the minutiae of these relations develop is determined by the local experiences of British Jews and Muslims, as well as, to a degree, by their collective historical memories. … It appears that for many British Jews and British Muslims, antisemitism and Islamophobia constitute a significant factor that determines their place in the vexed picture of Jewish–Muslim relations in the UK, and we argue that the social hesitation and fear that some British Jews and British Muslims have against each other is a symptom of wider problems in the way in which ‘minority’ groups are perceived and treated in the UK. — James Renton, Ben Gidley (eds.), Antisemitism and Islamophobia in Europe, 1765

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to broader literature on diaspora communities where homeland conflicts are mediated through local host-country experiences rather than directly.