Sun-Times/WBBM Religion Roundup: Anti-Semitic incidents in Illinois up sharply

The number of anti-Semitic incidents reported in Illinois and the rest of the United States is rising.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, which advocates for the Jewish people and against hate, the total number of incidents against Jews and Jewish institutions in 2017 reported across the country was up 57 percent.

That included more than 1,000 incidents of harassment, 163 bomb threats, more than 950 vandalism incidents and 19 assaults.

In Illinois, the ADL tallied 47 incidents, 25 of them involving harassment and 22 of them vandalism.

There were 24 incidents reported in Illinois in the prior two years combined.

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The state with the most incidents reported was New York, with 380, followed by California, 268, and New Jersey, 208.

The Religion Roundup is also featured on WBBM Newsradio (780 AM and 105.9 FM) on Sundays at 6:22 a.m., 9:22 a.m. and 9:22 p.m. For more religion coverage, check out suntimes.com. Email tips and comments to Robert Herguth at rherguth@suntimes.com.