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An alarming number of migrants crossing the English Channel are coming from antisemitic hotspots, new research has revealed. Ministers have been warned of a “clear and uncomfortable reality” about the cohorts arriving by small boat, as the scourge of antisemitism intensifies.

The Henry Jackson Society revealed some of the most common nationalities to be detected in the Channel hold antisemitic views and believe many of the most common tropes about Jewish people.

Countries such as Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, Sudan, Iran, India, Georgia and Vietnam all score higher than the UK on the Anti-Defamation League’s Global Index, which analyses antisemitic attitudes.

This should “inform how we think about integration and social cohesion”, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has been told, amid fears of “importing more extremism”.

Michael McManus, Director of Research, Henry Jackson Society, said: “This analysis highlights a clear and uncomfortable reality: many of those arriving in the UK are coming from societies where antisemitism is far more widespread than it is here.

“That should inform how we think about integration and social cohesion.

“At a time when antisemitism is already rising in Britain, it is not unreasonable to ask harder questions about the broader context in which migration is taking place – and the long-term implications of simply ignoring it.”

Researchers said the UK has an ADL antisemitism score of 12. But this means a staggering 6.7 million people living in this country “harbour elevated levels of antisemitic attitudes”, according to the monitoring group.

By comparison, Palestine has an ADL rating of 97, Egypt 84, Turkey 79, Iraq 77, Sudan 72, Iran 49, India 39, Georgia 37, and Vietnam 27.

Some 15,000 migrants from these countries arrived by small boat last year.

Kuwait and Palestine have the highest global scores, at 97.

Some 621 Kuwaitis arrived by small boat in 2025.

But some of the other most common countries of origin for Channel migrants – including Afghanistan, Eritrea, Syria, and Somalia – do not have available ADL data.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp told the Daily Express: “It is unacceptable that so many illegal immigrants come from countries where antisemitic attitudes are rampant. This is feeding the shocking levels of antisemitism we have seen in recent months and years. We have seen one small boat of illegal immigrants previously posted on social media brandishing a large gun and expressing support for the terrorist group Hamas.

“These illegal immigrants are mainly young men coming into the UK from France, which is safe. We must leave the ECHR, and then they can all be deported within a week of arrival. Then, the crossings would soon stop.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “When we discovered a Hamas-linked Gazan coming to the UK on a dinghy last year, we knew that was very unlikely to be the only case of a migrant with a record of antisemitism and extremism reaching British shores.

“As we have all seen over the past two years, there is already a great deal of extremism in this country already: the prospect of importing more of it, whether it comes via legal or illegal routes, is a frightening prospect.

“Clearly, this urgent topic must form part of our national conversation about immigration and integration.”

Concern over antisemitism in the UK has intensified after four Jewish community ambulances were firebombed in Golders Green.

Three people, two British men – Hamza Iqbal, 20, and Rehan Khan, 19 – and a 17-year-old boy who is a dual British-Pakistani national, have all been charged with arson with intent to damage property and being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.

A fourth man, a 19-year-old, was arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life on Saturday.

The revelations come after the Sunday Express revealed how foreign nationals from Spain, America, Canada, Australia, Brazil, and hotspots such as St Lucia and Barbados are among 150 nationalities in asylum hotels.

Critics branded the figures “shameful” as they warned many of the countries on the list compiled by this newspaper are “safe, sunny holiday destinations”.

More than one in three asylum seekers living in hotels are from African countries, while Afghans and Iranians make up the biggest cohorts.