Crif, the umbrella represenative group of Jewish institutions in France, welcomed the decline in racist and anti-Semitic acts in 2016 in the country but called for vigilance against the new faces of hatred.

The French Interior Ministry published Tuesday its annual report which indicates that after a record year in 2015, racist, anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim acts declined markedly in France in 2016.

In one year, they fell from 2,034 to 1,125, a decline of 44.7%. But the report noted that it remains a black spot, that of attacks on Christian places of worship that are constantly increasing.

In one year, the number of anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim acts was halved. For anti-Semitic acts, the decrease is 58.5%. There were 1,662 complaints in 2014 and 808 in 2015. There were 335 cases in 2016.

Crif noted with satisfaction the significant decline in racist and anti-Semitic acts and threats in France in 2016 and the corresponding decrease in anti-Muslim acts.

"The action of the government, notably Operation Sentinel and the awareness-raising activities carried out by the Dilcrah were undoubtedly a decisive factor in this decline," said Crif, who deplored the rise of anti-Christian acts and expressed its ‘’total solidarity’’ with the Christian communities.

For Francis Kalifat, president of Crif, this decrease is the result of the will and the actions put in place by the government. "We remain vigilant, however, about the new forms of anti-Semitism and racism that are emerging in our society on new channels, including social networks and new faces such as the hatred of Israel."

Crif recalled, however, that the level of anti-Semitic acts and threats in 2016 remains very high, more than three times the average of the 1990s.

On the other hand, it noted an increase in racist and anti-Semitic remarks on the Internet, and an increase in anti-Zionist acts which in many cases conceal an anti-Semitic statement.

The group stressed that racist and anti-Semitic publications on the Internet are not the subject of complaints and are not measured in the figures published by the ministry.