Anti-semitism only refers to hatred of Jews

In his letter (Irish Examiner, June 2), Charles Hayes displays all the ignorance we have come to expect from people who, for reasons best known to themselves, have issues with Israel and/or Jews. 

I won’t point out all Mr Hayes’s inaccuracies, nor the lack of context for his allegations, but will draw attention to two:

contrary to what he claims, ‘anti-semitism’ does not include Palestinians or other Arab/Muslim peoples. The word was coined in 1881 by Wilhelm Marr, German nationalist, race-agitator and founder of the Antisemen-Liga (1879), to describe the hatred of Jews.