A U.S. State Department official warned that China is increasingly promoting antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories in the wake of Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel.
Delivering a keynote address to the American Bar Association on Monday, Aaron Keyak, deputy special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, said China is trying to undermine the United States by claiming that Jews control the country.
“I have particular concern that since [the] Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, there’s been an increase in the People’s Republic of China’s state media and online discourse of antisemitic tropes that Jews control the United States through deep U.S.-Israel ties, as well as control over banks, the media and that they have influence over government leaders,” he said.
Keyak cited the example of an October 2023 program on “uncovering the Israel elements of U.S. elections in history,” during which the national Chinese broadcaster alleged that “Jews who represent 3% of the U.S. population control 70% of its wealth.”
“Conjecture that Jews control the U.S. government and U.S. wealth is an antisemitic falsehood intended to degrade trust in the United States, our democratic institutions, and ultimately, democracy around the globe,” he added.
Since Oct. 7, U.S. lawmakers have expressed concern that Chinese-owned media outlets and social-media platforms, including TikTok, have promoted anti-Israel and even pro-Hamas propaganda.
The Chinese government has been deeply critical of Israel throughout the conflict against Hamas, hasn’t condemned the Oct. 7 massacre and has accused Israel of “collective punishment” against the Palestinians.
“It’s high time to implement the two-state solution with concrete steps, including a full membership for Palestine in the U.N.,” wrote Zhang Jun, China’s ambassador to the United Nations, on Jan. 21.
