WASHINGTON — There has been a troubling increase in anti-Semitic incidents across the country, including physical assaults this week on the streets of Los Angeles. President Joe Biden and congressional leaders have spoken out but leaders of some Jewish groups say more needs to happen. 

In the latest attack out of LA, video captured a caravan of cars traveling slowly along a Los Angeles street with its occupants waving Palestinian flags. That’s before several men get out of the cars and confronted diners, which was followed by a fight. Holly Huffnagle, the Director of the American Jewish Committee, said the actions outside that LA restaurant were disconcerting.

“Watching that video was very disturbing,” Huffnagle said. “They were trying to harass Jewish people. They got out of these bands and they went to patrons and asked, ‘Are you Jewish? Who's Jewish here?’ and attack them,” she said.

Since the brawl one week ago, two men were arrested in connection with the incident in which LAPD is investigating as an antisemitic hate crime. Reported incidents of anti-Semitism in the U.S. have increased 50% in the last two weeks, according to Huffnagle, who said it is the result of the air strikes and missile attacks between Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas earlier this month.

“The majority of recent attacks have been from this source related to the conflict in the Middle East,” Huffnagle said.

Huffnagle said she was personally affected by online attacks as a non-Jewish woman leading opposition to anti-Semitism.

“I grew up Christian so I was a betrayer of the white Christian race for helping Jews, and it's frightening,” Huffnagle said.

California has seen a 40% increase in anti-Semitic incidents over the last five years, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Having lived in Los Angeles before moving to Washington a few months ago, Huffnagle said she wanted things to change. 

Members of Congress have introduced dozens of resolutions and some legislation in the last couple of years in response to the increase in antisemitism yet none of them were bipartisan, Huffnagle said. 

Just this week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP leaders unveiled a bill to require the Justice Department to designate someone to expedite reviews of anti-Semitic hate crimes among other provisions, but it was done without Democratic sponsors. President Joe Biden called the rise in attacks “despicable” and the White House said it's working with community organizations to address the problem.

“He recognizes this is a persistent evil that always deserves our attention and efforts,” Jen Psaki, the White House Press Secretary, said. “We’ve been in close and ongoing contact I should say with the Jewish community to offer support. We've taken steps to confront anti-Semitic violence and hate crimes of any type, including by signing into law stronger hate crimes legislation.” 

Psaki referred to the first legislative action Congress took to bolster law enforcement’s response to the rise in attacks against people of Asian descent amid the pandemic. Huffnagle praised lawmakers and the president for approving that bill and said that the law also will help the Jewish community. But she said she wishes both parties could find common ground now on measures to specifically address anti-Semitism.

“Just kind of wondering where our allies are,” Huffnagle said. “We’re we're getting some support now which has been incredible, but there's just a lot of work to do ahead.”

Huffnagle said with the ceasefire in the Middle East, she hopes attacks will go away. But she said the big picture solution is Congress and more aware of what’s happening overseas and how that’s affecting the Jewish community in the United States.