French and Italian lawmakers are due to vote on new laws defining antisemitism, proposed in the wake of a surge in anti-Jewish incidents, but which critics allege could be used to censor criticism of Israel.
The French law, which is scheduled to be debated on Thursday, proposes to sanction speech "implicitly" justifying terrorism, calling for the destruction of a state recognized by France, and comparisons of Israel to the Nazis.
The Italian bill, if adopted, would make Italy the first country to write into law the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which lists certain criticisms of Israel as examples of antisemitism.
Legally defining antisemitism
Proponents of the laws point to the historic rise in antisemitism after Hamas's October 7, 2023 massacre and attack on Israel.
Critics - including some rights groups, academics, and left-wing politicians - allege that they will censor pro-Palestine activism and contribute to conflating Jews with the state of Israel.
"The (IHRA) definition confuses what is permitted speech - and that is criticism of Israel as a state - with what is prohibited speech, which is antisemitism and racial and religious incitement to violence," UN special rapporteur on free speech Irene Khan said.
The French law, which references the IHRA definition without fully adopting it, contained vague language, she added.
The Italian bill was approved by a large majority in the Upper House last month and is expected to begin its passage through the Lower House on Thursday. The French law has lost some political backing following a petition on the French parliamentary website signed by more than 700,000 people.
Sharp rise in atisemitism since October 7 massacre
In Italy, over two years from 2023, antisemitism rose by 100% to 963 incidents in 2025, according to the Italian Antisemitism Observatory. In France, antisemitic acts surged to record highs after the 2023 Hamas massacre, but fell 16% to 1,320 incidents last year compared with 2024.
France's human rights commission, the CNCDH, has said that antisemitic acts in France regularly peak in relation to operations carried out by the Israeli army.
The commission, which was not consulted for the law, wrote to MPs and the prime minister in January to warn of the dangers of conflating "the hatred of Jews and the hatred of the state of Israel."
Responding to this warning, Caroline Yadan, the French MP proposing the law, said that her text aimed to tackle "new forms of antisemitism" and that the "essentialisation that Jews equal Israel exists in today's society."
The Israel-Hamas war has led to a wave of anti-Israel demonstrations around the world, which Israel and its supporters assert are antisemitic.
Protesters say their criticism of Israel and its actions in Gaza should not be conflated with antisemitism.
Livia Ottolenghi, representative of the Union of Jewish Communities in Italy, said the new law was necessary and did not prevent criticism of Israel.
“In Italy, we do not live well," she said. "Our children have bars on their school windows; when they go out, they must be escorted."
IHRA working definition of antisemitism
The IHRA working definition of antisemitism has been adopted by 45 countries as a guide, but has not previously been written into law anywhere.
The Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner Michael O'Flaherty said he viewed the IHRA definition as a useful tool, but was concerned about its application, especially in Germany.
"To somehow attribute responsibility for the actions of a government to the Jewish community in Europe is totally unacceptable, and indeed, it does raise the specter of antisemitism," he said. "But to somehow conflate any criticism of Israel with antisemitism is ridiculous."
Sarya Kabbani, a French-Syrian woman, was put on trial under existing laws on antisemitism over carrying banners that drew parallels between Israeli politicians and Nazi Germany at a protest in Paris in December 2023. The 67-year-old was later acquitted by a court.
"It is freedom of expression to be able to say that Israel is committing war crimes, is committing genocide, is carrying out ethnic cleansing, is occupying," said the activist, who will join demonstrations against the French law this week.