New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said over half of all confirmed hate crimes committed in the city in the first quarter of this year were antisemitic.
Confirmed hate crimes have risen overall citywide by 11.7% this year, with 78 out of 143 crimes, or 55%, were antisemitic, Tisch said.
Jews make up only 10% of the city's population.
The NYPD has changed how it reports hate crimes, tracking both reported hate crimes, those flagged for investigation by the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force — and confirmed hate crimes — those confirmed by the task force, the Jerusalem Post reported.
If an incident is reported as a hate crime, the task force investigates and determines whether the case is actually a hate crime under New York state law, in coordination with the NYPD Legal Bureau, the Jerusalem Post reported.
The NYPD said this change is designed to make hate crime reporting more transparent.
Last month, there were 42 reported hate crimes against Jews in the city, but only 32 were confirmed, the NYPD said.
In March 2025, there were 36 confirmed hate crimes against Jews.
This represents a decrease in antisemitic hate crimes compared to the same month in 2025, when there were 36.
Since the start of 2026, New York City has seen crime drop to historic lows, Tisch said, with a 5.3% decrease in major crime and a 20.6% decrease in burglaries, the second-lowest level in recorded history.
The first quarter of this year also saw the fewest murders and shootings in recorded history, Tisch said.
"These results are driven by our precision policing strategy to go after guns, take down violent gangs, and put officers on foot posts where they are needed most," Tisch said.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who took office this year, praised the drop in crime.
"The numbers tell a clear, indisputable story: Our approach to public safety is working," Mamdani said.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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